New Cichlids.. Rubbing Against Rocks
- Thread starter Demonliez
- Start date
I am so glad you started this thread because i have been having the same problem. I recently added a Johanni to my tank and she began flashing (rubbing on rocks) a few of the others began to do it also. One of my yellows that was doing it died after just getting very sick, i put some parasite rid into the tank and the flashing lessened. Recently they have started to do it again, first the Johanni, followed by the other yellow and a few others. I treated the tank again and it didnt do much, 2 weeks later they are still doing it, not all the time, just occasionally 
none of them are sick. My water is good. I do weekly 25 % water changes with the gravel cleaner, i clean the filter around 3 days after the water change, my ph is around 7.8 without doing anything, i use a water hardening white gravel mix along with my normal gravel. Amonia is zero, nitrites and nitrates are also zero (obviously 
) so i cant work out why the fish would be flashing. But this thread has been very helpful, i will stop with the medication and just slowly add some salt, see how they go.
none of them are sick. My water is good. I do weekly 25 % water changes with the gravel cleaner, i clean the filter around 3 days after the water change, my ph is around 7.8 without doing anything, i use a water hardening white gravel mix along with my normal gravel. Amonia is zero, nitrites and nitrates are also zero (obviously ) so i cant work out why the fish would be flashing. But this thread has been very helpful, i will stop with the medication and just slowly add some salt, see how they go.~*LuvMyKribs*~
Is that electric yellows with electric blue in one tank? cause i wanted the blues so bad but i heard they dont get along...
Is that electric yellows with electric blue in one tank? cause i wanted the blues so bad but i heard they dont get along...
JSchmidt said:
Agreed. Most likely it is territorial flashing as your new fish get used to their new environment. My Mbunas do it every now and then. My alpha Lombardoi seems to do it more than the other fish.
TipStylez said:
No, those are Pseudotropheus saulosi, its one species. They all start out yellow when young and when the males mature they turn blue with black stripes. Very vibrant, wonderful species. You cant say ANY malawi cichlids get along, and you cant say any dont.... if you follow what i am saying.
Sometimes species combos work, sometimes they dont, a lot is trial and error and dependant on the individual fish. But you can work around it by its aggression 'level'. Dont mix a "peaceful" and an "aggressive" malawi cichlid then youll have trouble. Shoot for a "peaceful" tank to start off with and when you are more experienced with them then try for more aggressive species. -Diana
Check the rocks for eggs.
I have several Convicts in my tank that display this behavior from time to time, and quite often I notice eggs. The gray fish that you described with the dark black stripes sounds like a Convict. I also have a large Pleco, that eats the eggs if the area is not protected by the parents.
I have several Convicts in my tank that display this behavior from time to time, and quite often I notice eggs. The gray fish that you described with the dark black stripes sounds like a Convict. I also have a large Pleco, that eats the eggs if the area is not protected by the parents.
Demonliez said:
There are two very distinct possibilities, and both have been mentioned repeatedly. My cichlids do flash as a sign of aggression, generally when they are fighting over something and brak apart they will flash otherwise they never do.
Ick can and will cause this as well and so will ammonia burn from a cycling tank. If you got bio-balls from petland at the ratio they reccomend and kept them wet on the trip home you probably don't have cycling issues (the bio-ball idea is great and I wish other fish stores would copy it from petland)
I would observe closely and read up on ich. It is still a possibility, but I don't know if I would treat right away myself. Watch to see if the flashing occurs only during aggressive behavior around other fish or if it is random and occurs even when a fish is alone. it MAy be hard to seperate, but not impossible.
frangipani I would fully agree that it is possible you don't have a parasite, however in your case with a recent fish loss, I would be a little more agressive. if you didn't keep up full parasite treatment for a minimum of two weeks, or if you didn't use a med effective for the parasite you have, there is a big danger of you losing more fish. Please read up on ich, gill flukes, and so on. Ich hides very well, flukes hide better than ich. the same med won't kill both despite the claims most meds make. Prazi is an awesome cure for flukes, but contrary to their claims, it isn't all that effective on ich. For Ich I would reccomend salt (NaCl ) not cichlid salt, at 2 teaspoons per gallon for at least two weeks after the last sign of a problem.
There is an article on ich in the articles forum, there are also many other great articles all over the web dealing with this very common parasite.
dave
Ick can and will cause this as well and so will ammonia burn from a cycling tank. If you got bio-balls from petland at the ratio they reccomend and kept them wet on the trip home you probably don't have cycling issues (the bio-ball idea is great and I wish other fish stores would copy it from petland)
I would observe closely and read up on ich. It is still a possibility, but I don't know if I would treat right away myself. Watch to see if the flashing occurs only during aggressive behavior around other fish or if it is random and occurs even when a fish is alone. it MAy be hard to seperate, but not impossible.
frangipani I would fully agree that it is possible you don't have a parasite, however in your case with a recent fish loss, I would be a little more agressive. if you didn't keep up full parasite treatment for a minimum of two weeks, or if you didn't use a med effective for the parasite you have, there is a big danger of you losing more fish. Please read up on ich, gill flukes, and so on. Ich hides very well, flukes hide better than ich. the same med won't kill both despite the claims most meds make. Prazi is an awesome cure for flukes, but contrary to their claims, it isn't all that effective on ich. For Ich I would reccomend salt (NaCl ) not cichlid salt, at 2 teaspoons per gallon for at least two weeks after the last sign of a problem.
There is an article on ich in the articles forum, there are also many other great articles all over the web dealing with this very common parasite.
dave
Does anyone think it is because he added too many fish at one time. That is a lot of fish for a brand new tank in a short period of time. The bacteria didn't have time to adjust to ammonia levels. Could be a burning sensation for the fish and that is why they are rubbing themselves. Try doing a 20% water change everyday for the next two weeks and see if it gets better. I know it might be a pain in the *** to do, but it will help get the ammonia down while the tank is finishing up its cycle. Addding a small amount of salt won't hurt, so I would do that too, but you don't want to be adding chemicals without knowing for sure what is wrong with the fish. Not to mention that you have a pleco in there and they don't take to medicaton very well.
