New to cichlids, lookin for some tips from all you cichlid experts :)

[tap]

Im new to cichlids and aquariums in general and im setting up a 40 gallon tank with a diy styrofoam an concrete background with caves an all that good stuff (i put up a posting of it in the DIY section) and im puttin in a undergravel jet system, and i was wondering if you guys had any good tips on what cichlids would be good for a tank this size.
Also id think itd be a good idea for it to be a cichlid thats generally easier to care for, and i wanna try breeding them cus thatd be cool, OH and one more thing im really diggin the crazy colored ones like these guys

Pundamilia Blue Bar

Mbipia Lutea

Xystichromis Kyoga Flameback



That should be goood haha
hope you liked the pics!
Any tips or pointers, ANYTHING, will be appreciated

THANKS :thm:

 

[Jaykit]

THey are very hardy fish and fairly easy to care for. As long as your water parameters are not out drastically they can handle alot. Most of the pictures you have are of peacocks which usually have the multicolored. In a 40g tank I wouldn't be getting too many because they all grow to be 6''+. Electric Yellows, cobalt blues, red zebras are what I started with. Good mixture of color and tend to be at the cheaper end of the cichlid pricing. Good luck with your tank.

 

[Coler]

They are great fish.

How big is your 40 ? standard size or breeder (Long ?) ? The longer the better.

You wouldn't get away with mixing all those fish in any tank short of a massive one so you need to refine your choices a little bit. Those crazy coloured ones are Lake Victorian, the yellow fellow and the demasoni are lake malawi. Generally especially when starting out you are better off not mixing lakes.

Here's an article about the three african rift lakes http://www.cichlidforum.com/articles/lakes_east_africa.php.

My understanding of victorians is that the aggression level is enormous. Ideally you'd have no less than a 55G I believe. Hopefully someone else can steer you here.

In your 40 you could consider the yellow labs, maybe with iodotropheus sperengae (rusties) or if you want the blue colouration like the demasoni, cynotilapia afra - lovely blue colour morphs available and they are a small mbuna (one of the malawi groupings) so would fit your tank. Say 4 labs (1 male 3 female) and 4 Afras (1 male 3 females) would have a reasonable chance of working out. Be aware that many very experienced hobbyists consider a four foot in length tank minimum for these fish. You will want seriously over-filtered set-up as well.

You couldn't mix the crazy coloured fellas in what them though.

 

[7itanium]

well.. I would rule out most africans, and ALL mbunas in a 40g

best go with a smaller SA/CA species- im not a pro on them but I know there are some dwarf species

 

[blue2fyre]

I disagree. Depending on what length the tank is I say you can easily keep some yellow labs and some other small species. If you wanted you could do a single species tank and keep salousi in it. The males are blue(similar to the demasoni) and the femals are bright yellow.

 

[Coler]

Yep a 40 is not necessarily off limits for mbuna - especially the smaller and more docile species (labs, rusties, afras). A species tank of saulosi is a great idea.

 

[7itanium]

meh.. I think you could get away with it definately

but I tend to stray away from an environment that isnt ideal.. the reason I say that about Mbunas is because they tend to do better in tanks with LOTS of rocks (which cuts down drastically on water volume) also they are MUCh more fun to keep when there is a lot of them.. their personalities and even color change dramatically

that being said.. you can definately keep some in a 40g.. but its not ideal

 

[Coler]

^ Yep I broadly agree.

 

[Pittbull]

Lake Victorian is best left to a species setup these guys can be quite boisterous and like coler said above those photos are of Victorians with the exception of yellow labs and demasoni..

Demasoni are really quite aggressive you either just do one or a lot like 12 anything like 3 or 4 will kill each other..

Labs, Rusty's, Saulosi will work in concentrations of 4 to 5's will be a little crowded and you will need to do weekly water changes and over filtrate but would work if you keep the maintenance up..