# please tell me everything there is to know about african cichlids



## bubble87 (May 20, 2010)

well the story is i have kept tropical fish for about 5 years.certain problems arose so i had to give up .i have now brought a juwel rio 180 and was hoping to set it up but im moving house in 5 weeks, so im waiting till then.
at first i wanted to start another tropical tank up but im very intersted in african cichlids.i have brought lots of stuff for the tank but it was for a tropical setup so im not sure if i can use some of it for an african cichlid setup.i have (fluval 305 external filter,natural coloured gravel,bogwood,4 fake plant and all the other acsessories thats needed for a tank.


what do you need to set up a african cichlid tank?

can you use gravel?

what should the ph be?

are they much diffrent from keeping freshwater? if so what?

what type of food do they eat other than cichlid pellets?

are they hard to keep?

what secection of african cichlids are good to keep together?

sorry for all the questions


----------



## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

lol. Can't tell you everything. There's a library's worth. I do suggest looking for a book from the library. Start here http://cichlid-forum.com/ there are a lot of references. Lots of articles like this one. http://cichlid-forum.com/articles/lake_malawi_setup.php



> what do you need to set up a african cichlid tank


First a tank and a filter or two. Your tank is approx. 120 gallons 5 ft by 2 ft. Thats an excellent size for a cichlid tank. 



> can you use gravel?


 Yes, you can also use sand, dolomite, argonite, crushed coral or a bare bottom. A substrate that buffers will be more money, but help maintain your pH. 



> what should the ph be?


 Depends on which lake your fish are from. But its important the pH stays above 7. Malawi 7.5-8.8, Tanginika higher. You will also want a hardness test. Start by testing your tap water. You may not even need to buffer it. If you do, its not too difficult.



> are they much diffrent from keeping freshwater? if so what?


lol, lakewater is salty compared to amazon water, but it is still freshwater. People in Africa drink it and many places has similar water right out of the tap. You wouldn't use the bogwood as that tends to drop pH. The biggest difference from a typical "tropical" tank is the need for rocks and the high aggression levels. 



> what type of food


 Again depends of the fish. Some need lots of algae in their diet, others thrive on meaty supplements like crushed snail and brine shrimp. 



> are they hard to keep


 There are some hard to keep Africans, but the common mbuna is very easy to keep in a large enough tank. Most of the problems people have with aggression is from keeping them in too small a container. 



> what selection of african cichlids are good to keep together?


First, pick a lake, then pick fish from that lake that have a similar level of aggression and don't look alike and aren't closely related (avoid fish in the same genus). look here for suggestion for a 75 http://cichlid-forum.com/articles/cookie_cutter_75g.php . For your tank you could just up the number of each fish.


----------



## Corwin (May 23, 2010)

they are fish, and they come from africa... well sorry thats my knowledge base exhausted. GL with your future african chichlids


----------



## Superfly724 (Sep 16, 2007)

Lots and lots of rock. And beware. They like to dig a lot. If your rocks aren't set up sturdy enough, they may dig underneath them and get crushed. Also, because they like to dig, avoid sharp substrates because they could harm their mouths.

So much to tell. Best I can tell you is to use the links that EMC7 sent you. They're great places to start.


----------



## Revolution1221 (Apr 20, 2010)

i would avoid your fake plants you got you will juts get frustrated having to replant them all the time


----------



## Superfly724 (Sep 16, 2007)

I heard that too. A lot of folks say that even fake plants will get uprooted, but I guess it depends on the individual personalities of your fish. I've covered the left side of my tank in a huge cave system while the right side is just flat and plain swimming area. It looked kinda dull so I added 2 plants and they havn't really touched them. It's been about a month or 2 since I added them. 

It all just depends on what your individual fish wants to do. I've also found a way to mount a fake plant at the top of the tank so the leaves fall down into the water. It's actually extremely helpful since it provides cover at the top of the tank. The new additions like to hide up there so they don't get picked on by the bigger folks.


----------



## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I use fake plants and live ones like hornwort and java fern. They aren't correct from a biotope stand point, but the territorial fish aren't interested in them so the holding mothers or picked on fish can hide there. In the wild, the females would move into the area the males are defending long enough to breed, and then move off, a whole school of (for instance, peacock) holding females. In a tank, if you keep males and females together you either need to remove holding females to "maternity" tanks or provide extra hiding places. It isn't that big a deal to replant a plant once in awhile. 

If you are the type that spends hours rearranging your plants so it looks just like a landscape painting, you really don't want to keep cichlids. They want to be 'aquascaper".


----------



## DTetras2 (Jan 20, 2010)

Ya, you definitely want do do a lot of research, but i can answer you're questions:
1) Malawi Cichlids NEED lots of rocks and hiding places. It's a good idea to not put any plants in the tank, it's just not natural for them. The 120 gallon is deffinitely an excelent size aquarium for at least 20-25 Malawi Cichlids, and to that i say, KUTOS TO YOU!!

2) Yes, you can definitely use gravel, but i use sand just so it's easier on them when they want to dig up the substrate, but you can use gravel.

3) The PH should be between about 7.5-8.

4) No, I don't think they are much different from _other_ freshwater fish, they just are different from planted tanks because they need rock based tanks, but yes, they are definitely freshwater fish.:lol:

5) Malawi cichlids, like other cichlids, eat freeze-dried krill, bloodworms, tubifex worms, and shrimp. You could get some live foods like brine shrimp, just don't feed them live fish. Instead of cichlid _pellets_, you should get cichlid sticks, i think they are more healthy and filling than pellets.

6) I don't think Malawi Cichlids are that hard to keep, but I did have only one malawi cichlid that got both pop-eye and fin rot, but i think that was just bad luck. Just make sure you give them lot's of hiding places.

7) This question i cannot answer. There are sooooo many different species and subspecies of malawi cichlids, you can't really pick them out. The most peaceful malawi cichlid i know of is the electric yellow cichlid, or also known as the Labidochromis SP. 

Don't worry about the amount of questions, It's good to ask questions about fish. That's how you get answers and that's what this forum is for Hope i could help


----------



## snyderguy (Feb 9, 2010)

I had 8 in a 55 gallon. They all ate each other. I'm done with african cichlids.


----------



## Superfly724 (Sep 16, 2007)

I had a rough time keeping Malawi cichlids in a 55. I would honestly say a 75 is a good minimum for anything from Malawi. Also, don't just buy random assorted Cichlids. Know what you're buying. One of the most common Mbuna, the Red Zebra, can get up to 7 inches and is extremely aggressive. It's just too large for a 4 ft. tank. 

I've recently fallen in love with Tanganyikan cichlids, though. You can succesfully keep some select species of those in 10 gallon. They're generally much less aggressive and, if you ask me, have better personalities. Sure, most of them arn't as colorful as the Mbuna or Peacocks, but there really are some wonderful Tanganyikans. Check them out before giving up.


----------



## DTetras2 (Jan 20, 2010)

> I would honestly say a 75 is a good minimum for anything from Malawi.


I wouldn't say that. I had a 37 gallon malawi tank with 5 Malawi cichlids, and they did great Sure they poked at eachother, but what malawi cichlids don't?:lol:


----------



## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

I bet you didn't keep them for their whole life, right? I mean fish that are fine a 1", 2", 3", suddenly want to be an only fish when they get to be 6". You ask a store, they say 10 gallon because thats what they keep their 1" fry in. I keep mbuna in 55s, and I have to keep selling/giving away the biggest ones. Only they smaller species are fine for a lifetime i that tank.


----------

