Sumpin's Fishy - Page 2

Darkness · 15-03-2007, 11:42

Gravel is indeed a big

see this for the sand:
http://www.cichlidforum.com/phpBB/vi...fef65f2c2ea0f6
It contains photo's from a Dutch guy that went diving in Lake Malawi in november. One of the pictures is a close-up of the sand in the lake. Maybe you can aim for something close to that colour?

Tubby Rower · 15-03-2007, 18:50

I went ahead and order a few of the smaller THR from bambi's website. I had in my original budget to get 3 for $40 each. and I got 3 for ~ $60.

33.06 KB

http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock235.html
http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock237.html
http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock243.html

Furiey · 16-03-2007, 00:41

Those pics bring back a lot of memories. The were lots of large fish nests on the bottom like this one

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...-11-05_16.jpg]

in the sandy area where we were staying.

Tubby Rower · 17-03-2007, 18:11

Ok I went to the local fish store and I got the species names and prices for the different mbuna. I've listed them here in Alphabetical order by genus then species

Iidotropheas
- Sprengerae $5.99 (Rusty Cichlid)

Melanchromis
- Chipokae $6.18 (Malawi Pike Cichlid)
- Cyaneorhabdos $7.06 (Maingano)
- Johanni $4.17

Neolamprolongus
- Brichardi $8.92
- Pulcher didn't see a price but they had the species

Pseudotropheas
- Acei $5.19 (Yellow tail Acei)
- Elongatus $5.45
- Lombardoi $4.82
- Zebra $4.78-$7.08 depending on color

Darkness · 17-03-2007, 19:40

Quote:

quote:Originally posted by Tubby Rower

Ok I went to the local fish store and I got the species names and prices for the different mbuna. I've listed them here in Alphabetical order by genus then species

Iidotropheas
- Sprengerae $5.99 (Rusty Cichlid)

Melanchromis
- Chipokae $6.18 (Malawi Pike Cichlid)
- Cyaneorhabdos $7.06 (Maingano)
- Johanni $4.17

Neolamprolongus
- Brichardi $8.92
- Pulcher didn't see a price but they had the species

Pseudotropheas
- Acei $5.19 (Yellow tail Acei)
- Elongatus $5.45
- Lombardoi $4.82
- Zebra $4.78-$7.08 depending on color

OK... First off: Neolamprologus is not a lake Malawi fish genus. They are from lake Tanganyika.

Iodotropheus sprengerae are easy fish. Excellent cichlids for beginners. Fairly low aggression and they don't get too big

Melanochromis Chipokae, M. Cyaneorhabdos and M. Johanni are all good fish for a 55 gallon. One thing though: Only one Melanochromis species per tank (because they all hybridize like mad) and keep only one male and several females.
I've got Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos myself. Very pretty fish, but the male can be nasty sometimes.

Pseudotropheus Acei is also a good beginner fish. They are also fairly calm, and you could even keep more than one male in the tank.

Pseudotropheus Elongatus is a collection name. There are about 10 species with that name (followed by a type localization). All are fairly aggressive, so I personally would not recommend them.

Pseudotropheus Lombardoi is actually the old name for this fish. The correct name is currently Metriaclima lombardoi. Very pretty fish. Males are yellow and femalles are blue (with darker blue bars). Not too agressive, but they get a bit bigger than most Mbuna, though a 55 gallon is a good size for them.

Pseudotropheus Zebra is also the old name for this fish. it is now Metriaclima Zebra. Also gets a bit bigger than most. Males are quite pretty, with a striking bar pattern. Females are fairly drab though.

Did the shop have any Labidochromis species? Labidochromis is the least aggressive genus in Lake Malawi, and they combine very well with other fish

For a 55 gallon I'd recommend sticking to 3 or 4 species. 1 male and 2 or 3 females per species.

From the fish you've listed I'd take (purely based on aggressionlevels, as these below are the least aggressive in the list you posted):
- Iodotropheus sprengerae (1m/2f)
- Melanochromis johanni (1m/3f) (males are black and blue, females - are yellow and black, both with horizontal bars)
- Pseudotropheus acei (1m/3f)

And if you can find them you could try a pair of Labidochromis caeruleus "Yellow". That one is hands down the most docile cichlid in Lake Malawi and males don't even need more than one female to keep them busy.

Tubby Rower · 17-03-2007, 20:04

they did say that I if I could find the web address for Blue Ridge MArina that I could get them to order anything that they have in their next scheduled order. But unfortunately I couldn't find the web address. So I might email the shop and ask them for a phone number of the supplier or a valid web address. I suspect that they could get most anything.

One bad thing is that they didn't have the species seperated by location. So I had to use my quick goat thinking to figure out which were haps and which were mbuna. They also had some peacocks there and I knew to stay away from them. I took a picture of the adult tank they had set up and would post that picture, but my wife has the camera in her purse. So I'll get that up later. I also looked at the website again from home with the sand coloration. Apparently the pics that you meant for me to see were blocked by IT @ work...That sand looks like playground sand almost. Some of those pictures looked like fine gravel. Also I need to get some idea of what type of filter you guys think that I should be using. Darkness suggested EHIEM (or something like that) but is that a canister type or a corner over-flow... I think that I'm getting confused in the filter issue.

Tubby Rower · 17-03-2007, 21:58

here is the store tank that I was speaking of... the Acei (light blue with yellow tail) is the king of this tank and is colored very nicely

btw, I'm chronicalling the journey that I'm on via comcast's free web space that I have. Well it's not free but it's included with my internet. Something Adelphia didn't give away. the site is http://cventers.home.comcast.net/ I haven't updated it yet with any pictures yet...

ProPain · 18-03-2007, 23:01

Didn't know there were so many fish fanatics on CDZ!!

Owned a tiny little aquarium in my early teens, wouldnt know what kind of 'guppies' were in there only that they bred like rabbits. Quit this hobby when we moved during a hot summer and I forgot to take the half empty tank out of the back of my mom's hatchback. Remembered the tank was still in the car after 1 day. Cooked them all...

Tubby Rower · 19-03-2007, 18:30

I've been reading up on Darkness's suggestions and it appears as though some of the species are hard to sex as juveniles and sometimes hard to sex as adults. So Should I just get 1 extra juvenile and return any excess females or males that I might get? What happens if some die? will I be able to add some new fish without starting Fish Wars II?

btw, my rocks are due on Wednesday. Sherry mentioned some other things that we'll need for the house like a fridge, dining room table, new sofa, & window treatments. So I might have to delay this a bit. I'm trying to work it out so I could buy some things now, so it's not as big of a purchase all at once... but I think that she's getting wise to that.

Furiey · 19-03-2007, 22:37

You'll need to set the tank up and leave it to balance for a week or two before you add any fish, so you should be able to get tank into one month's bills and fish into the next month. I can see the need for a fridge, after all the beer still needs to be kept cold, but can't you use packing crates for the rest?

Darkness can give you a better idea on the Malawi chiclids, but I find mine don't often take well to another mate if the first dies, particularly if they have been together a while. I often find I lose the second fish in a pair quite quickly if I lose the first.

15-03-2007, 11:42	#11
Darkness Moderator Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Netherlands. Posts: 4,169	Gravel is indeed a big see this for the sand: http://www.cichlidforum.com/phpBB/vi...fef65f2c2ea0f6 It contains photo's from a Dutch guy that went diving in Lake Malawi in november. One of the pictures is a close-up of the sand in the lake. Maybe you can aim for something close to that colour? __________________ "Death is lighter than a feather, but duty is heavier than a mountain..." - The Eye of the World

15-03-2007, 18:50	#12
Tubby Rower Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Middle of VA. Posts: 3,896	I went ahead and order a few of the smaller THR from bambi's website. I had in my original budget to get 3 for $40 each. and I got 3 for ~ $60. 33.06 KB http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock235.html http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock237.html http://www.bambis-texasholeyrocks.co...eyrock243.html __________________ 3/2006 : Now, surely that must be because some fists might have caused internal damage to certain delicate parts?

17-03-2007, 18:11	#14
Tubby Rower Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Middle of VA. Posts: 3,896	Ok I went to the local fish store and I got the species names and prices for the different mbuna. I've listed them here in Alphabetical order by genus then species Iidotropheas - Sprengerae $5.99 (Rusty Cichlid) Melanchromis - Chipokae $6.18 (Malawi Pike Cichlid) - Cyaneorhabdos $7.06 (Maingano) - Johanni $4.17 Neolamprolongus - Brichardi $8.92 - Pulcher didn't see a price but they had the species Pseudotropheas - Acei $5.19 (Yellow tail Acei) - Elongatus $5.45 - Lombardoi $4.82 - Zebra $4.78-$7.08 depending on color __________________ 3/2006 : Now, surely that must be because some fists might have caused internal damage to certain delicate parts?

17-03-2007, 20:04	#16
Tubby Rower Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Middle of VA. Posts: 3,896	they did say that I if I could find the web address for Blue Ridge MArina that I could get them to order anything that they have in their next scheduled order. But unfortunately I couldn't find the web address. So I might email the shop and ask them for a phone number of the supplier or a valid web address. I suspect that they could get most anything. One bad thing is that they didn't have the species seperated by location. So I had to use my quick goat thinking to figure out which were haps and which were mbuna. They also had some peacocks there and I knew to stay away from them. I took a picture of the adult tank they had set up and would post that picture, but my wife has the camera in her purse. So I'll get that up later. I also looked at the website again from home with the sand coloration. Apparently the pics that you meant for me to see were blocked by IT @ work...That sand looks like playground sand almost. Some of those pictures looked like fine gravel. Also I need to get some idea of what type of filter you guys think that I should be using. Darkness suggested EHIEM (or something like that) but is that a canister type or a corner over-flow... I think that I'm getting confused in the filter issue. __________________ 3/2006 : Now, surely that must be because some fists might have caused internal damage to certain delicate parts?

17-03-2007, 21:58	#17
Tubby Rower Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Middle of VA. Posts: 3,896	here is the store tank that I was speaking of... the Acei (light blue with yellow tail) is the king of this tank and is colored very nicely btw, I'm chronicalling the journey that I'm on via comcast's free web space that I have. Well it's not free but it's included with my internet. Something Adelphia didn't give away. the site is http://cventers.home.comcast.net/ I haven't updated it yet with any pictures yet... __________________ 3/2006 : Now, surely that must be because some fists might have caused internal damage to certain delicate parts?

16-03-2007, 00:41	#13
Furiey King Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Bedfordshire UK. Posts: 1,031	Those pics bring back a lot of memories. The were lots of large fish nests on the bottom like this one http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...-11-05_16.jpg] in the sandy area where we were staying.

18-03-2007, 23:01	#18
ProPain Customized Admin :) Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: sailing the seas of cheese. Posts: 5,852	Didn't know there were so many fish fanatics on CDZ!! Owned a tiny little aquarium in my early teens, wouldnt know what kind of 'guppies' were in there only that they bred like rabbits. Quit this hobby when we moved during a hot summer and I forgot to take the half empty tank out of the back of my mom's hatchback. Remembered the tank was still in the car after 1 day. Cooked them all... __________________ I fed my Dog the American Dream Well, he rolled over and he started to scream He said, I dig the taste of salt but it don't keep me alive yeah, yeah

19-03-2007, 18:30	#19
Tubby Rower Moderator Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Middle of VA. Posts: 3,896	I've been reading up on Darkness's suggestions and it appears as though some of the species are hard to sex as juveniles and sometimes hard to sex as adults. So Should I just get 1 extra juvenile and return any excess females or males that I might get? What happens if some die? will I be able to add some new fish without starting Fish Wars II? btw, my rocks are due on Wednesday. Sherry mentioned some other things that we'll need for the house like a fridge, dining room table, new sofa, & window treatments. So I might have to delay this a bit. I'm trying to work it out so I could buy some things now, so it's not as big of a purchase all at once... but I think that she's getting wise to that. __________________ 3/2006 : Now, surely that must be because some fists might have caused internal damage to certain delicate parts?

19-03-2007, 22:37	#20
Furiey King Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Bedfordshire UK. Posts: 1,031	You'll need to set the tank up and leave it to balance for a week or two before you add any fish, so you should be able to get tank into one month's bills and fish into the next month. I can see the need for a fridge, after all the beer still needs to be kept cold, but can't you use packing crates for the rest? Darkness can give you a better idea on the Malawi chiclids, but I find mine don't often take well to another mate if the first dies, particularly if they have been together a while. I often find I lose the second fish in a pair quite quickly if I lose the first.