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Cichlid advice

2K views 4 replies 2 participants last post by  AndrewM21 
#1 ·
Hi Fellas,

I've had community tanks for a long tank but I've never had a cichlid tank. I've taken much advise from Philnominal (An active member in the aquarium chat) and I've done plenty of my own research. Here's what I have so far

50G Tank with:
Ivory coast cichlid sand
26lbs of stone decoration for caves (plan to add more)
2x Peacock cichlid (1x male/1x female)
3x Lemon Cichlid (2x female 1x male)

I'm wondering what other cichlids will make compatible tank mates for the above cichlids? What else does the community recommend when it comes to the care of cichlids?

I'm feeding them a combination of frozen brine shrimp to promote growth as well as spectrum new life cichlid forumla.

Thanks
 
#2 ·
More females for both of them, the aggression while not as bad as mbuna is best kept in check with a 1 male to 4 female ratio of nearly all cichlids with the exception of a few.

In a 50g tank I would be looking at around 15 fish maximum, perhaps another peacock cichlid, peacocks cover a whole lot of cichlids, something like an Aulonocara "German Red" would give a nice color combination.

Lemon cichlids are from Lake Tanganyika but do well with cichlids of Lake Malawi.

Perhaps 2 BrsitleNose Plecos or synodontis Multipunctus as a bottom feeders provided you give them a piece of driftwood.

No problem with what you are feeding them, all good. Supplement with a bit of carrot, zucchini and de-shelled peas (NONE frozen) and they will be happy.
 
#3 ·
Many thanks for your reply Taz. I was hoping you would reply here when I opened the thread because Philnominal told me you were the man to go to when it comes to cichlids.

I do like the coloration on the german red you mentioned and I might get one if my fish store has them or decides to get them. Do you have any other species that you would recommend for this tank?

Here is the current tank setup:

http://i1051.photobucket.com/albums/s434/Andrewm211/IMAG0011.jpg

I plan to add more rock and decor for hiding when I get the chance but right now those cichlids are tiny and there are only 4 in there currently.
 
#4 ·
Any other peacock that DOES NOT look similar to the ones you already have.

Otopharynx lithobates also work well with peacocks and get to about 5-6". A single fish would work with the peacocks or a Placidochromis phenochilus (only 1 as they get to 10") but are extremely peaceful and make a great centerpiece fish.

Check what your LFS has first, if not can point you to a good website to order almost any cichlid you want. :)
 
#5 ·
Thanks a bunch for the recommendations Taz. My LFS only has african cichlids so if you could point me to the website that would be extremely helpful :)

Phil gave me some great ideas on where to get slate from so I'm going shopping for some more rocks and slates soon enough hopefully.
 
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