Tropheus: Companions

Q&A about Tropheus and Petrochromis

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Pam Chin
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Tropheus: Companions

Post by Pam Chin »

Dear Pam,

Please advise me on what other Lake Tanganyikan species can be kept with 8 Tropheus moorii "Chimba" in a 590 liters (155 gallon) tank. I have a colony of Labidochromis caeruleus "Lions Cove Yellow" in the tank now than have been spawning like crazy and there must be 50 little juvenile "labs" in there. The "Chimba's" do seem to tolerate them well. I was hoping to add some more species with a radically different body and color type to the mix, that would have the same feeding characteristics, so feeding wouldn't be a problem. What about Eretmodus? I have seen this species mentioned but haven't been able to get a picture or a very good description of it's behavior. By the way would you know of a way to capture those juvenile "labs" without having to completely disrupt the tank? I was thinking of a passive trap of some sort.

Thanks, Paul
Pam Chin
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Posts: 1798
Joined: Sat Nov 29, 2003 9:11 am
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Post by Pam Chin »

Dear Paul,

My advice, would be to always keep Tropheus by themselves. At least that is how I have been most successful. Your tank is quite large, but you should just let them spawn a few times, and increase the size of your group. The problem with mixing species can cause all sorts of problems. For example, once I thought I would throw in some Neolamprologus brichardi with a small group of Tropheus that I had. My intent was to use them as dither fish, to deter them from trashing and chasing each other. When they did attempt spawning, the Tropheus were so busy chasing the N. brichardi, that they didn't pay any attention to what they were doing, and the eggs were not properly fertilized. Then the N. brichardi spawned, the Tropheus ate the fry and proceeded to bloat up and die. I was pretty upset to say the least. This could happen with any "lamps" you decide to put in there, and because of the size of the tank, you are not going to be able to get the "Lamp" fry out either. So, I say to be most successful, it is wise to keep them by themselves. They don't seem to want to eat their own fry, and usually accept them into the group, as males mature, you might want to remove them. One good thing about Labidochromis, is they are vegetarians too, and will do good on the types of food you should feed Tropheus. I am not saying that adding other fish will absolutely not work, I just don't advise it. I have killed plenty Tropheus over the years, so that is why I like to keep them separate! As far as catching the Labidochromis fry without taking down the tank, is going to be tough. You might want to try something along the line of a minnow catcher/trap. Have you ever seen that?? The fish can swim in, but they can't swim out. You might be able to design something like that. If all else fails, there is always the old fashion way, removing all the rocks, and lowering the water way down. I know... sounds like a lot of work!! Eretmodus are cool fish, they can be a bit harder to work with than other Tanganyikans, they are quite delicate. They are called goby Cichlids, and they stay close to the bottom of the tank, and kind of bounce around. There also are mouth brooders.
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