Starting a new tank..this one will be perfect

Q&A about Lake Victoria Cichlids

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Aspencer
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2011 10:26 am

Starting a new tank..this one will be perfect

Post by Aspencer »

Hi Pam, I have talked to you before at another forum....I would like to get advice from a pro.

I moved to a new house and have room for one tank only. I have space a tank that is maximum 4 feet in length.

My natural pH is 7.4 in my two other tanks. They are planted with Sand substrate and I use PPS Pro dosing regime without KNO3 since I always have nitrates in my water. I do water changes every 4 days, around 40 to 50%.

I prefer a tank with one species. Right now I have a 20g Long with a pair of Kribs and some dither fish. For my new tank, I would like one species that will breed and somewhat challanging or unusual.

Can you recommend a tank...40g breeder or 33 long...and a species you might think I would like.

Thanks, Leo

Madras, Oregon
Pam Chin
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Re: Starting a new tank..this one will be perfect

Post by Pam Chin »

Hi Leo,

If you have 48" then you should definitely try to work in a 55 gal tank. This will give you a lot more options in the future and the ability to work with different species. I applaud your maintenace routine, that is really great, I can tell you like your fish!

When it comes to species only tanks you might want to try working with some of the mouthbrooders from Malawi. They do well in groups, I would suggest in a 55 you can probably do a group of 12 - 18 depending on the species. This way your tank will be full of fish and you could pick a cichlid that is sexually dimorphic; the males are one color and females are a different color. Such as Pseudotropheus saulosi, where the females are yellow and the males are blue. Or maybe you would like to work with some of smaller Hap types, where the dominate male flashes color at all times, but the females are beautiful battleship grey! You could also do Victorian Haps as well in a 40 - 55 gal tank. Or you could cheat the system, and do a small group of mbuna with all male haps or small group of haps.

So you can see there are tons of cichlids that you could pick from; currently in Victoria and Malawi combined you have hundreds of options. Fishkeeping is a personal thing, and you should keep what you are going to enjoy the most. You must have a few speices that you are leaning towards? Also you may want to check around and find out which fish are endangered or at risk in the wild and help maintain a species of fish. Many of the Victorians are on the list.

So kick it around, do your research regarding tank size and diet, and then go with your heart!

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Pam
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