# 'big' feature fish for a mbuna tank



## Nina_b (Jan 3, 2011)

This is a speculative exercise, an attempt to end a debate (yea/nay).

Are there larger fish (say 8'') that can live with Mbuna as a 'centrepiece' fish?

OB peacocks spring to mind, but they're a hit-and-miss, and they grow to 6''(ish).
other fish eat Mbuna too readily (frontosa...nom nom nom)

thoughts?


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## Kanorin (Apr 8, 2008)

Likely yes, but it depends which mbuna they are living with.

There are quite a few haps that will be ok with mbuna if the haps are allowed to grow to ~5 inches before introducing juvenile or young-adult mbuna.


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## bac3492 (Jul 25, 2008)

I had a large male venustus in with my mbuna for a while. He worked out fine for the year or so that he was in there. Never had any agression issues. I gave him to a friend with a few females and a larger tank, so im sure he is happier now.


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## Nina_b (Jan 3, 2011)

Don't the mbuna get eaten, though?


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## mokujin22 (Jan 19, 2010)

Any Protomelas would be fine, as would Fossochromis rostratus, Cyrtocara moori, Placidochromis milomo... a bunch of fish.

What mbuna are you keeping btw? The answer of what you can keep in there would be vastly different if you're keeping salousi or crabro...


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## Nina_b (Jan 3, 2011)

Oh, heck, this is not for my tank. My current 55 is nicely full, and too small for these big guys. It's a debate, I figured that your mbuna would become lunch, a friend figured the mbuna would kill anything (a bit extreme, but then, they don't keep them ) and a third friend decided that there must be one.

I'm starting up a 125 gallon now (ish - got the tank today :dancing: ), hoping to keep cobalt blues, yellow labs, albino socolofi, and some demasonii in there, with catfish.

If I can stick a big fish in there... well, I don't know if I would. If it gets to it, a large victorian might be worth it, for preservation, but I really don't want it beaten up.

Visions of a full-grown champsochromis caeruleus cruising and munching 'little' adult cobalt blues have been haunting me since this debate started.


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## catfish crazy joe (Oct 30, 2011)

If you are doing more agressive mbuna i would suggest Sciaenochromis fryeri but if you were doing peaceful mbuna i would do flametail peacocks 8)


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

Nina_b said:


> Don't the mbuna get eaten, though?


By who?


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## chptunes (Jul 19, 2011)

Some others will know better than me, as my fish are still under 3".. but, consider Phenochilus Tanzania too...


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## Sparrk (Oct 11, 2010)

I've had a colony of Cytocara moorii in with my kenyi for 2 years now and everyone are doing great


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## dark SSide (Feb 12, 2010)

Even large haps normally prey of fry. I'm sure they could take a larger mbuna but usually don't in aquariums. I have close to one foot long Buccochromis rhoadesii , Champsochromis caeruleus, and a large Aristochromis christyi , with small yellow labs about three inches. And have even smaller syno cats in there and they don't mess with them.


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## Nina_b (Jan 3, 2011)

dark SSide said:


> Even large haps normally prey of fry. I'm sure they could take a larger mbuna but usually don't in aquariums. I have close to one foot long Buccochromis rhoadesii , Champsochromis caeruleus, and a large Aristochromis christyi , with small yellow labs about three inches. And have even smaller syno cats in there and they don't mess with them.


!

Holy moly! That's some epic fish you have there 

but alright, I stand firmly corrected. Mbuna won't just become snacks (at least, it seems like it is not typically observed).


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## LanceN34 (Mar 24, 2011)

dark SSide said:


> Even large haps normally prey of fry. I'm sure they could take a larger mbuna but usually don't in aquariums. I have close to one foot long Buccochromis rhoadesii , Champsochromis caeruleus, and a large Aristochromis christyi , with small yellow labs about three inches. And have even smaller syno cats in there and they don't mess with them.


hmm...i have no experience with these fish but when I google Aristochromis christyi, this is what the first site has to say about them...

*When you have seen other articles about the Malawi cichlids I'm keeping, you'll probably have noticed that my favorite ones are the large predators. Aristochromis christyi is also such a fish eater. In nature they hunt Mbuna who are approached with the body tilted over. The prey is observed with one eye and when it's within reach it's grabbed sideward. 
*

and a quick youtube search produced this video... 




It appears they would eat mbuna.


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## nmcichlid-aholic (Mar 23, 2011)

While I would agree that keeping larger predatory haps with mbuna (of appropriate size) would rarely result in the mbuna being eaten, it can certainly happen. I once tried to introduce a juvenile (about 1.5") johanni to my mixed all-male tank without being patient enough to grow him out some first, and I found him sticking out of my 6-7" N. livingstonii's mouth. The haps have never tried to eat a fish bigger than 2.5" though, but I imagine as they get bigger that may change.

One thing nobody has mentioned is possibly adding one of the jumbo mbuna species as a "centerpiece" fish. I'm not sure how it would work out because I've never kept them, but I think it would be cool to have a 7 or 8" Petrotilapia sp. "yellow ventral" or something similar swimming around amongst a bunch of other 3-5" mbuna. I have read that they're aggressive towards their own species, but don't really bother other types.


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## master chi (Jan 3, 2010)

How about a Male Acei or Crabro?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

How about Copadichromis borleyi in a 72" tank with a big group of labs?

You would want a 72" tank or larger for a 8" fish. I did try a 8" borleyi in my 75G but took him out...way too big.

I have not had success with other mbuna/peacock combinations (cynotilapia killed a maleri) so I avoid them.


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## Melanochromis (Mar 30, 2005)

master chi said:


> How about a Male Acei or Crabro?


Crabro can be tank terrorists so I would avoid them.


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## cantrell00 (Oct 30, 2010)

Just get Cynotilapia sp. ''chinyankwazi''. They can get to 8".


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## limpert (Aug 28, 2007)

how about fuelleborni?


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## cantrell00 (Oct 30, 2010)

limpert said:


> how about fuelleborni?


that too.


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## kodyboy (Dec 9, 2007)

I like a fossi for that, cool fish, unique shape and coloration.


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## Protazerg (Aug 28, 2007)

I have seen some Labeotropheus species get pretty **** big... they have a lot of nice color variations, and are still Mbuna.


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