# would a red tail black shark be ok with my mbuna



## alanvickiuk

i have 3 small yellow labs and 2 small yellow tail acei and will have 2 small white tail acei too when they arrive

i wanted to keep a red tail black shark in there with them and thought now would be the best time to buy 1 while there still 1.5"

if it is possible what would be the best size to get ?? say a little bigger than the mbuna are now or would it be better getting the same size ??
:fish:


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## alanvickiuk

anyone ?????????


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## ash01

Yeah a RBS should be fine with the fish you have stocked. The Mbuna you have are less aggressive than other mbuna.

I think they are great to watch in the tank as they are out all day and night grazing on the biofilm on the rocks etc. Much better than most Syno's that hide all day and much less messy then any of the plecs and a lot prettier.

I would recommened waiting until you have plenty algae on the rocks tho as i have noticed that my RBS never really tries to eat the Danichi pellets i feed my haps/peacocks he either doesn't like it or gets enough algae etc from the rocks. My RBS has got my tank sparkling.

Also make sure you have rocks or another form of cover for the RBS to give him a bit of territory/shelter.

Good luck and let us know how yoou get on.

Ash :fish:


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## Jonesboy75

IMO, red tail sharks are hands-down one of the best scavenger-type tankmates for mbuna. The only other fish in their league as far as I'm concerned are clown loaches. Both species are extremely colorful with much different body shapes than mbuna. They can also handle the abuse cichlids sometimes dish out and can even cause trouble themselves at times (especially the sharks). In all honesty, given your stock list, I would be surprised if the red tail doesn't end up becoming 'the king of the tank'. Be careful if that happens. While the structure of their mouths doesn't allow red tails to do much damage with their bite, they can be EXTREMELY persistent about chasing and creating stress for their tankmates. As for the size of the shark, I would suggest you get one as small as possible (as long as your other fish can't eat him). That way he may learn to steer clear of confrontation with the cichlids and be more peaceful as he grows. I've kept red tails with much more aggressive mbuna (auratus, kenyi, elongatus, demasoni, etc.) and they've never had a problem surviving and thriving with such tank terrors. As for feeding, IME they eat pretty much everything I feed my cichlids including flakes, algae wafers, shrimp pellets, NLS, etc..


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## alanvickiuk

lovely cheers for that and 1 last thing could i get a small 1 ??


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## alanvickiuk

didnt see the above post before i posted my reply i am going to go buy 1 tomorrow now *** always loved rbs but never owned 1 *** had rainbow shark/loaches but found them dull compared to rbs and also had clown loaches but not really a fan so you have made my day now 

thanks :fish: :fish:


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## kmuda

My 2 cents worth. First off... a disclaimer, I don't keep Africans. I do however, keep RTBS, have had at least one in a tank for the last 20 years. They are amongst my favorite fish, since I was a kid.

I cannot keep RTBS with South American cichlids, excluding Angelfish. I don't know why, but with firemouths, convicts, keyholes, and the like, the RTBS is an aggressive little beast. Especially with firemouths. Even if he gets his tail handed too him, he keeps at it, chasing the other fish relentlessly.

Not as bad with Angels. I currently have one with my Kissing Gourami, the same one that caused me to remove a firemouth from the tank, and he gets along fine with the Kissing Gourami and Angelfish. Is a bit of a bully with the tetras in the tank, but it's not a continually obsessive rage as it was with the firemouth. I've had similar experiences with other RTBS housed with other cichlids.

So just be warned. It may not the RTBS you have to be concerned about, it may be the cichlids who are under constant embarrassment, although they do appear to be somewhat selective in who they are going to harass.


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## JPA

I have kept one with my mbuna for almost a year, and he does great! Definetly holds his own! He eats everything I give my fish(cichlid excel, omega one veggie flakes, and alage wafers and mysis shrimp as a treat). Just wondering if anyone knows how big he will get? Hes probably about 3" right now at 1 year old.


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## bcpits

i tried to a add a 4+ inch rt, did alot of chasing and was stressing the fish out, so i returned him


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## alanvickiuk

cheers for the extra info i had a friend who had a maybe 7" rts with 2 oscars a few years ago and loved since then is why *** always wanted 1 

i will go to lfs today and see if there is any small maybe 1.5" and get 1 of those while the mbuna are small can only try

and as said above looks a 1000 times better than bristle nose and very colourfull


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## bossfish

I've kept them with mbuna with mostly good results. They are excellent algae eaters and can get to spots that pleco's can't. They usually become a problem at about 4 inches and need to be replaced with a smaller fish. Some behave better than others but I had 4 and eventually every one of them began chasing the larger fish in the tank.


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## alanvickiuk

cool i bought 1 today and he is about 1.5-2" he is cool but he has found the outlet to my filter and he keeps wanting to swim up it for some reason only since i turned on the blue night light ???


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## phorty

Sounds like a cool idea! I might consider one for my 125 Mbuna tank I'm setting up. Can they co-exist with Syndos?


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## Rhinox

phorty said:


> Sounds like a cool idea! I might consider one for my 125 Mbuna tank I'm setting up. Can they co-exist with Syndos?


 opcorn:

ditto on this question. My wife keeps saying she wants a shark and I keep trying to find ways to get her to be more tolerant and accepting of my hobby.


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## alanvickiuk

dont do it i bought a 2" rtbs and he was fine right up until i bought some acei ngara then all **** broke loose and it started attacking everyone so i removed it


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## GaFishMan1181

I have a red tail shark (2 years old) in a 55g with 1m Lab, 1m Peacock, and 6 Cobalt Zebras(2m 4f) and he does great. They have all been together for 1+ year. He is pretty aggressive though and will not back down from the cichlids. He will occassionally fight in a similar manner as two Arifcans would for territory. I have had more success with that fish than any other non African cichlid in an African tank.


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## ws812

We had a rainbow shark in our 110 Peacock/hap tank. I recently removed him for no other reason than we wanted a more lake specific set-up. They are great fish and like everyone says they can hold their own in almost any tank. Any time we'd add a smaller fish to the tank he'd let them know who was boss, but he was never overly aggressive. If you want a colorful fish with lots of personality for what it is I'd highly recommend one. I've even tried the albino variant and they have done fine as well.


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