# Yellow Lab Only Tank



## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

How many yellow labs should I stock in a 55 gallon tank assuming that the only fish I would like is labs? Can I please get a M:F ratio? Thanks!


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## caseyof99 (Aug 5, 2009)

really doesnt matter with labs. out of all the mbuna i have kept, these are the most layed back. it all depends on what you want this setup to produce. are you trying to breed or just have a show tank. ideally you want more females than males because the females can still get harassed to death. as for stocking, you can have as many as your filteration can handle. overstocking with any mbuna is an easy way to spread out aggresion. in a 55g i would start off with 10-15 juvies and watch your water parameters.


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## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

Well I would like to have a show tank, but I do want them to breed, if that makes sense?


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## caseyof99 (Aug 5, 2009)

if you keep it one species, theyll breed. you can try and have the lfs pick out a couple males and the rest females, but its hard when they are small. the first time i got labs i thought i had 1m 2f. turned out opposite that. never had any problems. labs are great fish who just dont care IME. once they get oldee you can tell the sex by appearance and attitude. just remember to have fun with it and get ready for tons of fry.


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## toume (Oct 7, 2010)

In a 4ft 55g, you can do 3 species of Mbuna 1 male and 4-5 females.
So that's about 25-30 total cichlids, plus the bottom feeders.

With males, like said above, it's usually more relaxed when it comes to ratios.
I know people have kept a trio (1m, 2f) perfectly fine.
I'd aim for anywhere from 6-8m and 20 females. Sounds like a lot, but that's what you can do.

I'd add it 2-3 groups over the course of a year, and exclude excess males whenever you can.

All that said, my yellow labs are not laid back at all--they stand up to my dominant tank fish, red zebras. So, there is some behavioral variation within the species to consider so don't go overboard with excess males b/c they can get harassed to death (happened to me). Also, labs are not always as picky about territories (hence why you can have more males together), but some are very protective. So....just go with what you want, watch them, and remove those who show signs that they aren't assimilating correctly.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Do you mean 15-18 in a 55G? :lol:

I've had trouble with multiple labs males, but I'd go for 18 and just remove any troublemakers.


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## 748johnd (Jun 30, 2007)

I would start out with 5 and if you have enough hiding places you will end up with more labs than you thought possible. The male-female ratio doesn't really matter with labs.


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## toume (Oct 7, 2010)

OOPS...I was thinking 75g....sorry.


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## toume (Oct 7, 2010)

748johnd said:


> I would start out with 5 and if you have enough hiding places you will end up with more labs than you thought possible. The male-female ratio doesn't really matter with labs.


IME, the male:female ratio still matters....I don't think there are exceptions for Mbuna in this regard. You can have fewer females (1m, 2f), but I definitely wouldn't do (2m, 1f)--the sub-dom male will get killed and so will the female.

PS- I was totally zonked when I wrote that last night...Christmas shopping. ugh.


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

A goal of 15 would be good. You may want to remove a few males, or if breeding you may want to "weed" out ones that don't look near perfect. They can be very hard to sex and can really fool you, so don't get obsessed with ratios, just hope that you have a good number of females.

You should be able to add multiple juveniles later on, so you don't need them all at once, but I would start with 8-10. Remember, every Yellow Lab group is not the same, be picky. Don't expect less than ideal 1.5" juveniles to mature into top quality fish. Above quality adults come from above quality juveniles.


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## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

noki said:


> Above quality adults come from above quality juveniles.


Does anyone have a picture of an above quality juvenile?


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

ZackG said:


> noki said:
> 
> 
> > Above quality adults come from above quality juveniles.
> ...


I just mean they look nice. Nice yellow body without noticeable markings, except for the black lines in the dorsal and anal fin. Nice body shape. No fading to white on body.

I mean don't just buy the first ones you see and thing you are going to improve them with food. Be picky.


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## toume (Oct 7, 2010)

Look at the pics in its profile.

You want a clear, bright yellow. Sometimes in the store they might have stress barring, but you want thick, dark black stripes (that Noki mentioned).


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## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

Even at say, 1-2 inches, a quality fry would show this coloring?


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## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

Also can someone explain the differences between the color morphs "Lions Cove" and "Electric Yellow"

I've seen many different yellow lab colorings

1st- Usually the chain stores carry labs that are more high lighter yellow than gold, and have faint stripes

2nd- Mom and Pop stores- Usually gold, 95% have white bellies, few have dark black markings on fins, however it is usually one in the tank and its dorsal and pectoral fin colorings are not THAT noticeable. Also they have some slight barring

3rd- Only once have I seen a yellow lab fry with jet black fins, all gold body. However I am unable to contact the guy and that really sucks.. 

Another question I have is that I have heard from people that the juvies (under 2") coloration increases over time (both the black on the fins and gold on scales). Is this true? I have also heard that the barring on juvies usually fades over time. Is this also true? Thanks!


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## marvo (Nov 24, 2010)

what ever you decide keep in mind you may need another 55 and a few 10gal and a 30gal breed out.IMHO... read up on how to know when female is holding.. a normal spawn is about 20 if you dont strip..


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

ZackG said:


> Also can someone explain the differences between the color morphs "Lions Cove" and "Electric Yellow"!


Electric Yellow is a marketing name and not a color morph. Electric Yellow can be used for hybrids. Did you know most of the labs in the hobby today came from one pair originally captured in the Lake? So it's pretty hard to obtain a specific collection point like Lion's Cove. A wild-caught lab (with collection point specified) might cost $100 or more if you can even find one today.



ZackG said:


> high lighter yellow than gold, and have faint stripes!


Try to avoid the stripes, but I like the high-lighter yellow more than the gold. A clean body is the goal. A local breeder has experimented with feeding different foods to fry and has shown it impacts the yellow color.



ZackG said:


> gold, 95% have white bellies, few have dark black markings on fins, however it is usually one in the tank and its dorsal and pectoral fin colorings are not THAT noticeable. Also they have some slight barring!


You definitely want the black dorsal stripe, even if it is not dark. The ideal would be a stripe that is fairly complete throughout the length of the fin. The fish can lighten and darken the black markings, even to the point of making them almost disappear, but you can still see a different color on the dorsal if you examine the fish closely. IMO they can also lighten the body color which may appear as white bellies.



ZackG said:


> jet black fins, all gold body


Even the fish you say may have been caught at his peak, flaring for a female for example. But if you see fry with this fish as the father, that is your best bet.



ZackG said:


> juvies (under 2") coloration increases over time (both the black on the fins and gold on scales).


I have heard this as well, but it's not true on all strains. Why not go for a strain that has color immediately? My fry are born a little lighter yellow (I think because the fish are transparent the first week). But we are talking grain of rice size. There will usually be a couple fish in each clutch with dark black on all fins when spit. The others have the dark fins but may be toning down their colors to blend in and hide. Once the fish is one inch or even one-half inch you can see on at least some strains the final yellow color and whether the dorsal stripe is complete or not.



ZackG said:


> I have also heard that the barring on juvies usually fades over time. Is this also true?


I have found the opposite to be true...this sounds like marketing to me. Clean juvies are easier to find than an adult male that never gets a beard or barring. When judging the clean yellow body, I try to see a pic of the father. IME it's easier to find stress-bar-free juvies and females than adult males.


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## ZackG (Dec 16, 2010)

DJRansome said:


> Why not go for a strain that has color immediately? )


I would love too but I'm having absolutely no luck finding stock that is good, and I cannot find a local breeder anywhere :?


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