# Bemba Flame backs!



## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Hi everyone, new here to this folder... and new to Tropheus.

I'm a member of the Ohio cichlid association and also a board member. I'm the videographer for the club and I record our speakers when they come to club meetings.

Recently we had Klaus Steinhaus come and do a talk about tropheus. I of course recorded his talk and put it on DVD. Then I watched it to proof it. This is where I got hooked and dragged over to the dark side. :lol:

I ended up getting 12 Bemba flame backs for $21 from one of our monthly "buck a bag" auctions. For the moment they're in a 29 gallon mini reef set up until I build them a 125 ish tank. All of the rock came out of our plastic pond that houses a turtle over the summer and are covered with nice green algea! So far they seem to enjoy grazing on it!

Most people keep these guys as a species only tank. Is there anything I can keep with them once their tank gets built?

Here's some pictures of the tank:


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

Sure there are lots of things you can keep with Tropheus in a 125g.

Trophs are nice as the dominant fish though, you get to see their group behavior more.

A few side fish that would not disturb em much like a pair of goby cichlids (I like Eretmodus sp. "Cyanostictus North" with Tropheus) and J.transcriptus. Even a group of Synodontis lucipinnis if breeding is not your main aim are a nice addition. For a 125 you may find at least 24 Tropheus a better staring point.

Best not to chop and change too much as Troph sometimes suffer when fish are added to their tanks or the set up is changed once they are breeding. I think they can be a little bit neurotic and pick up bloat bugs easily. :wink:

Good luck with those tiny guys. :thumb:
(great price I think but then it always staggers me how much more Tropheus young sell for in the UK than anywhere else I hear about :wink: )


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

Other fish worth considering are I think Altolamprologus, Callochromis, Cyprichromis (Jumbos usually) and Neolamprologus medium or large pair or small shellys.
But you tend to have to have the setup modified for these as they have their own requirements (diet, space, sand, shells, caves etc) not covered by the Tropheus ones.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

The real sad part is I'd love to keep thenm with my wifes mbimbwe frontosa as they've got a very similar set up and diet. :? It'd work if the tank was 20' tall :lol:

The tank I'd like to build for them would be 58" from left to right, 21" from front to back and 30" tall. Designed to fit right on top of our entertainment center... 158 gallons or so... That'd be perfect for the tropheus forever and ever and ever generation after generation (with any luck)

What about catfish? Any catfish? And don't say BN plecos.... That'd defeat the point of growing algea...


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

24Tropheus said:


> Even a group of Synodontis lucipinnis if breeding is not your main aim are a nice addition.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Didn't even see your first post... Went straight to the bottom and read that one! :lol:

I like J.transcriptus, I've had them before... My wife likes them too so it'd be an easy sell!

Lucipinnis would eat the fry? My plan was to make some really good hiding spots for fry in the future. I'd like this to be one of those tanks that goes on forever 

Thank you for your help and patience


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

Synodontis lucipinnis (dwarf petricola often sold as petricola) is I think the safest of the Tang Synos for Tropheus young in the same tank but adults will I think get very small released young in the tank while the females are small, young or inexperienced. I kind of see it as runt removal, only good Tropheus parents which are large and experienced produce and look after large smart young that will survive uneaten in the same tank. I tend not breed for maximum numbers of young, which I think involves stripping the holding female Tropheus.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Klaus has a theory on stripping fry. His theory is that when fry are stripped they tend to not be good parents... what's your take on it?


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

I would tend to agree. But no proof. I think stripped ones just learn later how to look after the young after a few extra tries. Would be interesting if anyone wanted to study it I guess. Otherwise it is just opinion.


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Thanks, you've been a big help


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Thank you! You've been a big help!


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## Lancerlot (Feb 22, 2006)

Good ole buntbarsh 

www.cichlidhaven.net Check out his other fish in some posts haha. he has some of the most beutiful fish you can lay your eyes on


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

Anyone ever try Opthalmotilapia ventralis with Tropheus? 
I would think they would kinda ignore each other, but the Ventralis may not show much color? Would the ventralis bother a Tropheus colony? Males just a little to active?

How much would breeding A. calvus effect a Tropheus colony? Otherwise, they seem to totally ignore each other.


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

That might be me. Yes it worked OK for a while (year or so) in a 5 footer but I eventually separated them as not fair on the Othals long term (they did breed but not as well as separate). In a bigger tank with more Opthals (and maybe less Tropheus) it may well work well long term.

I hear they are close to the same habitat and diet in the wild so it might be just a matter of space and numbers.
calvus (and comps) I think are no problem except maybe getting em enough high nutrient/protein food being a little slow of the mark in this respect in comparison with the Tropheus speed, bully boy tactics (exuberance to put it more kindly) and habit of over feeding em selves.

One question that I would like to know the answer to. Are folk willing to pay more for mother reared Tropheus rather than stripped guys?
I ask because no one ever seems to ask me but it is one of the first questions I ask about new stock. :wink:


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Good question... From my stand point I try to pay as little for fish as possible :lol:


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

One more question... I've got four black calvus. Can they go in with the trophs?


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## Afishionado (Jun 6, 2006)

I would say 'no'. Maybe someone has done it, but I would think the calvus would be too slow to compete for food and wouldn't thrive on a Tropheus diet. Not sure how easily calvus stress out as I keep mine with calmer tankmates, but I would guess the swarming Trophs might bother them.


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## lopes2434 (Feb 20, 2009)

Well i have keep 2 calvus in a group of tropheus bemba... i feed them nls and some spurlina flake and brine shrimp once a week and the calvus weren't bothered by there more active neighbors..

But they were more active compared to the other calvus i had in other tanks


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## TheFishGuy (Apr 21, 2005)

Well... Here's what I've done... I've got 2 29's right next to each other. Calvus on the right and the tropheus on the left. There's a water bridge so if the fish decide to go to one tank or the other they can...

I had to move some tanks around today and I really didn't want to have to plug in another heater. Using a small (1" pvc) water bridge and a very small pump pumping water from the right tank to the left will keep both tanks heated with one heater. Since I've got a linear pump adding another sponge filter was no big deal...


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