# Tanganyikan Biotope: Renovated



## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Hi all,
I've never posted a picture of my tank before, but I've become motivated to based on all the great tanks I'm seeing on this forum. These pics were taken on an iPhone 5s, so please don't be too critical :lol: . Before this pic, all my plants were anubias, but I didn't think it looked natural so I traded them in for crytocoryne sp, and I'm happy with the result. The bulb is a T8 Floralight, there is a hydrosponge filter, a powerhead, and I'm picking up an ehiem canister 150 today from my LFS. There are six multies and 8 cyprichromis. Please do not comment about the moori, as he will be given to my LFS by next weekend. I think that the smaller cryp is a wendtii and the tall one is a crispatula, but I'm not certain. Anyways hope you enjoy


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

very nice. how big is your tank? i like that plant on the left, what is it?


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Razzo said:


> very nice. how big is your tank? i like that plant on the left, what is it?


Thanks. The tank is a 40 gallon tall (36 x 13 x 20). The small plant is a crytocoryne wendtii, the taller one is a crispatula. I'm hoping to add more rocks to the pile but I'm not sure what type they are :? I think its aquamarine opaque. I set up the canister filter last night so hopefully that helps with water quality. I really want to paint the tank matte black or get a background.


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Quick update: 
I added 4 Neolamprologus buescheri 'Zaire Gold' about a week or two ago. I've been looking for a rock dweller for some time and I never really liked julies and I didn't have room for full grown altos. I think the buescheri were the right choice, they're not too aggressive towards the cyps or multis (small territory skirmishes, gill flaring), and even the con specific aggression isn't as bad as I was led to believe. I think I got 2 males and 2 females, with the dominant male being 2 inches, the sub dom 1.5, and females being an inch. Currently the dom male has claimed the entire rockwork and the 2 females hang out on opposite ends of his territory. The sub dom male resides near the sponge filter. Since I'm not 100% sure of the sexes, I'm not going to remove any fish yet. I'm hoping that the male accepts both females and leaves the sub dom male alone, but if not I'll relocate the rejects. I've put the cyp fry in a breeder, as a precaution. Also, I rearranged the rocks and driftwood slightly and I think it looks better now, since it give the cyps more a larger swimming lane.

Now for pictures:

My darkest female multi by far, her color is stunning


female buescheri 1


male buescheri


male and female 2


He's very photogenic


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## Samadhikash (Jun 16, 2015)

Nice pics. Definitely looks like a well-loved tank. Hope this doesn't sound silly--but is painting the background an option at this point without a tank tear down? Were you able to get those close ups "naturally" or did you zoom in and crop them out post-digitally? Either way, nice job.


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Thanks for the kind words Samadhikash

Tbh I'm not sure about the painting, but I don't see why not, as long as the paint/spray doesn't enter the water. I doubt I'll paint it though, not worth the extra effort. These pics were taken on my iPhone 5S with a Universal Clip SLR Lens, so when I did zoom in for the pic of the male buescheri, the lens made the pic more clear and less fuzzy. The other pics were taken 'naturally'.


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## digitallinh2 (Dec 29, 2012)

I usually buy one of those black cardboard things at hobby lobby and cut it to paste/tape on the back. Works good!


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## The Dude315 (May 19, 2015)

It's nice looking. I prefer lots of plants even in my Tang tanks. The plants are great for water quality and with enough plants everything looks natural. Did you buy the plants at a store or through a for sale on a forum? I tend to buy large amounts up front as the growing in period is faster and it is great for the fish. Despite my already pretty substantial plant stock I purchased $100 of needle leaf Java fern for my 125. 
I think some anubias Nana dividing the two rock features would look great and define the territory better. $25 would buy you a good amount


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

I agree that live plants help add a more natural element that faux ones can't. I bought the plants from a LFS. I actually had an anubias coffeefolia and hastifolia at one point, but the coffeefolia got gigantic and the hastifolia never really "settled in" so I traded them for the crypts, which have been doing well. I personally like the tall grass shaped plants better, that way they don't get covered in sand when the fish excavate. I was going to add another plant between the buescheri and multi territory, but I felt that open sand would be the best way to keep them separate. I do like how the barteri nana stay smaller, so I may see if I can fit one in, maybe on the driftwood


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

I think an update is in order.

Since the last post I've added a bunch of Jungle val which I think really helps emphasize the "Tanganyikan Biotope" theme. I also added a tonna shell in case the buescheri were feeling frisky. I really like this new look. Unfortunately my cyprichromis fry perished while I was on vacation. They were in a 10 gallon tank with platies, guppies and neon tetras so I'm not sure who the culprit is. On the bright side, the female cyprichromis is holding again.

Today when I came home, I noticed all the buescheri (except the dominant male) have been "evicted". Has anyone heard of or experience a case where after breeding, the male chases the female away from the eggs/babies. Not quite sure if this is the case here, but I'm just hoping that my "pair" hasn't turned on each other.

Here are some pictures:


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## ajws9356 (Feb 9, 2016)

What sand did you add, like the white sand myself. Nice looking tank. You might think about adding a couple caves or rocks at the opposite end of the tank from the dominant Buescheri. Or small piles in each corner of the tank. Might spread the territory out a bit. Just like any Tang, depending on the individual, your tank may be too small for his personality. As long as the other Buesheri are healthy don't know if I'd separate them yet. 
Good luck on the Cyps, been trying to get my hands on some for a while now, you can always go for a hang on the back fry tank as an alternate to the 10 gal. 
Looks good!


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## Als49 (Jul 11, 2014)

Did the crinum not survive?


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

ajws9356 said:


> What sand did you add, like the white sand myself


Unfortunately I don't remember, it might be Carib Sea or something similar.



Als49 said:


> Did the crinum not survive?


It didn't die but it didn't thrive. I tried to increase the # of hours but I became infested with algae. So I switched to low-medium light Vals


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## Als49 (Jul 11, 2014)

cdarminio said:


> Als49 said:
> 
> 
> > Did the crinum not survive?
> ...


Yes, it's a very slow growing plant and needs rich nutrient substrate. Very prone to algae. Looks very nice with its whip like leaves :thumb:


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

When I originally bought the crinium it was sold to me as a corkscrew vallisneria, which I knew was incorrect. I eventually realized it was an onion plant and that I've been housing it improperly :/


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## Als49 (Jul 11, 2014)

cdarminio said:


> When I originally bought the crinium it was sold to me as a corkscrew vallisneria, which I knew was incorrect. I eventually realized it was an onion plant and that I've been housing it improperly :/


If it was sold at the same price as vallisneria, it must a be steal as crinum is quite expensive 

There are also similar looking plants: vallisneria americana and echinodorus vesuvius. Vesuvius is shorter though.


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## ajws9356 (Feb 9, 2016)

cdarminio said:


> ajws9356 said:
> 
> 
> > What sand did you add, like the white sand myself
> ...


It's cool, I was guessing something like saltwater crushed something.... 
Too expensive if you wanted to do like a 200 gallon. 
Nice tank!


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

So this morning I decided to strip my female cyprichromis. Everything went well and I ended up with 5 babies. I'm a little bummed tbh because last time I got 7, but I guess 5 is close enough.

*
I noticed that the babies are swimming with their heads towards the surface, is this normal :-? *


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## Fishing4Dayz (Jan 18, 2016)

Nice community tank. I think that the fry look like they still have a bit of their yolk sack left. Maybe this is causing them swimming trouble?


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Thanks. The cyp fry r now swimming "normal". Hopefully these do better than the previous batch


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Update:

I sold the buescheri and bought 6 Xenotilapia spilopterus Mabilibili. They are dope! They are german bred and were brought in by SEC. A pair formed quickly and they've spawned three times, but the female did not hold successfully the first two. I'm hoping by the third time she knows what to do.

All 6 are in a 30 gal and the displaying behavior is amazing. In the future I may move them to a bigger tank and add some Mastacembelus tanganicae.

Here are some nice pictures:


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Nice!


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

Unfortunately the female is no longer holding. I wonder how many times it takes for her to learn? :?


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

*Update*

All fish are currently doing well. I moved them to a 60 gal to give them more space.

I plan on hatching some lamprichthys tanganicanus and adding them to this tank. May also add a pair of wild ocellatus Gombe.


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## cdarminio (Mar 29, 2015)

12 lamprichthys tanganicanus fry!


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