# need help stockin a 55 gal...



## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

hey guys im lookin for some help some people have told me i could do up to 30 fishes in the tank but others tell me 20-25 and thats pushin it so wats really a good number i have 8 in there now thanks :-?


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## noki (Jun 13, 2003)

It competely depends on which fish. There is no magic number.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

i have mbunas in there now and thats what i want only mbunas.


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## GoofBoy (Jul 3, 2007)

> i have mbunas in there now and thats what i want only mbunas.


Again, depends on which mbuna you have in the tank. What species and count are the 8 mbuna you have - then people here may be able to help you.

Check out the cookie cutters in the library section to give you an idea of recommend counts for a 55 gallon tank.


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

As Goof Boy mentions, it really depends on exactly which species you plan on keeping, as well as the dimensions of your aquarium and the filtration. Without knowing further details, it is hard to say exactly what the best stocking for you is.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

ok i have one red zebra,one yellow lab,hongi,calico fulleborni,red top zebra,one pecok,male kenyi and i think the other one is a Cynotilapia afra (Likoma) not sure tho. i would like to do some more yellow labs and maybe 5 or 6 mainganos so how that sounds? and i also have 2 hob filters so please help me out i dont want toovercrowd thanks... :thumb:


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## darkenedkaven (Apr 18, 2008)

you may end up with hybrids.


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## darkenedkaven (Apr 18, 2008)

you may end up with hybrids.


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## darkenedkaven (Apr 18, 2008)

you may end up with hybrids.


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## kerbchek (Apr 1, 2008)

I have 30 fish in my 55 gallon tank - I know it sounds like a bit much, but here's what I have...

8 juvie yellow labs (2 inches each now, should get about 5 inches as adults)
15 juvie demasoni (1 inch each now - should get 3 or so inches as adults)
7 juvie acei (1.5 inches each now, should get 5 inches as adults)

None of these fish are over 2 inches long right now... plus I have two filters, but will be adding a nicer filter as the fish start getting larger... I'm new to cichlids, but I'm going on the advice, that if the tank is over populated, the aggression is dispersed - so far so good... Maybe these fish will live forever, but I'm also going on the assumption that they won't all make it until maturity... from what I can tell, the cichlids I have seem pretty hearty...

I have other tanks around the house, so if aggession becomes an issue, I could always swap the 55 out for a 75 and keep the same stock list, or divide them up.

As far as advice for you, freddy, I'd narrow it down to fewer species... but that's just my opinion... I've always liked keeping groups of the same species together, but I know many people have very beautiful mixed cichlid tanks... especially mixed male only tanks.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

ok thanks yeah thats wat im trying to do now with the yellow labs and the mainganos i think im goin to do about 20-25 tops and see how it goes and as far as the crossbreed i dont care im wont keep the babies thanks for your help guys i would post some pics tomorrow for some opinions n comments thanks agian... :thumb: opcorn:


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## Gibbs (Apr 21, 2008)

Looking forward to seeing pics 

Are you going to let the mums spit in the tank and let nature take it's course?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Are they all male? If you combine breeding groups with single males, not only will you have hybrids but the few females will also be harassed by the large number of males in the tank.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

i cant really tell if they are all males but i know the red zebra is one,also the kenyi and the hongi as far as the rest i dont know but the yellow lab is a female...


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## tropheus duboisi breeder (Jan 31, 2007)

You may have some aggression issues with the red zebras, kenyi, and hongi as they are aggressive fish and get larger than most mbuna.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

so what should i do i dont want to get ridge of the im attach allready to them ill just stick it out and see wat happens cause they told me the kenyi was goin to b agressive but hes not


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I would not add any breeding groups, and I'd remove any females once they can be sexed. And then see how it goes.


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## Dewdrop (Nov 20, 2007)

I agree with DJRansome. If you want to keep the fish you have, go all male for this tank ( you could probably add even more males of different species) and get another tank for the breeding groups of maingano and labs if you can.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

ok but you guys are not gettin me i dont care about breeding the only reason why i want to put females in there because they told me do 4 females for every male but if i could do and all male tank without problems ill do it so please help me out im comfuse thanks... :-? :-?


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## darkenedkaven (Apr 18, 2008)

My kenyi acts like a lab. If you provide many hiding spots your males should be ok. Also overcrowding makes many targets and less victims. I fell in love with msobos. I even have a hump head msobo(deformed). but he is ok in my tank.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

freddy, you have 9 species so far in a 55G tank and you are attached to them so you don't want to get rid of any. Your question was should you add a breeding group of labs and/or mainganos.

If you want to keep the original 9 fish, you don't want to add any breeding groups or any females at all.

If you DIDN'T need to keep all 9 original fish, then we would be recommending 3 species in a 55G tank and 1m:3-4f for each. But that's not possible with 9 species staying in the tank.

Since you DO want to keep all 9 original fish, and even though it is not recommended in a 55G tank, the only option left to you is to try for an all male tank. Don't add any fish unless it is a single male of a mbuna species that does not look anything like any fish you already have. As you are able to identify sex of the original 9 fish, remove any that are female. This gives you the best chance of keeping the original 9 fish.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

ok thanks ill try an all male tank...


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## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

If it's all mbuna you can start with as many as you want but as they grow and mature they will start to eliminate each other on weakness. For example, I started with 20 mbuna three years ago and now have 12. Only the strong survive. Not to mention illness which can make things very difficult.


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## freddy1477 (May 20, 2008)

ok ill try it thanks


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