# If you could have any 1, which would it be?



## Sparrow19 (May 31, 2013)

So I'm still pretty new to the world of Cichlids. I have a few just mixed. In a month or so I'm going from a 30gal to a 100gal.

So my question is, if you could choose from any Cichlid, which would you want? Even if you have one now or not.

I'm trying to get some ideas of what to look for when getting my new tank established. If you can provide pics, even better. Thanks..!!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

If you are going to put the ones you have now in the 100G then you may be limited on which fish you can add. What are the dimensions of the 100G?

If I had to pick one it would be Pseudotropheus demasoni, but they require extra work/equipment which is not what some people are looking for. Not a beginner fish. Cynotilapia sp. hara would be a good general-purpose mbuna.

One of my favorite haps is Placidochromis electra. One of my favorite peacocks is Aulonocara stuartgranti Maleri Island.

My favorite Tang is Altolamprologus calvus.


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## cichlid-gal (Apr 27, 2012)

How can you chose one when there are over 1500 to chose from? Other than the ONES I already have:

Metriclima sp. "zebra gold" (Lions Cove)
Pseudotropheus sp. "polit"
Neochromis rufocaudalis (Saa Nane)
Xystichromis sp. "kyoga flameback"
Aulonocara baenschi
Psammochromis riponianus
Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor victoriae
Limbochromis robertsi
Pseudotropheus cyaneorhabdos
Paralabidochromis chromogynos
Cynotilapia zebroides "Nkhata Bay" yellow blaze

I also have on my wish list the following species (and like potato chips, there is not just ONE..the list keeps growing)

Lethrinops albus
Astatotilapia desfontainii
Benitochromis finleyi
Alcolapia alcalicus
Pseudocrenilabrus nicholsi
Gobiocichla ethelwynnae
Naevochromis chrysogaster
Lethrinops sp. 'red cap'

I have been playing the Cichlid Guessing Game and although I am not very good at it...I have found quite a few cichlids that I did not even know existed. The game has given me the opportunity to learn more about many species of cichlids.


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## Sparrow19 (May 31, 2013)

Well this is what I think I have so far:

Yellow Lab, Kenyi, Red Zebra, Peacock (not sure what yet), Small White that I've got a few different responses on. Then a few other of which I dont know what they are.

Why would these be all I can put in a 100G? Right now they are all in a 30G. Not sure on the dimensions yet. I do plan to run both tanks though, so if any need or should be separated.

Just looking for a few that I could possibly get a pair of maybe. Why is the Demasoni so hard to take care of? I love all the looks of the fish you mentioned. Can't really go wrong I guess.

Sorry for all the "rookie" questions, and I appreciate the help/response. Thanks..!


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## Bowfront (Jun 3, 2013)

Colorful Victorian Cichlids 100% hands down. Something like SP44s or Nyeri.

BTW, I never had a problem taking care of demasoni.

.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

The existing fish are not ALL you can put in a 100G, but not all the fish I mentioned are compatible with those. So if you keep those I'd drop the haps and peacocks and stick with mbuna.

Malawi do not pair so if you are going mixed genders then you want 1:4f at least of each species and if you choose an aggressive species like kenyi, then you want 1m:7f. So with lab, kenyi, zebra, white and peacock, by the time you stock females you may already have a full tank. 1m:4f labs, zebras, peacock and the white (albino socolofi?). 1m:7f for the kenyi. That would be full. Don't save fry since you have some crossbreeders on this list.

A 72" tank can hold more fish than a 48" tank even if both are 100G so dimensions matter.

Demasoni is not impossible but can require extra work...as I said not what some people are looking for. You need a big group (maybe 15 or 20 in a 100G depending on the dimensions) to manage aggression. To get 12 females in a group of 15 you have to buy 24 or more. You need a rehoming plan because that means there will be 10 males to rehome. They get bloat more easily than other fish (longer intestine) so you have to monitor stressed fish continuously. You need a hospital tank running (30G works) and be willing to remove all the rocks fairly often to net that stressed fish. In a 72" tank you can easily have 300 pounds of rocks.

All this is somewhat true of all mbuna...but demasoni are the extreme. I love them...they were my first mbuna. But I did try to keep only 9 and I did learn my bloat lesson 8 months after I got them. :thumb:


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## Sparrow19 (May 31, 2013)

Ok, I think the tank is the 72" size. The picture I've seen is very long.

Thanks for the tips, I get what you are saying now with the ratios needed. So if I added a few to match what I have, and lets say I want to add a male and female of the Cynotilapia sp. hara, would all be happy? Would there be possible fry with the male/female, or would that be impossible to know if they stuck to their same breed?

I'm not necessarily looking to breed, just thought it would be cool to have the male/female of the same fish.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

The male cynotilapia will likely kill a lone female...that's why we stock a bunch of females. Also yes, if you had a pair and the female was holding, no way to know the babies are pure. Further since the cyno male would not have enough females he would be likely to spawn with the other mbuna females as well. This would not be a tank where you could save fry.

Even without the cyno pair decision...labs and estherae crossbreed and kenyi and estherae are both Metriaclima.

Need exact length to know if you want to go above 4 species. 100G is an unusual size, you are usually talking about 125G or 90G for the standards.

Maybe this is a 60" tank? And is it a rectangle? Other shapes hold less fish...like bowfronts and corner tanks.


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## Sparrow19 (May 31, 2013)

It is probably a 90G, its a rectangle. I'm hoping to go see it this weekend.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

A 90G is 48" long FYI. Let us know.


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## Murkin (Jan 5, 2012)

I generally like ones that are colourful, but also pack an attitude (some call it "personality"). So far Mainganos (Ps. Cyaneorhabdos) have been my favourites simply because of the small size tank i can currently have (40G breeder) due to space restrictions.

That being said, if i had the right size tank, the Auratus and the Chipokae have the right attitude, but you can get the same (if not better) look out of Mel. Parallelus with much less of a chance of them killing tankmates. Another good one with ideal conditions would be Tropheops "Red Top" Chilumba, but again, anger management issues...

Demasoni are another good one. I have a love/hate relationship with them and am currently suffering from the fish keeper's equivalent of "battered wife syndrome" or whatever it is they call it nowadays. I am still on the fence as to whether or not the amount of time and money it took to try and get those guys to play nice with each other was all worth it. Maybe I will try them again in the future, who knows?

Let's face it, most African cichlid fans like them because of their personalities and the way they interact socially. That is to say, they are fun to watch! Not to bash CAs or SAs, but personally my eyes glaze over as soon as i see the word Oscar or Jack Dempsey written on a label at the LFS.


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