# 40 gallon breeder - 36" - Stocking options ?



## OuiBonjour (Jul 12, 2020)

I have a new 40 gallon that I could use.

For my other one, I made a lot of research here about what Africans could live in a 36", and it was very limited. As for the Lake Malawi and Victoria, some stocking were suggested, but the consensus was that it would not be in the fishes best interest. So I forgot about those. However, I did find some interesting stocking options in the Tanganyika Lake and I found one that I like a lot.

All this to say that, by browsing through the posts here in the CA-Cichlids section, I notice that a lot of people are talking about convicts in 20 gallons, Pairs of Rainbow Cichlids with some community fish and bunch of bottom dwellers, Jack Dempfreys, etc.

Are those post the exception, or an example of what shouln't be done, or are the Central American Cichlids leave us more option when it comes to stock a 40 gallon / 36" ?

That being said, I'm new to CA cichlids, and I'd be interested if you guys could give me some stocking suggestions for my new 40g breeder 36"

Thanks!

PS : I will also make a post in the SA Cichlid section, as I'm exploring both ideas.


----------



## BC in SK (Aug 11, 2012)

The options for CA in a 3 ft. 40 gal. would be very limited. _Amititlania nanolutea_. Maybe a few/pair of rainbow cichlids (_Herotilapia multispinosa_) though they can get larger then many mbuna that are being considered as unsuitable for your 3 ft. tank.|
Depends where you want to draw lines. There isn't necessarily a consensus on what is the minimum size of tank, though no doubt it is always better to keep fish in tanks much larger then a so called minimum. If your typical 5" mbuna or Victorian is unsuitable for your size of tank, IMO Convict cichlid would be even less suitable. Mbuna are typically about a 30-40 gram fish at their larger sizes; male convict can get 6" or larger and exceed 100 grams. And just keeping a pair of CA cichlids, with out tank mates, they should be separated with a divider most of the time. 
There would be way more options as far as SA cichlids.


----------



## OuiBonjour (Jul 12, 2020)

Sorry for the delay. I'm late but I appreciated your reply.

I understand what you mean and that I'm limited. When you say «Amititlania nanolutea. Maybe a few/pair of rainbow cichlids» , do you mean a pair of Nanolutea and a pair of Multispinosa, or a pair of one OR the other ? I like the look of both species, but if the Multispinosa are bigger than some mBunas, maybe it's not a good idea. However, it often all depends on the behavior and territoriality of the specie : If they fight less, or if the male chases the females less, maybe it could do ?

Anyways, between the two I must say I really like the Nanolutea. However, I don't know how many should go there : A couple, a few, or the classic Buy 6 Rehome 4 ? And should it be a species only tank or I could put some tankmates, or maybe some dither fish with them ?


----------



## BC in SK (Aug 11, 2012)

OuiBonjour said:


> between the two I must say I really like the Nanolutea. However, I don't know how many should go there : A couple, a few, or the classic Buy 6 Rehome 4 ? And should it be a species only tank or I could put some tankmates, or maybe some dither fish with them ?


First of all, never personally kept Nanolutea, so i am not really going off my own experience here. They are the smallest (seldom exceeding 4-4 1/2") and also considered to be amongst the very least aggressive for a CA cichlid, thus more suitable for a small tank. Like any cichlid, you will still need some numbers to keep them in a group. Always some conspecific aggression with any cichlid species that generally requires some numbers to have a functioning group. Start with 6 or more and probably a pretty good chance you may not have to remove any, though over the long term, wouldn't be surprising that the males do not get along and one or more have to be removed. 


OuiBonjour said:


> do you mean a pair of Nanolutea and a pair of Multispinosa, or a pair of one OR the other ? I like the look of both species, but if the Multispinosa are bigger than some mBunas, maybe it's not a good idea. However, it often all depends on the behavior and territoriality of the specie


No, I'm generally not too keen on pairs of different substrate spawners in the same tank. CA is very competitive with each other. They will fight and usually one will end up dominating, though these 2 particular species would probably have the better chance of coexisting well together, then most other CA, in a small tank. As far as Rainbow cichlids size, (males up to around 5 1/2" and females slightly smaller ) I'm just trying to make a point with respect to what is suitable in a 3ft. 40 gal. I think your size of tank is more suitable for smaller mouth brooders, then it is for some what larger substrate spawners. IMO, yellow labs , rusty cichlid, or some of the Victorian types would be a better choice for a small tank. People have been keeping smaller mbuna and victorian types with success in a 40 gal. breeder for decades now. Anyways, IME, rainbow cichlid is the most mild mannered CA cichlid and the most tolerant of it's own species. I would start with at least 6 and remove only if, and when i have to.
If someone is really, really wanting any of the Cryptoheros/Amatitlania/ Archoecentrus/ Thorichthys, I wouldn't stop anyone from trying it in a 3 ft. 40 gal. Just be aware, your chances of aggression problems in a small tank are much higher and just a pair of CA in a tank, male and female should probably be separated with a divider much of the time. IMO, a tank this size would be much better suited for small mouth brooders then it would be for CA.


----------

