Blocking line of sight

[gwand]

I’m setting up a 60 g, 48 inch wide tank that’s 16 inches high which will house Congo Cichlid and tetras, and Guinean a.thomasi group. I know in aquascaping l will need to block the line of sight in several places along the 4 foot tank to help keep the cichlids peaceful. But I also want the tetras to enjoy 4 feet of swimming space. I do not know at what level in the water column my fish will swim. I thought a well placed piece of driftwood and some Amazon swords about 10 inches high scattered along the length of the tank might suffice. This would leave around 6 inches of clear swimming space in the upper water column for the tetras to frolic. What do people recommend? Suggestions please.

 

[Colin_T]

Most tetras swim mid water. They will swim by the surface if they have to but normally it's in the middle.

Depending on the cichlids, you might just need to make 6 inch high caves or wood at each end so they can hang out at either end of the tank and the tetras can have the rest of the tank.

 

[GaryE]

I try to set up an attractive breeding spot. For a cave spawner, it's obvious. I think about where the door will be, and place a barrier a few inches in front of it. The only sightline that matters is the substrate view. A rock can be three to six inches high and do the job. Every cave spawning pair should have two caves. I like to place them toward the front glass.
The open spawners are more difficult. They are less dedicated about having one spot. They need flat rocks, and I like to set them up closer to the back glass, with a few flat surface blocked by plants, rocks and wood. I doubt thomasi will get into breeding mode in your water, so it may be academic. But just in case, you need broken sightlines all along the substrate. Their spots don't have a roof as a cave spawner does, so height is impossible to deal with.

My favourite cave spawner set ups are coconut shell caves. You cut a shell in half, clean it out and boil it, and have a door just big enough for the fish to get in. I composted one of these yesterday as it cracked. I have made it around 2000, and it had housed many a successful spawning. It's not a lot of work to make and is useful and durable. You can establish java moss on the exterior as a first feeding place for the mother to lead the fry to.

 

[gwand]

I try to set up an attractive breeding spot. For a cave spawner, it's obvious. I think about where the door will be, and place a barrier a few inches in front of it. The only sightline that matters is the substrate view. A rock can be three to six inches high and do the job. Every cave spawning pair should have two caves. I like to place them toward the front glass.
The open spawners are more difficult. They are less dedicated about having one spot. They need flat rocks, and I like to set them up closer to the back glass, with a few flat surface blocked by plants, rocks and wood. I doubt thomasi will get into breeding mode in your water, so it may be academic. But just in case, you need broken sightlines all along the substrate. Their spots don't have a roof as a cave spawner does, so height is impossible to deal with.

My favourite cave spawner set ups are coconut shell caves. You cut a shell in half, clean it out and boil it, and have a door just big enough for the fish to get in. I composted one of these yesterday as it cracked. I have made it around 2000, and it had housed many a successful spawning. It's not a lot of work to make and is useful and durable. You can establish java moss on the exterior as a first feeding place for the mother to lead the fry to.

G,
1. How many spawning flats for the three pairs of a. Thomasi? Of course, assuming I get three pairs and not end up with all males.
2. Should the spawning flats be widely separated from one another thereby keeping pairs separated by a distance?
3. Should the caves be widely separated from one another too?
4. Do the Pelvicachromas sleep in the caves as well?
Thanks

 

[GaryE]

G,
1. How many spawning flats for the three pairs of a. Thomasi? Of course, assuming I get three pairs and not end up with all males.
2. Should the spawning flats be widely separated from one another thereby keeping pairs separated by a distance?
3. Should the caves be widely separated from one another too?
4. Do the Pelvicachromas sleep in the caves as well?
Thanks

1. If they spawn, only one pair will. The others will be hiding for their lives. But scatter a few flat rocks and lean to caves around, just to spread possibilities out.
2. They should be away from the caves (by caves, I mean with very narrow openings the fish can close. by digging. Lean tos don't count).
3. One strategy I've used is to have 2 or 3 caves at one end, and all the flat zones scattered at the other.
4. No. When the female is guarding, a good one will vanish for a week. She'll stay inside tending to the eggs, then the larvae. otherwise, they sleep in the planted areas, or around wood as in nature.

With the filter at the end have a cave close to the wall. Unfortunately, your space saving will have a problem - and you may need to cut glass to cover. Use several pieces. I've had tanks so long I have lots of scrap glass...

 

[TwoTankAmin]

@gwand

You do realize that Amazon swords get huge and grow fast? Here is one that outgrew my 75 gal., in-wall tank. The tank is 21 inches tall.

 

[gwand]

I have Amazon in 5 and 10 gallon tanks for almost two years. Once it reaches the water’s surface the leaves curl over onto the surface. Shrimp love it. So do small timid fish.

 

[gwand]

1. If they spawn, only one pair will. The others will be hiding for their lives. But scatter a few flat rocks and lean to caves around, just to spread possibilities out.
2. They should be away from the caves (by caves, I mean with very narrow openings the fish can close. by digging. Lean tos don't count).
3. One strategy I've used is to have 2 or 3 caves at one end, and all the flat zones scattered at the other.
4. No. When the female is guarding, a good one will vanish for a week. She'll stay inside tending to the eggs, then the larvae. otherwise, they sleep in the planted areas, or around wood as in nature.

With the filter at the end have a cave close to the wall. Unfortunately, your space saving will have a problem - and you may need to cut glass to cover. Use several pieces. I've had tanks so long I have lots of scrap glass...

Thanks. Do I need to bisect or trisect the 48 inch dimension of the tank with tall plants or other structures in order to cut down the line of sight? Doesn’t sound pleasing aesthetically but I do want my fish to be safe. Maybe I can be more creative.

 

[GaryE]

My scaping rule is inexact. The view you worry about is across the base. It takes very few rocks to disrupt that, and less wood. The rocks get moved as you see how it all plays out.
You can plan it, but then the thomasi will decide to spawn on top of a cave...

I bred one Congo dwarf, Nanochromis transvestitus, and they made 2 nests, with half their eggs in each, across the tank from each other,and excavated under flat rocks. They'll do, or not do, what they want. We just try to adapt the environment to them. Most of the time, it works.

 

[gwand]

My scaping rule is inexact. The view you worry about is across the base. It takes very few rocks to disrupt that, and less wood. The rocks get moved as you see how it all plays out.
You can plan it, but then the thomasi will decide to spawn on top of a cave...

I bred one Congo dwarf, Nanochromis transvestitus, and they made 2 nests, with half their eggs in each, across the tank from each other,and excavated under flat rocks. They'll do, or not do, what they want. We just try to adapt the environment to them. Most of the time, it works.

Understood. Thanks. Does one pronounce Moliwe Moleeway?

 

[GaryE]

I do, and my friend who has been there does. I don't know the stress patterns for place names - I believe there are three languages in that region. I have heard MOLiway, and your suggestion, but whether that's European language pronunciation differences I can't say.

I'd love to go there to ask around, but it's a conflict zone these days.

 

[GaryE]

One of the best fishbooks ever was Anton Lamboj, The Cichlid Fishes of Western Africa. It's from 2004, and largely through Dr Lamboj's work since, a lot has changed in the Genus names. Hemichromis has been divided, and we now have Rubricatochromis for the jewels. He revisited the type specimens for Pelvicachromis, found that most of the taeniatus in the hobby (like Moliwe) were actually misidentified P kribensis, and created Wallaceochromis for what were the northern Pelvicachromis - strikingly different fish.

When we were in Gabon, we tried to talk him into updating the book, but no one buys books anymore. His research may have changed labels, but the info and the photography remain true.

It's not a popular or sought after group of fish, so the book was a niche seller. I believe there are still copies around.

 

[gwand]

One of the best fishbooks ever was Anton Lamboj, The Cichlid Fishes of Western Africa. It's from 2004, and largely through Dr Lamboj's work since, a lot has changed in the Genus names. Hemichromis has been divided, and we now have Rubricatochromis for the jewels. He revisited the type specimens for Pelvicachromis, found that most of the taeniatus in the hobby (like Moliwe) were actually misidentified P kribensis, and created Wallaceochromis for what were the northern Pelvicachromis - strikingly different fish.

When we were in Gabon, we tried to talk him into updating the book, but no one buys books anymore. His research may have changed labels, but the info and the photography remain true.

It's not a popular or sought after group of fish, so the book was a niche seller. I believe there are still copies around.

The book is for sale on Amazon for $60. Sometimes Amazon offers used copies of books, but not in this case.

 

[GaryE]

The book is for sale on Amazon for $60. Sometimes Amazon offers used copies of books, but not in this case.

I paid that for it new. All the best fishbooks cost an arm and a leg, as they're limited runs.

$60 USD for the book, but if you knew what that book cost me in species I went looking for both in the trade and in the wild...

 

[gwand]

I’ll ask my wife to buy me the book for my birthday. Although now that I am starting to build my sixth tank, she may execute me first.