Decision Made...dwarf Cichlids It Is

[Fish are friends]

Hi folks...
I have been struggling with stocking ideas for my 300l tank and have decided on dwarf cichlids. i want to know if anyone can help me with information on what fish are compatible with each other and what sort of stocking levels I can have.. The plants are on order and the nooks and crannies and in the process of being made( pebbles and slate to form caves etc) can i mix south american cichlids with west africans?? This is my first cichlid tank (i have a happy and sucessful comunity tank) so i want to get as much info as i can.. many thanks!

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Did you have specific South American and West African riverine cichlids in mind?

I'd be wary of mixing Kribs or Lionhead Cichlids with common SAs like Apistogramma spp. or Bolivian/German Rams, I suspect the Africans would easily bully such SA cichlids. African Butterfly Cichlids (Anomalochromis thomasi) are regarded as pretty peaceful and might work with a peaceful SA such as Keyholes, but mixing continents can cause issues as their body languages can conflict and cause misunderstandings.

 

[Wills]

I would be tempted to choose between WAf and SAm for the same reason as Goat says, the body language and behaviour is totally different from the fish so fights can break out a lot easier than in single continent cichlid tanks.

Wills

 

[Fish are friends]

i was thinking of getting kribs and bolivians hence the question but i am quite happy sticking to one continent..after all they are all so beautiful.. will pop down to my LFS and see what he can get in for me... its quite a big tank so ill try get 2 pairs and then a few others but will plan and find out as much info as i can!

 

[Wills]

The thing I am thinking is you have a massive tank for dwarfs here and while Kribs and Bolivians would probably work in fairness why not go down the route of a hareem of Apistos and a few pairs of Laetacaras and Bolivians in there? Or a hareem of Apistos and a group of Cupid Cichlids? Or if you went with the africans go for the Kribs and look up things like Nanochromis Transvestitus to go with them - though a tank just with pairs of the latter would be quite incredible

Wills

 

[Fish are friends]

just done some googling. wow didnt know there were so many different types of dwarf cichlids got a short list so ill go see my fish guy and see what he can get for me... will make a journal to and post pics of the tanks progress..

 

[Liam2368]

don't forget things like curviceps, nannacaras, egyptian mouth brooders, Taeniacara candidi , nudiceps or a smaller species of the Thorichthys species as a centrepiece, Bolivians and kribs are very very common combination , go for something different you have plenty of room for a few species of dwarfs but obviously all them cichlids iv listed may not be compatible for your setup but just giving you some ideas.

 

[Fish are friends]

the great thing is it is a total blank canvass right now... all that is in the tank is water, sand and 6 danios to help keep the filter cycled.. ive ordered some plants and will be making the rock caves from pebbles picked up on the beach... im trying to get as much advice as i can and once i have a list of my options ill start the aquascaping and stocking

 

[spinnin_tom]

YAY, whilst i cannot suggest which species you should and could keep in that aquarium, i can say well done on choosing the best family of fish going.
Keyhole cichlids are not small, but they aren't the largest of cichlids. they are docile too.

 

[Fish are friends]

well the first bit of aquascaping is done: hope it will do but im sure it will change as time goes on!!

opinions and ideas welcome!!

 

[spinnin_tom]

nice one pal. it looks awesome.
watch the rocks on top of the thing on the left. i'd be worried they'd fall

 

[Fish are friends]

thanks....lol they aren't ment to be there. put them there while i was setting the rest out... the green bit on the right is riccia fluitans which is between some mesh to grow it but cause it is a very low light setup there isnt much growth so ill be transferring it to my other tank! i know it is a long way from done but ill be getting word from the fish guy when he can get the newest additions to my family which will be cacatuoides, borelliis, hongsloi and then bolivians and maybe som kribs but that is still to be decided...the plants should arrive soon...all excided now.​