johannis, kenyis, and socolofi

[MAM]

still trying to figure out what i want in my 20 gal. been tossing a number of ideas around. came across some info on the above three. johannis it says are intolerant of own kind but do well with other africans. okay. so just one of those. but kenyi an socolofi (pseudothropheus socolofi), do they need to be in pairs, threes, alone but okay with other africans?
would any of these three be a no-no with a peaceful 4-inch pleco? with cory cats? with other fish? with each other?
any help would be great (don't worry, haven't bought any yet or anything, tanks not even set up yet)
thanks!

 

[juanveldez]

you know I was going to ask about kenyis as my lfs has some and my 75 is so big and only has 8 cichlids in it

 

[MAM]

well, see i like fish that have individuality so i'm looking for something in the 3 to 4 inch range, looking to have 2 or 3 fish taht size, if thats even a possibility. i'm all about simple tanks/species specific. but i want something with a little size and color this time.

 

[juanveldez]

have you looked at the aulonocara SP? they take forever to get the colors when they are bought as a juvies but when they do it is really great and they are really showoffish. she swim all over the tank saying look at me look at me. I will see if I can find a pick of andre my aulonocara maisoni chinteche male for you

 

[MAM]

aulonocara. looked it up online. very pretty/colorful. what i'm looking for. but i couldn't find much on it. was it pretty hard to find? what can you tell me about it?

 

[thecichlidaddict]

I would not recommend any of those first three fish for such a small tank, they are all too aggressive. Kenyi will not tolerate any fish, Socolofi tend to be worse on there own kind, but in such a small tank they too will probably not tolerate any other fish.


As for Aulonocara, the males are beautiful fish, the females are quite drab.

Smaller varieties of this fish still grow to over 4 inches, and larger varieties to over 6. This is doable in your tank but really pushing the limits.

Aulonocara are pretty peaceful fish, and none of the three mbuna that you mentioned would be very good tankmates for it. I would consider looking at Labidochromis Caeuleus or Pseudotropheus Saulosi as decent Malawis for your aquarium.

 

[MAM]

thanks cichlidaddict. wasn't planning on putting all types in there or with the aulonocara, just to clear that up. looking for a species that would work best. will look up the two you suggested though.

 

[thecichlidaddict]

I get you now

Even still, I don't recommend those species you mentioned.

As well as those two I already mentioned you can also check out Iodotropheus Sprengerae. These guys are feisty but not dangerously aggressive - you may not like the coloring though.

As for plecos, they almost always leave them alone, although I have seen some eye-eating incidents. For the most part plecos that are harassed quickly learn to leave the feeding to night time. Any catfish that would go well with Malawi cichlids would also be too big for that tank, so I wouldn't recommend them.

 

[MAM]

a saulosi trio, a male and two females (from what i found online, thats a good number), would that work? i like the colors. though i've found mixed reviews on size. some sites said 2.5 inches, some 3.5, some 4 and one even said 5 or 6 inches. are they hard to find?
or should i just give up any hope of putting smaller cichlids in this 20 gal and get on with my life?

 

[thecichlidaddict]

In a 20 gallon you can get 3 females and a male in there and it shouldn't be much of a problem - just remember to provide a good amount of various sized hiding spots for the females. These are active but pretty friendly fish.

Sauloi reach about 4 inches in general, females usually a little smaller, males sometimes a little bigger. In a 20 gallon tank you are probably looking at 3 to 4 inches. As to how hard they are to find, in some areas they are very common, in others they are impossible to track down.

 

[fishyfreak]

I've never had any problems with Chichlids and Plecos, Cory Cats don't tend to create any problems either as they're not territorial and basically non-confrontational. As with your dilema on what to stock your tank with, I've had all those fish together before, as long as your tank's large enough and you have lots of rock structures and driftwood etc.....anything that will section the tank off into territories. Dominant males like their own spot and shouldn't be to disruptive unless breeding. It's been a few years since I've had Chichlids so if I'm wrong then someone please correct me.