Malawi 10g

[Whitey]

I have a 10 gallon cube and was thinking of making a marine nano cube but its too much time and money right now so do u think i could fit 1 or 2 small malawi cichlids in?

 

[OohFeeshy]

Don't think so. Most get too big. But ask a cichlid person.

 

[parker313]

I don't know of any either.

The closest you'd likely get would be the shell dwellers, but they're from Lake Tanganyika and need a 20g.

 

[G_Sharky]

NO it just woudn't work as most malawi fish would be at least 5" big and they need big space and lots of rockwork for their agression...the smallest tank to go with malawi, IMO is a 30 gallon long....If you want cichlids why not try the apistogramma species....you could put a couple of pairs in the 10g along with a couple of tetras and cories.....

 

[parker313]

you could put a couple of pairs in the 10g along with a couple of tetras and cories.....

No, a 10g is too small for a couple pairs of apistos. You *could* do a pair of blue rams, but it's not recommended. The smallest recommended for the dwarf NW cichlids is a 20g, preferrably a 20 long.

 

[sylvia]

You could fit a trio of n. multifasciatus shell-dwellers in there. I know that's not quite what you were looking for but it's an option and they are very interesting behaviour-wise and breed readily.

 

[freddyk]

A 10 gallon is not suitable for any cichlid except for some shell dwellers. It's not only about size, it's about territories and aggression. Best off sticking to small and peaceful livestock on this one.

 

[Undawada]

In the inch per gallon rule, you'd get 2 malawi cichlids possibly in that tank.

This doesn't apply, as with 2 malawi cichlids, one would establish dominance and then rip the other one apart. With no other fish to spread out the aggression, the subordinate fish wouldn't stand a chance.

 

[BzztYeow]

Call me an idiot- but the Demosani only grows to 3 inches (in my experience a male as the females seem smaller).

I would think you could keep three or four of these fish in a 10g if it had adequate rockwork and you got ONLY ONE male...

Just an idea. I find fish don't do well with generalizations SOMETIMES. One of the most aggressive fish i ever had was a White Cloud Mountain Minnow- it killed 5 others of its species.

It's really a throw of the dice, but if you had a nice big filter and got fish that get along decently you could have three to four demosani in that tank (although i would recommend 2 at the most).

Everyone says they are incredibly aggressive, but mine have never shown the kind of aggression my Kennyi do.

Just an idea- and no science backing it up- just my experience

 

[freddyk]

You're no idiot because your logic is sound, except that demasoni are one of the most aggressive mbuna you can get, and I guarantee that if you put them in a tank this size there will be one in the end.

 

[BzztYeow]

It's certainly possible- but i was keeping 4 of these fish in a 20 gallon high, before i moved them to their new 60 gallon home and have had no problems with aggression.


These are small fish of course 1.5 inch females (i beleive) and the single 2 inch male.

Their aggression is negligable compared the other fish in the 60 gallon, as they are all bigger.

In my 60 gallon i currently have -

2 Pseudo Luwalas
2 Pseudo Zebras
4 Pseudo Demosani (1 male 3 female- i think)
2 Jewel Cichlids (mated pair i beleive)
2 Kennyi (Pseudo Lombordoi)
1 Yellow lab
1 Golden Mystery Snail

Largest is one of the kennyi's at about 2.25 inches.

Please forgive my mixing scientific and common names as i'm tired and don't feel like looking them all up atm

None of my fish is over 2 inches at this point and they may certainly outgrow their current behaviour, but my crop of Pseudo Demosani are not at all aggressive.

I am also using a heavily planted tank, so the behaviour may not be normal! However, i find the fish were far more aggressive without plants. If they have a place to hide, there are no real problems. I will be curious to see if this is the case as they get bigger