Milawi Cichlids

[Ape-man]

Hi all
Not sure if I should be posting here... But!!

I am in the process of cycling a new 90l (23 US Gal) tank and was going to go with a community tank but I was talking to a guy in my local aquatics shop and he suggested a Milawi cichlids tank. I have done a bit of research and am (kind-of) aware that they need lots of rocks and a higher pH etc... But the guy I spoke to said he would recommend stocking my tank with 20 fish!!! This to me seems a bit excessive to me!! What are your thoughts?

Also I don't know much about Milawi Cichlids, upon looking there seem to be an awful lot of varieties, are any better than others?...

Or as a (re-)newbie, am I best sticking to a community tank as first planned??

 

[kiriyama]

Hi , I don't know much (if anything) about Malawi Cichlids, the guy in the shop has probably suggested 20 because with Malawi you need to stock high to reduce aggression, tank seems small for Malawis, some of them can grow quite large, hopefully one of the Malawi guys/girls will be along soon.
Have you ever thought about a tanganyika tank ?

 

[AdAndrews]

90 litres isnt all that useful as far as malawi's are concerned. Most of them need bigger tanks, to spread aggression. What are the dimensions of your tank? african cichlids need floor space, height is irelivant(to a certain degree).

Give the dimensions and we will figure something out.

 

[Ape-man]

I think that's decision made then... I'll stick to my community tank as first planned.

FYI tho, the dimensions of my tank are:65cm(W)X 35cm(D)X 45cm(H)

 

[AdAndrews]

I think that's decision made then... I'll stick to my community tank as first planned.

FYI tho, the dimensions of my tank are:65cm(W)X 35cm(D)X 45cm(H)

see that tank would simply be treated as a large 60cm, so the only real africans you could go with are shell dwellers from lake tanganyika.

 

[demasonisrule]

Yes, that tank is far too small. He was right about overstocking though. In an african cichlid tank, there is a LOT of aggression going on. The reason for overstocking is so that if a fish is getting chased, it can get "lost in the crowd", so the big fish don't pick on just one fish. In my opinion, my cichlids have been an overall amazing experience. The fish have so much personality and color, I have heard of marine fish keepers being jealous! Anyway, the smallest tank I would recommend is a standard 55 gallon tank.