My Tanganyika Cichlids

[SikkAquariums]

So I won a 75 u.s. gallon a few months ago, and about 40+ Cichlids. They basically bought the tank, some gravel, Marineland magnum 350 filter, and a dual t5 Coralife 48" bulbs. Anyways, the show that had it set up didnt set it up properly, so I already have some sand made for the cichlids and pre-conditioned so I won't have to adjust PH so often. I have lost about 10 or so in the past, (not in recent months; I think it was due to improper feeding "e.g. went to kansas from CA for a week, and left food pyramids and found this to be bad like BLOAT). Anyways, So I have about 80lbs of the sand ready to go in the tank. I need to wait until my next pay check to order my new plants which I think I am planning to do various anubias, java fern, and maybe even some dwarg grass(even though PH ranges don't match up, figure i would give them a shot, unless anybody has better suggestions) I am also awear that the fish will enjoy digging, I DO have a couple of "assorted cichlids" or what look like "red Zebra" from lake malawi, and they love to dig so far. I do have a Marineland c-360 that will be up and running when i get the plants as well, and currently have aqueon 75gal hanging filter running, and my marineland 350 just died..not sure why. Any other questions or suggestions post them and lets get to talking, Cichlids are new to me and im loving them a lot more than my other fish, but still like the variety. As of this moment there are:

35+ Tanganyika Cichlids
1 Rainbow shark
2 "assorted cichlids - red zebra i think(even though they are orange and yellow)"
1 Common Pleco
1 Green Spotted pleco
2 Convict Cichlid fry (hopefully still alive somewhere)
and when i had my plants was thinking maybe a few snails but for sure want to get some clams. Any ideas? Saw clams on Live Aquaria - Clams

 

[SikkAquariums]

Here is a picture of the current set up. Minus the canister filter hanging in on the right of the photo.

The 2 rocks in the middle and one on far right were all found(on my road trip to Kansas) and bleached before use in this tank, the other 2 on the left were randoms from a pet shop. I'll post more pictures later, it is REALLY hard getting day time pix, so i can only take them at night. +> Any help or suggestions are greatly appreciated!!

 

[onidrase]

do you know what kind of tanganyika fishes they are? Those malawi and those convicts may wreak some havoc in that tank in the future depending on what the other fishes are.

Also keep in mind that from what I've been reading, most malawi are very herbivorous, having a hard time digesting high protein content food, whereas your tangs and convicts may appreciate some meaty things now and then, but even though the malawi's would have a hard time digesting the meaty things, it doesn't mean they won't eat them. Fish are very greedy.

I'd honestly try to stick with one type of fish in the tank, most likely removing the zebra(s) and convicts, and sticking with the tangs. Rehoming them shouldn't be too hard. Any plants you add, especially the dwarf hair grass, will be uprooted or destroyed by malawi's, but it may be safe with some species of tangs. I couldn't get dwarf hairgrass to even stay in the substrate in my community tank, due to 2" bolivian rams, at that. I can't imagine it working in a tank with any diggers what so ever unless you got it heavily rooted before any fish were in there.

Regardless of what you do, it'd be good to take some photos and get those fish of yours identified to make sure they won't kill each other in the future. Tanganyikan fish can vary from tiny little shell dwellers and julis to big ole frontosas. All of them require something a little different.

Another thing to keep in mind is that "rift lake cichlid aquarium" doesn't usually spell out "variety in fish" in terms of mixing more than compatible cichlids of the same lakes in the tank. They require that really high pH and hard water which things like your plecos and rainbow sharks (and convicts), as well as tetras, barbs, and other schooling fish would not appreciate. I'd imagine snails would get their feelers bitten and harassed like mad, making their lives miserable.

Fresh water clams also require very good water conditions and are prone to starvation, usually they don't live longer than a couple months in aquariums. Having any boisterous cichlids in the tank will keep them from feeding as well, just making them starve quicker. The clams filter through a boatload of water everyday feeding on microscopic organisms and free floating algae, and overall, need very, very, large aquariums (probably about 5x the size of your own) to really thrive.

One more thing, Tanganyikan fish aren't really the kinds you typically overstock (aside from say, tropheus species) and 35 seems like a whole lot of them from my perspective for a 75 gallon tank. Depending on what you have, things can go badly in the future. I'd honestly prepare to remove and rehome some fish, so that the ones you keep can live healthier lives. But this once again all depends on what's in the tank.

In terms of filtration, your aqueon HOB is not sufficient for this many cichlids in the tank. I've been told even getting a fluval 406 (canister rated for 100 gallon aquariums) would just barely cut it for my 50 gallon tank which I'm planning for julis and shell dwellers, fish which will probably get 2-4 inches long at best. I'd invest in a quality canister filter to run alongside your aqueon hang on back. cichlids are pretty messy fish. And you've currently got a lot of them.

And in terms of decorations, I'm sure they would appreciate more rock work, (or some cases, even shell work) to create caves out of, as opposed to the tacky top fin Colosseum decoration. Your zebras and most tanganyikan fish spend most of their time digging and dwelling within stacks of rocks. Driftwood may compete with the sand for pH, and can cause a lot of fluctuations, resulting in dead fish.

 

[SikkAquariums]

do you know what kind of tanganyika fishes they are? Those malawi and those convicts may wreak some havoc in that tank in the future depending on what the other fishes are.

Also keep in mind that from what I've been reading, most malawi are very herbivorous, having a hard time digesting high protein content food, whereas your tangs and convicts may appreciate some meaty things now and then, but even though the malawi's would have a hard time digesting the meaty things, it doesn't mean they won't eat them. Fish are very greedy.

I'd honestly try to stick with one type of fish in the tank, most likely removing the zebra(s) and convicts, and sticking with the tangs. Rehoming them shouldn't be too hard. Any plants you add, especially the dwarf hair grass, will be uprooted or destroyed by malawi's, but it may be safe with some species of tangs. I couldn't get dwarf hairgrass to even stay in the substrate in my community tank, due to 2" bolivian rams, at that. I can't imagine it working in a tank with any diggers what so ever unless you got it heavily rooted before any fish were in there.

Regardless of what you do, it'd be good to take some photos and get those fish of yours identified to make sure they won't kill each other in the future. Tanganyikan fish can vary from tiny little shell dwellers and julis to big ole frontosas. All of them require something a little different.

Another thing to keep in mind is that "rift lake cichlid aquarium" doesn't usually spell out "variety in fish" in terms of mixing more than compatible cichlids of the same lakes in the tank. They require that really high pH and hard water which things like your plecos and rainbow sharks (and convicts), as well as tetras, barbs, and other schooling fish would not appreciate. I'd imagine snails would get their feelers bitten and harassed like mad, making their lives miserable.

Fresh water clams also require very good water conditions and are prone to starvation, usually they don't live longer than a couple months in aquariums. Having any boisterous cichlids in the tank will keep them from feeding as well, just making them starve quicker. The clams filter through a boatload of water everyday feeding on microscopic organisms and free floating algae, and overall, need very, very, large aquariums (probably about 5x the size of your own) to really thrive.

One more thing, Tanganyikan fish aren't really the kinds you typically overstock (aside from say, tropheus species) and 35 seems like a whole lot of them from my perspective for a 75 gallon tank. Depending on what you have, things can go badly in the future. I'd honestly prepare to remove and rehome some fish, so that the ones you keep can live healthier lives. But this once again all depends on what's in the tank.

In terms of filtration, your aqueon HOB is not sufficient for this many cichlids in the tank. I've been told even getting a fluval 406 (canister rated for 100 gallon aquariums) would just barely cut it for my 50 gallon tank which I'm planning for julis and shell dwellers, fish which will probably get 2-4 inches long at best. I'd invest in a quality canister filter to run alongside your aqueon hang on back. cichlids are pretty messy fish. And you've currently got a lot of them.

And in terms of decorations, I'm sure they would appreciate more rock work, (or some cases, even shell work) to create caves out of, as opposed to the tacky top fin Colosseum decoration. Your zebras and most tanganyikan fish spend most of their time digging and dwelling within stacks of rocks. Driftwood may compete with the sand for pH, and can cause a lot of fluctuations, resulting in dead fish.

I can work on the pictures, probably tomorrow night, I tried using my professional camera and it failed, so I will have to get my phone out and shoot some more. And the Tangs seem fine so far, the Plecos seem to be acting pretty normal as well(well known LFS said they should be fine with them), and the Malwai are all getting along pretty well, they all sorta chase once in a while, I do need more rock work as well, and sad, i found one of my tangs wich is kind of a runt and only one eye...finally has been getting picked on, so i moved him into his own 10gal hospital tank this morning. And I had to move my rainbow shark out of my 37 tropical due to being too aggressive for the other tank mates about a month or so ago. And I need to find the filter tubing ASAP because I have a Marineland c360 for up to 100gph and no tubing! And my Marineland 350 that was good for 100gph just took a dump on me for some reason, i have no idea whats wrong with it...grr. But at the moment I have 4 air bars turned up full and the 75 running on the back in the meantime until i can find this tubing.

As for decorations i need to head over to the local quarry when i order some of my plants to find some nice rocks for my tank. maybe even some to help keep plants rooted. Thank you for input on hairgrass, and now that i think about it more, i started with my one eye yellow zebra in my 37 tropical until he was too aggressive, and he was the culprit for digging up only that plant for some reason, must not like where it was..Clams it sound like i will be skipping...the only thing i have that dirty that it would strive in is my 37gal, but that isnt large enough sooo, never mind all together..

Also, for driftwood and PH i have read a lot about it affecting the ph, but if its a small piece of wood with plant in it, should affect it all too much right? I just want the plecos to have some wood now and then, im only looking for one or two small pieces. They aren't very large when they are planted usually.

And with the filters again, I'm thinking when funds come, I will buy a secondary canister system for the same tank and run two for maximum filtration.

Also, any knowledge on metal and how to cover or what to cover it with would be good. I found some cool rusty metal parts I want to sand down, paint, and then coat to make it safe for the tank. Any idea what could be used to cover it either clear and water tight and safe for fish? or just standard aquarium silicone should work? and how many layers??

 

[onidrase]

I can work on the pictures, probably tomorrow night, I tried using my professional camera and it failed, so I will have to get my phone out and shoot some more. And the Tangs seem fine so far, the Plecos seem to be acting pretty normal as well(well known LFS said they should be fine with them), and the Malwai are all getting along pretty well, they all sorta chase once in a while, I do need more rock work as well, and sad, i found one of my tangs wich is kind of a runt and only one eye...finally has been getting picked on, so i moved him into his own 10gal hospital tank this morning. And I had to move my rainbow shark out of my 37 tropical due to being too aggressive for the other tank mates about a month or so ago. And I need to find the filter tubing ASAP because I have a Marineland c360 for up to 100gph and no tubing! And my Marineland 350 that was good for 100gph just took a dump on me for some reason, i have no idea whats wrong with it...grr. But at the moment I have 4 air bars turned up full and the 75 running on the back in the meantime until i can find this tubing.

As for decorations i need to head over to the local quarry when i order some of my plants to find some nice rocks for my tank. maybe even some to help keep plants rooted. Thank you for input on hairgrass, and now that i think about it more, i started with my one eye yellow zebra in my 37 tropical until he was too aggressive, and he was the culprit for digging up only that plant for some reason, must not like where it was..Clams it sound like i will be skipping...the only thing i have that dirty that it would strive in is my 37gal, but that isnt large enough sooo, never mind all together..

Also, for driftwood and PH i have read a lot about it affecting the ph, but if its a small piece of wood with plant in it, should affect it all too much right? I just want the plecos to have some wood now and then, im only looking for one or two small pieces. They aren't very large when they are planted usually.

And with the filters again, I'm thinking when funds come, I will buy a secondary canister system for the same tank and run two for maximum filtration.

Also, any knowledge on metal and how to cover or what to cover it with would be good. I found some cool rusty metal parts I want to sand down, paint, and then coat to make it safe for the tank. Any idea what could be used to cover it either clear and water tight and safe for fish? or just standard aquarium silicone should work? and how many layers??

The tangs probably won't fight until sexual maturity hits, once again, depending on their species. They don't all out kill each other as young fish, or else there would be very few young fish in the wild (and in the LFS) It'd be good to have them identified and to rehome the outcasts or those being bullied (the one with the missing eye might have not been a runt, but rather a victim, it's not unknown for fish fights to end with missing eyeballs or holes in the stomach, these are weak points aside from fin tattering)

The LFS also tends to say a lot of things. I wouldn't take their word for a fact. They need to make some money somehow. the plecos might be okay, but I wouldn't keep them in there if the pH is out of their preferred range. Two large species of plecos is also a lot of pleco poo in a relatively small tank.

When I was asking about setting up mt 75 gallon for tanganyikan fishes, I was told anywhere from 2-6 julidochromis (species that gets 3-4 inches long) 6 multifasciatus shelldwellers, 2m 4f (females get 1.5 inches, males get 2) a calvus (some freaky big mouth slow growing fish), and some leptosoma (open water schoolers), with maybe a little wiggle room. Granted, I decided to make this project for my 50 instead. This is why I find it pretty nuts that you've got 35 unidentified tanganyikan fish in the tank. If it were malawi, it would be more understandable, but malawi and tanganyika are very different lakes. Mbuna fishes tend to make large colonies and social hierarchies. Tanganyikas don't (again, aside from tropheus, and maybe a few other larger species I haven't discovered personally)

In regards to using that metal in the tank, I'd honestly say don't do it. Metal tends to only keep from decomposing if it's powder coated with some sort of laminate like substance (which you usually have to pay people to do, the process is dangerous) and powder coating metal does not make it look metal anymore, just like whatever color you chose. and if there is the smallest chip in the powder coating, it'll decompose like mad, rusting up, killing your fish, everyone will have a bad time. My metalsmithing teacher always taught us ways to to help things rust less quickly, but in the end, all it took was a rainstorm to turn our beautiful gun black sculptures into orange and red rust machines.

 

[SikkAquariums]

HELP! haha

HELP! haha

HELP! haha

Lemon Pleco (I think)

Common Pleco

Tank Setup as of Yesterday, Re arranged some things to bring aggression down this morning, but won't have a picture until tomorrow night, ill try tonight though.

 

[onidrase]

The first two look like tropheus moorii cichlids to me, they like to be kept in large groups (1-3 males and 15 or more females typically)they're very prone to bloat and need a steady diet of herbivorous foods, they're also algae grazers so imo if you want to keep them, you should remove the plecos so these guys can get their diet of algae.

Second pic is another type of tropheus, looks like moorii but might be something different

next down looks almost like a young frontosa, but I'm not 100% sure and have a feeling I'm wrong.

Then the next looks like a juvenile tropheus duboisi

and the last two are big plecos. Not sure what the first one is, second one I'm 98% sure is a common.

 

[SikkAquariums]

Here is the little buddy with one eye I found. I happened to walk by at the right time last night to see him on the bottom of the tank getting picked at, so I moved him to my 37gal tropical, and my shark started picking on him by this morning, so i quickly started my 10gal i was saving as a hospital tank, ive already lost a lot of the fish when i first got the tank do to bloat and what not for improper feeding.

And on the note with the morii i think it was, I feed a few Omega One Allege tabs every other day, as well as cichlid flakes and pellets.

Here is the medecine that fixed my issues in the last month of fungus/mouthrot...

and of picture of my guppies and pleco for fun.

 

[onidrase]

The moorii will appreciate more veggie tablets and flake with high spirulina content (not cichlid pellets) as well as vegetables such as lettuce and spinach. Cichlid pellets tend to contain high protein content.

 

[SikkAquariums]

The moorii will appreciate more veggie tablets and flake with high spirulina content (not cichlid pellets) as well as vegetables such as lettuce and spinach. Cichlid pellets tend to contain high protein content.

Okay, so I currently have them on an every other day feeding schedual and will continue with the flakes and veggie tabs. I will still continue to use what is left of my pellets and when they run up, no more, i also soak the pellets and tabs a little bit first, ive read the pellets can expand if they swallow them before they are wet enough..

And I will try uploading photos tonight of the tank, i rearanged it a little bit to help bring down aggression due to the other fish above being munched on so much, and the mnuba chasing a few, and vis versa..

 

[onidrase]

Tropheus species have a high metabolism and are best fed high spirulina content food several times a day (3 times a day recommended)

It's not the hardness of the pellets that makes it hard for them to digest, its the protein. Soaking the pellets doesn't take the protein out. Tropheus are herbivores, they survive by scraping algae off rocks all day in the wild. Thus they need to eat rather constantly.

 

[SikkAquariums]

Tropheus species have a high metabolism and are best fed high spirulina content food several times a day (3 times a day recommended)

It's not the hardness of the pellets that makes it hard for them to digest, its the protein. Soaking the pellets doesn't take the protein out. Tropheus are herbivores, they survive by scraping algae off rocks all day in the wild. Thus they need to eat rather constantly.

Okay, so I'll start feeding them all more often with the tabs daily/nightly. My LFS said i may have been over feeding them, becuase i did have a fungus of the body erroding away, so i stopped that and everything is fine now, and ive been steady with everyother day, with occasional extra another day, but I will start feeding daily, with more often water changes.

 

[SikkAquariums]

Thanks for helping identify some of those guys, I will try getting some more pix of the other guys, hopefully I'll have some tubing soon to set up my new filter system. I thought the tropheus moorii were that when i looked them up but colors varied differently so wasn't sure. Unfortunately I'm not sure when i can do the sand and plants because I am now supposedly moving on/around the 1st of September, so we'll see how this works.

Also, my sick bay tank is looking good still. I added a cup of salt before I went to work today, figured that may help heal his wounds faster with the medicine treatment he is getting.

 

[onidrase]

Tropheus species have a high metabolism and are best fed high spirulina content food several times a day (3 times a day recommended)

It's not the hardness of the pellets that makes it hard for them to digest, its the protein. Soaking the pellets doesn't take the protein out. Tropheus are herbivores, they survive by scraping algae off rocks all day in the wild. Thus they need to eat rather constantly.

Okay, so I'll start feeding them all more often with the tabs daily/nightly. My LFS said i may have been over feeding them, becuase i did have a fungus of the body erroding away, so i stopped that and everything is fine now, and ive been steady with everyother day, with occasional extra another day, but I will start feeding daily, with more often water changes.

The problems would have sooner come from the huge amount of fish in the tank with the lack of filtration, rather than the feeding issue. Make it a priority to get one of your canister filters hooked up. But if you plan on running a tropheus tank, you'll need a lot more filtration than the canister and hang on back IMO. It's also likely you may need to rehome the mbuna. I'd also try to rehome the plecos to give them tropheus more algae to graze on.

Tropheus species all change color as they grow, all of yours seem to be juveniles. It also looks like you have a few tropheus duboisi, not just moorii. I'm not sure if they'll get along as sexual maturity reaches or not.

 

[SikkAquariums]

Tropheus species have a high metabolism and are best fed high spirulina content food several times a day (3 times a day recommended)

It's not the hardness of the pellets that makes it hard for them to digest, its the protein. Soaking the pellets doesn't take the protein out. Tropheus are herbivores, they survive by scraping algae off rocks all day in the wild. Thus they need to eat rather constantly.

Okay, so I'll start feeding them all more often with the tabs daily/nightly. My LFS said i may have been over feeding them, becuase i did have a fungus of the body erroding away, so i stopped that and everything is fine now, and ive been steady with everyother day, with occasional extra another day, but I will start feeding daily, with more often water changes.

The problems would have sooner come from the huge amount of fish in the tank with the lack of filtration, rather than the feeding issue. Make it a priority to get one of your canister filters hooked up. But if you plan on running a tropheus tank, you'll need a lot more filtration than the canister and hang on back IMO. It's also likely you may need to rehome the mbuna. I'd also try to rehome the plecos to give them tropheus more algae to graze on.

Tropheus species all change color as they grow, all of yours seem to be juveniles. It also looks like you have a few tropheus duboisi, not just moorii. I'm not sure if they'll get along as sexual maturity reaches or not.

Yea, we shall see. As time progresses too of course i will be adding a lot more rock to the tank.. As a matter of fact if i remember properly when they had the tank set up, they had a very high mountain of lava rock which i may go back over to doing again, or ocean rock, if i can find any not live and so much $$..
Also, i just ordered a new tub for my filter, so hopefully they ship it ASAP and i can have it up and running, and i plan on getting a second canister and have both of those running the tank.

and on another note i was able to identify my green pleco through the pleco forum.. "Green Phantom Pleco, Green Pleco, L200, Lemon spotted Green Pleco - Hemiancistrus subviridis"