Several questions

[phoenix]

today i went to several LFS in my area and while talking to the staff in all of them I got a similar answers. I was checking out cichlids while the wife was doing barb shopping.

Any way here we go I asked in 4 stores what their parameters were for their cichlid tanks. All 4 responded that they keep ALL their tanks the same PHs regardless of fish type. 7-7.6 range. And that all their fish they stocked came in similarly.

So by what they are saying these fish are raised this way all the way, from the breeders to the buyers homes.

1] So there for, wouldnt raising the PH for African cichlids to what is actually recommended do harm to the fish?? a kinda culture shock so to speak?

2] with that in mind, the PH beingthe same across the board wouldnt the mixing of SA/CA and African cichlids be ok to a point. The aggressivness aside.

3} Are there any real benifits to the fish once we get them to raise the PH? If so what are those benifits?

Anyways I would like to hear what you folks think about theese finds, and your opinion on this. The stores were Petco, petsmart, and 2 mom and pop stores. I would also like to know if most stores in other areas are the same as these.

 

[thecichlidaddict]

This is all absolutely true, and I've always said it.

If you purchase wildcaught fish then lake parameters are much more important then for aquarium or pond bred fish, which are raised as you described. Mixing is still best avoided by beginners because of different reasons.

Diet should often be considered, and more importantly behavioral patterns. It's not just the amount of aggression, but the type of aggression. Some fish are more aggressive toward their own kind or other fish of similar colors. Some just stake out a piece of land and defend it with their lives. Some just see food in tankmates. Some breeding fish go on seek and destroy missions, claiming the tank as their own.

Mixing is fine, the problem is that it's easy for a beginner to mess up. The tank should be big enough to accomadate, and the fish must be chosen carefully. The tank that I'm working on now is going to be quite mixed actually, two rift lakes and central america. I've got experience behind me and even more importantly, a fairly big tank. I also have a couple of reserve tanks, should something not work out as planned.

Both my new worlds and Africans share the same water, ph 7.5.

 

[phoenix]

I too have mixed in the past and had relative good success at it.

I guess my main purpose with this post is to point these findings out to people and find out if there are any benifits or drawbacks to raising the PH for african cichlids that are raised from birth in lower PH water???