African cichlids experts?

Part of cichlid aggresion actually just comes from territory squabbles which I think can make for a very interesting tank! Africa is a large continent and has many ecosystems to choose from. As just about all of them have cichlids in them. From the rivers in the west, north and center where we get fish like red jewels and egyptian mouthbrooders, to the three lakes in the south that give us colors that rival that of our saltwater counter-parts. With such a good size tank I would reccomend a southern mixture. My favorites come from lake Tanginika with it shell dwellers and interesting color combinations and habits and from Lake Mawlawi for it's colors and mouth brooders. Get a couple of pounds of rock with plenty of nooks and crannies for territory(fish are more stable and show off a lot more if they have their own territory) there are many plants that aren't too picky about substrate or lighting like java moss and Java fern which can be attatched to rock instead of planted directly into soil. You can slow down the digging by making sure to have a few rocks that have at least one smooth or flat surface. Fish dig to look for a hard stable place to lay eggs. If you provide it they won't look so hard! Because of the surrounding area of these lakes the water tends to be of a high pH (around 7.8-8.5) and so your take should be kept at that level. Things that help with that is materials containing calcium carbonate such as shells(ideal for some fish for territory) or coral.

What ever you get I would look into where the fish originate from. That will tell you what kind of condition to keep them under. You mentioned covicts which as far as I remember are not african but amozonian. Though they need similar structure, they need different water conditions. But while I'm on the subject I wouldn't count out the cichlids of the amozon and central america as they can make for a very interesting and colorful tank as well. from your dwarf cichlids and peaceful discus and angelfish to you more aggresive firemouths and jack dempsy's and green terrors. I think I've talk your ear off by now but I hope all this helps.

Not an expert, but I know it's recommended to slightly overstock African cichlids to help cut down the aggression. I had a smaller tank, 29 gallons. I'd mixed up the different lake varieties before I knew you really should keep them the same(Malawi, Tanganyikan). I had a duboisi, demasoni, electric blue, zebra. I know they get more aggressive if you have a breeding pair. I believe you should put them in together, at the same time, all about the same size. Could be wrong about the timing, I know if I added anything new, they'd kill it-my electric blue & a peacock. I had a sand substrate, and don't do well with live plants, so had a bunch of the fake wood with plants. Lots of hidey holes/caves/rocks. That's about the extent of it. Had them for about 5 years, sold them back to the fish store because I was moving and didn't have the room for an extra tank(have 6 already) and that was the one that had to go. Good luck!

I have raised african cichlids for several years now. I have experimented with many different species of the cichlid family. I have learned that it really mostly depends on the fish itself not the species. It is true some species are more aggressive than others and you should only keep like fish together but sometimes i have found that the temperment of one particular fish can cause an entire set-up to react a certain way. For Example: I have a Psuedotropheus Lombardoi (Kenyi) I have to house him in his own aquarium by himself because when he was in the main aquarium not only did he fight other fish the other fish fought each other. I removed him and the entire aquarium settled and fighting stopped altogether. Also having sexed pairs will cause usually the male of the pair to become more aggressive towards the oher fish in the aquarium.

My advice to you would be to be prepared to move fish around from tank to tank until you get the right combination. Have extra tanks to put fish in. Unfortunately you will have to be prepared to lose fish also.

I guess the ideal set up for an african cichlid tank would be lots of rocks and caves. The fish will dig but after a few weeks you will begin to see where they do there digging and put plants if you want where they don't dig. That is what I had to do.

Some fish for thought:

Malawi Eye Biter (males are really pretty blue with orange highlighted fins)

Psuedotropheus Crabro (Bumblebee Cichlid) This fish can change color from black and yellow stripes to solid black instantly.

Psuedotropheus Esterea (Minos Reef variety get pretty looking spots on all of their fins.

Psuedotropheus Lombardoi (Kenyi) These fish are more on the aggressive side but in a 75 gal. tank one should be OK. Males are Yellow/Orange and females are like a Powder Blue with dark vertical bars.

Melanochromis Auratus stays somewhat small but can hold his own against the bigger fish.

Well this is all I have time for right now if you want more info on this shoot me an email. I will be of as much help as I can.

The best site for any fish info is wetwebmedia.com

I have several aquariums but do not keep cichlids, you will find what you need at this site.