120G.Malawi.Tank stocklist

[sun]

So, here is a improved stocklist with all your valuable inputs: (Thanks all! You guys are simply the best!)

Haps:

Trio of Dimidiochromis Compressiceps Eye biter / 1m2f

Trio of Aul. Jacobfriebergi Eureka / 1m2f

Mbuna:

Ps. Saulosi 3m/6f

OR

Yellow labs 3 / Ps. Acei white tail 6

So, thats a total of 15 (6 haps / 9 mbunas) in a 120G. Do you think it looks better? or worse? Will the haps make snakes out of the mbuna? or instead the small bugs bother those somewhat peaceful haps? Any other fish you would add? or drop?

:baby:

[RD.]

Hey Sun,

Here's my advice, either choose a more peaceful hap/peaccock for that 4' tank, or drop them all together. The extra depth at 24" is nice, but the big boys will appreciate a longer tank, much more than a deeper one. Even male jacobs can be a handful when they start to breed.

If you want yellow, Kyle (African_Fever) has F1 yellow labs, and high quality labs are getting easier to find all the time. If you're going with Mbuna, then I would suggest a mix of yellow labs 15, and 15 Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=756

Kyle, also breeds wild M. cyaneorhabdos, and the color combo would IMO be stunning.

If you want an Mbuna Hap mix, then consider yellow labs for your yellow fish (they mix well with most anything) and choose a calmer more peaceful Hap, such as C. moorii.

[Vallisneria]

If you want an Mbuna Hap mix, then consider yellow labs for your yellow fish (they mix well with most anything) and choose a calmer more peaceful Hap, such as C. moorii.

Some other good haps for mixing with yellow labs(or acei) are P.electra, P. phenochillus, Red empress, and Taiwan reefs. These are some of the haps i've personally mixed with mbuna and never had any problems.

[johnsmith]

Kyle (African_Fever) has F1 yellow labs ... Kyle, also breeds wild M. cyaneorhabdos, and the color combo would IMO be stunning.

And they should only eat NLS! Do I see a new LFS in the making?!

IMO, if you're going to have a big tank it would be a shame to only have small fish. Some nice peaceful haps (or peacocks) would look great.

Protomelas sp. "Steveni Taiwan" (Taiwanee Reef)

Copadichromis azureus

Copadichromis borleyi (Kadango)

I'm pretty sure these are all pretty common around here.

But...do boisterous mbuna bug them too much?

[RD.]

Sure, there are plenty of haps that will work well with labs or acei, no problem there, but with a tank with those dimensions I would personally stick with one breeding group of haps, not two, hence I went with one of the larger species of hap. You still get to have some big boys, just ones that generally play a little nicer than the species that Sun has previously suggested.

[Vallisneria]

But...do boisterous mbuna bug them too much?

I"ve never had any problems with the mbuna( in my case lab perlmutts, yellow labs, acei, rusties) ever bothering the haps. They never paid much attention to eachother and stuck mostly to their own species. Never had any hap/mbuna aggression(or even any chasing). They ignored eachother and stuck to their own.

[RD.]

If you ever seen a tank that size, full of a 2 species combo of yellow & blue fish, trust me, you wouldn't think it was shameful.

I am big fan of those bright vibrant yellow color small fishes, all types, fresh or salt water.

That being the case, then yellow labs seems the natural choice for this tank (for Mbuna) as they are the most yellow species found in Lake Malawi, and will work with any type of Hap.

Now it just seems to be what species of hap that Sun wants to go with.

[sun]

Thanks RD for your comments and NLS, my fishes really like it.

I totally agree what you said about the two yellow/blue combos, they should be making good color comtrast together.

Yet I am also looking for size contrast too. What I was tying to do here is to set up a tank better mimic the fish's nature habitat, i.e. with both rounded boulders and sandy bottom, with larger haps and smaller rock fish.

I do know 4ft is a little tight, but i wish I could make it up by carefully selection of fishes.

Anyway, it is getting hard now with all the delimas. But like Nev said, its the fun part and I am really enjoying doing it. It just feels like doing the show home tour when building a new house. A little confusing, but I am loving it! :smokey:

[sun]

As of the color, besides the yellow and blue, I's also like to see some red/orange colors in the tank.

Thanks Degrass and Johnsmith, you guys both mentioned P. Taiwanee Reef, I like their colors blue/yellow/orange. but I am just wondering if there is a cross breeding issue with peacocks, b/c someone said that tainwaneed reef males are too peaceful to defend their females from other haps.

I kinda like the idea of one rep. of each group (hap, mbuna, peacock). So the Jacob eureka / sunshine idea is still there. Does that mean I am done big boys? I really want to have something big and colorful as the center piece, although a 120g is a 'small' tank africanwise... :eh:

[RD.]

I kinda like the idea of one rep. of each group (hap, mbuna, peacock). So the Jacob eureka / sunshine idea is still there.

You can keep some of the previously mentioned mbuna with a jacob, but chances are that the A. baenschi would get the tar beat out of it once the jake starts breeding. If you have your mind set on a A. jacob such as the eureka, then consider one of the slightly more aggressive haps, such as a group of Sciaenochromis fryeri. The fryeri can get 7-8", and the males are quite stunning, and this would also add some blue to your tank.

Keep in mind that most female haps & peacocks will add zero for color, as they are all pretty much dull & drab. This is why I had suggested something like the C. moorii, as they get large, and the females are also a nice blue color.

[sun]

Keep in mind that most female haps & peacocks will add zero for color

I cant agree more! This is why sometimes I got frustrated when digging through the malawi fiels. sometimes I even want give up the idea of a malawi tank. :cry:

[dunl]

Why not go with mbuna and only male haps, then?

[sun]

This is why I had suggested something like the C. moorii, as they get large, and the females are also a nice blue color.

to be honest, the C. Moorii had been on my list before. The females are with decent colors, but Id have to say the males are not a WOW color.

[sun]

Why not go with mbuna and only male haps, then?

I just think that they might feel little happier with couple of girls around, although I donot intend to breed, I wouldnt mind either if there is 1 or 2 little survivors swiming every now and then.

[RD.]

It sounds to me like you have some decisons to make.

If you want a lot of WoW color, then IMO 2-3 monomorphic species of mbuna would be the best way to go. Yellow is an easy one, for blue it sounds like you would like demasoni, which would work (get at least 12), although there are others such as M. cyano's, Ps. Mpanga, etc, that would be easier to get along with, and larger, and for the red/orange color that you mentioned you could have M. estherae.

Yellow - blue - red/orange ...... nice combination of color IMO, and would work well in a 4' tank.