Breeding Neolamprologus brichardi  12/18/07
What's up, WWM? I have a mix cichlid tank which has one Neolamprologus brichardi. If I added more will they all school or no? I want to have a little school of fish in my tank that are small cichlids. Any tips for schooling them and breeding them? Thanks Chris.
<When you make a small school of these cichlids they will soon pair up. The single pair will dominate the tank and chase or kill the remaining fish. The pair will soon spawn and the fry will form a small school. If they are well feed the parents will continue to spawn and the older siblings don't seem to mind them being around. Some are eaten but many continue to grow. All these spawns produce a large school that gets along remarkably well.-Chuck>

Breeding Program, Malawi Cichlid facility  12/12/07
Hello Bob.
<Ghulam>
How are you? Hope all is well.
<Yes; thank you my friend>
I have sent you a few emails before regarding my Reef Tank and MAYBE starting up my own Aquarium Store here in Bahrain, and also emailed you regarding the best places in the world to go diving. Anyway, now I would like if you can help me out with my new project. Do you know what website or where on Wet Web Media I can get ideas on how to build my own freshwater (African Malawi Cichlid and maybe other easy and popular fish) breeding facility.
<Ahh! I do not, but there is a friend/Crewmember here, Chuck Rambo, who is very well versed in such matters. I am going to send your note to him for separate response>
I have a filtration system for 5000 Liters. The only thing I need is MORE ideas on sizes of tanks and what ever extra info I would need.
Best Regards
Ghulam
<And to you. Bob Fenner>

Kribensis pair fighting
Breeding Aggressive Krib Parents 11/19/07
Hi, thanks for the great site. I bought a breeding pair of albino Kribs about a month ago and put them in a 15 gallon, lightly planted tank with 2 cardinal tetras. I noticed when I brought them home that the female was quite bloated and red around the belly, and sure enough she laid her eggs in a cave 2 days later. The eggs hatched, but after a few days the babies had all disappeared. I assumed it was because they had been in the tank for such a short time. About two weeks later the female laid eggs again in her cave, everything was going fine and the pair was taking the fry around the tank, but 3 days after the fry came out of the cave the female started to show aggression towards her mate, nothing too serious until one morning when I found the male being chased around the tank relentlessly with most of his tail and lower fins bitten off. I removed the male for fear of him being killed by the female. My question is this: why would the female suddenly try to kill her mate? I have re-introduced the male twice in the past few days but the female continues to attack him. Thanks
<These fish are probably young and are not very comfortable with each other during the breeding process. If you are interested in raising the fry, I would recommend that you remove the fry as soon as they are free swimming. They are actually quite large and can be easily raised on baby brine and crushed flake food. I would also remove the male at this time too. She may think that he ate the first batch of fry and he will do it again so she is being very protective. Next time they spawn try feeding them a couple of times each day so they parents won't get hungry. As the parents grow the male will become much larger and have an easier time defending himself. remove the fry and reintroduce the male as soo as he is healed from his wounds. She should be ready to breed again.-Chuck>

Melanochromis auratus 10/22/07
Sexing Mel. Auratus
Hello, I recently bought 5 Melanochromis Auratus African Cichlids. They are about 2 inches long. I am wondering when the males will start to show their male colors or at least the "dominant" male?
< Usually at around two inches the males start to darken up.>
On one of them I have noticed a small black "speck" that seems to be getting bigger on the lower part of its tail. Also on another I have noticed a little black coloration on the fin on the lower middle part of the fish. Could these be signs of a male growing into maturity?
< Male M. auratus males will usually change color in a couple of weeks when they are the dominant fish in the tank. Certain areas may darken before others. Females usually don't change at all.>
If not when do you think I will start to notice the dominant male colors. Any other suggestions on breeding these fish or determining the sex would be great! Thanks!
< In the wild males are usually fully colored by two inches. They grow slower in the wild and a two inch fish in the wild is actually much older that a captive raised fish the same size. Sexual maturity is usually a matter of age and not size. Raise the water temp. to 80 f and that should accelerate the change.-Chuck>

Sexing African Cichlids - 10/07/2007
I just bought 4 electric blue Johanni's from a local pet store. I was wondering how you can tell the sex of each. They are above an inch and a 1/2 long right now.
<Melanochromis johanni is an interesting herbivorous Mbuna. As with other members of the genus, it displays colour changes as it matures. Only dominant males display the dark blue colours. Females and immature males are orange. Females often have fewer/no egg spots on the anal fin, but this isn't a reliable diagnostic characteristic. As with all Melanochromis, males are relatively aggressive, though by Melanochromis standards, this species is at the low end of the nastiness spectrum. Still, treat this fish with respect and provide ample space and hiding places. In a group as small as four, if there are more than one male in your group, the dominant one will harass and likely kill the other(s). For a stable community, you need AT LEAST three females per male. They are of course herbivorous, as you probably realize, but for the education of other readers, this species is very prone to bloat when given meaty foods. So do not mix with cichlids that need meaty foods (such as zooplankton or crustacean feeders). Stick to herbivore flake, algae (Sushi Nori is ideal) and soft vegetables like tinned peas and curette. Good luck! Neale>

Re:  Sexing African Cichlids - 10/07/2007
Hello, again thank you for answering all my questions so far! I returned the electric blue Johanni's and purchased 5 Melanochromis auratus from a local pet store. I am sure that is what they are. I did a little research finding that that the females and juveniles are yellow with some black coloration and the males get darker with a little blue. When do they show gender? Like what size would the males become mature to show the gender? Right now i would say they are about an inch and a 1/2. Also what size are they when they are ready/ able to breed? Thanks!
<As is typical for the genus Melanochromis, they need to be around half size before you can reliably sex them. And even then, only the *dominant* male will show full male coloration. Subdominant males will look more or less similar to females. Actually, they will look like dead fish, because they will be dead fish, since the dominant male will kill them unless you have a GIANT aquarium (500 liters, or thereabouts). So you need to be alert and able to remove spare males at the first sign of trouble. What you want is one males to three or more females. With mouthbrooding cichlids, you want to delay breeding for as long as possible. Remember, the female is a mouthbrooder, and cannot eat while incubating the eggs. So, for a good couple of weeks she is going without food. It is really important to ensure she's an appropriate size before putting her through the process. Too many people "rush" things, and end up with a dead female. Melanochromis auratus is one of the MOST DIFFICULT cichlids in the hobby, so please read up on this species and make accommodations for its very specific needs in terms of aggression, water chemistry, and diet. Cheers, Neale>

Re:  Sexing African Cichlids - 10/07/2007
Ok that helps because when i
<<PLEASE capitalize your "I".  Not only is it respectful to those of us who answer and post your questions, but it's respectful to yourself.  -Sabrina>>
went to the pet store the guy told me that the electric blue Johanni's are all blue no matter what so I have 4 blue ones. They are only an inch and a 1/2 so I didn't think they are mature but I guess they are right?....because they have reached their blue state of maturity. That means I that all 4 i purchased were males right?
<Your fish sound too small to have developed their male coloration. Wild-caught fish at least to be half adult size (i.e., at least 5 cm) before the blue starts showing. Furthermore, because of the extreme territoriality of this species, four males would not all develop blue coloration simultaneously unless kept in a huge (1000 litre) aquarium. Rather, you'd expect one male to be blue, and all the others to be orange. For these reasons, my assumption would be that you have some sort of hybrid cichlid. Perfectly pleasant perhaps as pets, but of no value for a breeding project. They might, alternatively, be misidentified. Species such as Melanochromis elastodema sometimes get mistakenly sold as Melanochromis johanni. If this is the case, you won't be able to identify the fish until they are mature, and even then, identifications can be difficult. Cheers, Neale>

Question about Mouthbrooding African Cichlid. Female Cichlid Keeps Holding Infertile Eggs – 8/19/07
Please help me. I have owned a mouth brooding cichlid (Fossorochromis rostratus) for the last four years since she was very small. About a month or two ago she suddenly stopped eating for almost a week and I feared it was some gravel stuck in her throat. Imagine my surprise when I netted her and she bit me and spit out 29 eggs. There is no male in the tank so they never would have hatched. Some of the eggs were in the early stages of decay when I caught her. Unfortunately this has happened again as of yesterday, but when I caught her this time (big strong fish, not fun for either of us), she absolutely refused to let go of them, even with gentle physical
encouragement. How long will she hold the eggs if I leave her alone?
< Probably about a week.>
Will she get sick starving herself so often and holding decaying eggs?
< Your fish is in very good shape or else she would not be laying eggs.>
Or will she eventually eat them and will that be healthy?
< She will probably egg the eggs and be fine.>
If done often enough, would eating them turn into a habit and interfere with possible future breeding plans?
< No but egg laying does use up some body fat and rerserves.>
What should I do about this, as I don't want to stress her out again- and one site warned that they may die if handled too roughly?
< Lower the water temp to 75 F and see if she stops.>
Am I being too worried about something natural?
< Constant spawning can weaken her over time and make her more vulnerable to stress and diseases.>
She is definitely the most valuable and prized fish in my collection. Thanks for your help.
-Rebecca
< This is a nice fish. The males are gorgeous.-Chuck>

African Cichlid  6/6/07
Maybe you can help me.
<Greetings.>
I have a female African Cichlid, not sure of her species, but just released about 30 fry 5 days ago (she was in a separate tank).
<Very good. One thing though. Please, try and ensure any fry you produce are a single species. The African Cichlid side of the hobby is plagued with hybrids, and these have little to no real value, being unpredictable in behaviour and indifferent in colouration. Many of the Pseudotropheus-type fishes (of which the African Zebra, Pseudotropheus zebra, is the best known) are notorious for hybridising. The reason I mention this is that a lot of the African cichlids people buy but cannot identify by looking in books are these hybrids. You can't name the species because they *aren't* a species!>
She has been doing great, a little thin but last night when we came in she was swimming erratically up and down the tank.
<They do lose weight after mouthbrooding. A month on her own to "fatten up" will do her plenty of good. Don't forget to give her greens as well as meaty foods, because the essential vitamins she needs will be in algae-based foods.>
Now she fights to swim to the top but her tail sinks her to the bottom of the tank. She isn't bloated, no skin irritations, nothing too strange.
<Very odd. Usually, when cichlids suddenly lose poise or swimming ability the problem is a sudden change in conditions. Adding, for example, too-cold water to a cichlid tank will send them into apparent convulsions. They recover as they warm up. Cichlids are among the most highly strung fishes, so anything like changes in temperature, pH, hardness, and salinity have to be observed carefully.>
She seems as if she's gasping for air so we put her into a tank by herself and added salt to see if that would help. Do you have any clue what her problem might be?
<Tonic salt (NaCl) won't help. Quite the reverse. There's fairly solid agreement among aquarists and vets that salt is one factor that leads to Malawi Bloat, a situation a bit like dropsy caused by organ failure. So without exception, salt should never be added to a tank with Malawi or Tanganyikan cichlids. (By contrast, Central American and Asian cichlids often have phenomenally high salt tolerance, to the point where some species will breed in seawater!) So, remove the salt by performing water changes through the week. Check the pH and hardness are appropriate. For Rift Valley cichlids something around 20 degrees GH ("hard" to "very hard" on your test kit) and a pH between 7.5 and 8.0 will do nicely. Ensure the water quality os optimal, of course. Tanganyikan cichlids are especially intolerant of nitrites and ammonia, but given yours is a mouthbrooder it is probably a Malawi cichlid of some type.>
Thank you,
Allison
<Hope this helps. Neale>

Re: African Cichlid – 06/07/07
Thank you, our cichlid is orange and I can identify her and the others in the tank from a book but I can never remember the technical name. I believe she bred with an electric blue cichlid that has an orange stripe on its fin.
<Ah, that's the problem. Almost certainly at least a cross-breeding between varieties of one species or else a hybrid between species. Please, unless you are sure the species has blue males and orange females, and so the breeding was between a single variety and a single species, destroy the fry at once using a humane method. Passing on hybrid cichlids to retailers and other hobbyists is one of the least ethical things any hobbyist can do. Besides ruining the hobby by dumping no-name hybrids on the market, it also causes conservation issues. Many of the African cichlids are under intense pressure from collectors in the wild. In some cases, they are commercially extinct, i.e., so rare, collectors can't find them any more. I learned about this a few days ago speaking with a fish scientist out in Tanganyika. By dumping tank-bred hybrids on the market, serious aquarists are forced to buy wild-caught fish if they want quality stock. It is this demand that causes the pressure on wild populations. So please, if you are not 100% sure the fry are a true species and a single variety, destroy them.>
It's odd to hear problems with salt. We treated our tank in the past for disease by way of salt and all our fish were cured and still well.
<It isn't a 1:1 thing, i.e., every time you use salt, the fish get Malawi Bloat. But when Malawi Bloat does occur, one of the factors common to many cases is the use of tonic salt. Conversely, salt doesn't deliver any tangible benefits that cannot be acquired using safer methods.>
Thank you,
Allison
<Cheers, Neale>

Removing Cichlid Fry    5/20/07
Hi Bob, I have 8 different African cichlids species in my tank;
Electric yellow, Snow white socolofi, Blue socolofi, Red zebra, Kenyi, Venustus, Sunshine peacock, Ice blue zebra.
The ice blue zebra was holding eggs (we first thought she is sick, not eating etc. .) We never expected that different species would have fry.
<The zebras may not be different species, just geographic color morphs.>
and now I have 2 little baby fish swimming around and eating like crazy on their own already. Is it best now to remove the little baby fish from the tank ??
< The venustus is a predatory cichlid that has probably eaten some of the fry already. If you want to save the fry you better remove them.-Chuck.>
Thank you ..Claudia

Neolamprologus Brichardi Population Control   5/18/07
Hey guys, I have been using WWM for a few months now, mostly researching saltwater issues, and having great success in finding solutions. However, I and having an issue that I have been unable to find a solution. I have been keeping NeoLamp Brichardis for about a year now. Their elegant finnage make them beautiful fish. I was also intrigued about their colony behavior  towards raising the fry. The problem is an issue of too much of a good thing. The colony was originally in a 55 gallon planted tank where they were healthy and extremely prolific, to the point that I was concerned about the system crashing due to overpopulation. Then around the time of Christmas, The 55 gallon tank had a failure. The spreader brace at the top of the tank broke, causing the glass to begin to bow....not good.  I also had a 75 gallon tank that housed a variety of Peacock Cichlids ranging in size from 2 1/2" to 5". There is also a 6" Chinese algae eater and a 8" Pictus cat. I put the Brichardi in this
tank. At first I was really concerned because I was unsure how Peacocks and Brichardi would interact.....everything turned out fine. I thought that by having the larger Peacocks present, the Brichardi would either stop reproducing or have the fry eaten. Neither has happened. I now have at least three mating pairs, with a near consistent presence of fry. I have checked with LFS to see if they were interested in the fry once they were large enough to sell.....no luck. There are currently about 35-40 fish not including the babies (about 70). I have already culled two batches of fry....of which I'm not proud. There again I don't want to risk losing all the fish due to a sudden crash. I guess what my question(s) is(are): Is there a type of fish I could introduce to keep the Brichardi from breeding or eat the fry, without also abusing the other fish. Or is there something I could do that would prohibit the Brichardi from breeding. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Jeremy
< In 2002 my wife and I took a trip to Lake Tanganyika. There was a single colony of N. pulcher, (Very similar to brichardi's), that went from the surface down to over 100 feet deep and was at least 300 yds wide. They just ran out of rocks on both ends or else the colony would have need even larger. In the wild the fry are preyed on by African spiny eels, large predatory Lamprologine species, electric catfish, freshwater jellyfish and Nile perch. Most of these predators would be attacked and probably killed by the parents or too big for a normal aquarium. Too bad they cannot be sold to the local stores. Lowering the temp to 75 F and fewer feedings may slow them down and produce fewer fry but I don't think they can be stopped.-Chuck>

Male Peacock Cichlid Disguised As A Female  – 5/13/07
I had purchased a "pair of peacocks" they were  ultimately a pair, I moved them to a 40 gallon with others and the female  now looks like the male how did this happen? They are exactly alike as they  were not all this time. Same size and everything they looked like a pair  and he/she looked very much like a female for a long time. Can you answer  this for me   thank you   kit
<In the wild, dominant males chase other males away and allow females into his territory to feed and spawn. Some males don't develop any male coloration until they get too big and too old and can't hide it any longer. This happens to many aquarists. I once knew an aquarist that had seventeen adult females and one adult male for a large breeding colony. The only problem is that they would not breed. Eventually I convinced him to remove the dominant male. As soon as he did that another male showed up from one of the females. Eventually he ended up with four females and fourteen males. I currently have a Flavescent Peacock female that is looking more like a male every day. It happens to the best of us.-Chuck.>

Raising Ps. socolofi Fry   2/22/07
A few weeks ago I noticed one of my socolofi was carrying.  I got a 10 gal tank and used water from the 90 gal she came out of.  I put her in there and she spit after a few days.  Now she is back in the main tank and I'm wondering how to clean the 10 gal with the fry.  I do a weekly water change of 10% in the 90 gal.?
<The 90 gallon should have its normal weekly water changes to keep the nitrates under 25 ppm.>
Should I do the same for the 10 gal?
<The 10 gallon tank is probably bare and has no biological filtration established. I would use a very small siphon hose and remove the fish waste from the bottom of the bare tank every day.>
Does the water need to be pretreated?
< The replacement water should be hard and alkaline and hopefully around 80 F.>
Will detoxifying chemicals hurt them?
< Use them as per the directions on the bottle, you need to remove the toxic chemicals from the water or it will kill the fry.>
Also how do I clean the bottom of the tank with out sucking up the fry? Thanks, Jenny
< Little cichlid fry are pretty smart. If you move the end of the hose around they can be chased away from the siphon end.-Chuck>

Hybridization of Mbunas... don't do or allow...  2/1/07
Hi, I'm sure that you get these types of questions all the time, so I'll keep it short. I have had a hybridization occur in my tank and
I'm just wondering which pairing is most likely. I had 2 Labidochromis, one appears to be female, and the other a subdominant male, 1 Melanochromis Johanni which I'm assuming to have been male by it's color and temper, 1 P. Kenyi (male) and one Tropheus Moorii, of uncertain sex. I have some babies that look entirely different from each other, one turning yellowish purple and looking like a Lab, one that looks quite a bit like the Johanni, and one that looks a bit like the Kenyi before he changed. I don't think that the Moorii had anything to do with is, and I'm certain the Polypterus is innocent,
<Hee heee!>
so who do you think the culprit may be?
<Might be two... but generally the most dominant fish...>
I've already removed the Labs to another tank, and rid myself of the Johanni and the Kenyi, so all of my tanks are single species or couplings that can't possibly reproduce, and I'm not really into keeping hybrids, as I fully understand the problems inherent. I'm just curious as to who it might have been. thanks!
A.
<Should be a bit more evident with growth... Welcome. Bob Fenner>

Picking Out Male Yellow Labidochromis   1/7/07
Hey Chuck, it's Jason getting back to you on the yellow lab.  The  yellow lab I have is definitely a male and currently he's the only yellow lab in  my 75gal at this point in time.  I wanted to add a few more to give more  yellow color to my tank.  Do you think I should get all females, or a few  more males?  
Really would prefer not to deal with spawning.  If my  only choice is to get females, is there a way to prevent that?  Please let  me know. Thanks
<These fish are not very aggressive, even when spawning. I would get as many yellow labs as you want. If the females breed, then they will release the fry into the tank where they will be eaten by bigger fish. If you want only male labs then you will have to buy adults and vent them. This is a method in which you look directly at the genitalia and compare the size of the two openings. On females there is usually one opening larger that the other. On males they look alike.-Chuck>

Red Zebra Cichlid Gestation    11/28/06
I have a 125 gal community tank containing a pair (Male & female) of Red Zebras. They are continually reproducing to the point that I am afraid that my aquarium will become over crowded. I am curious as to the gestation period of this African Cichlid. Would you know it? Thanks in advance for your reply.
Eric
< As soon as a female lays eggs she can be ready to spawn again in a couple of weeks depending on the water temp and the condition of the female. Once the eggs are laid they will hatch in three days at 80 F. The egg sac will be absorbed and the fry will be free swimming in another three days. At that time they need to be fed.-Chuck>

Sexing Labidochromis Sp. Pearlmutt  11/18/06
Hey guys, I tried researching from all over the internet and WWW  forums regarding the sex of a "Labidochromis Sp. Perlmutt".  I can't  seem to find a good explanation on how to figure out which sex I have.  My  Perlmutt has bars and he's about 2.5" long and has yellow trim and egg spots on  fins.  Which does this sound like?  What's a good way to tell the  difference? Thanks, Jim
< Males tend to be slightly larger and more aggressive with slightly longer fins. Males may also be lighter in color with the bars not being so prominent. This species is not as sexually dimorphic as some of the other Lake Malawi cichlids. Females can have the spots on the fins too. If you look underneath at the vents you should see two openings. If they are the same size then it is probably a female. If one opening is a different size from the other than it is probably a male. This is called venting. If you google "venting cichlids" you should be able to find a site with examples.-Chuck>

Sexing A Labidochromis  Sp. Pearlmutt  11/20/06
Chuck, lucky for you man, you always get back to me right away!!!   Thanks.  
Darn, I think I have a female.  The bars aren't that vague  and it's definitely darker in color.  The fins are long and pointed  though.  Could males still be on the darker side with bars showing pretty  well? Thanks again
< If other fish in the tank are more dominant , then a male Pearlmutt would be showing a submissive coloration, similar to a female.-Chuck>