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Bought a 215l AR980 off ebay - New to cichlids


cpfc

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cpfc

looks good mate :thumb

maybe some more tall plants in the back left to hide the

hose and just give a focal rise to the layout from right

to left

the rocks blend in really well and there is plenty of room

arround them leaving open space

Chris

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Thanks. I may well do that. I like the Vallisneria and it gives me a good excuse to go to the LFS.

cpfc

looks good mate :thumb

maybe some more tall plants in the back left to hide the

hose and just give a focal rise to the layout from right

to left

the rocks blend in really well and there is plenty of room

arround them leaving open space

Chris

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cpfc,

the amount of coral sand you put in does not dictate the level of ph it will buffer to.

Doesn't matter if you put a handfull or a bucketfull, it will buffer ph to 8.2 over time in an empty aquarium. If you want to keep malawi mbuna then ph 8.2 would be perfect.

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I have been going nuts over choices of fish. Here is my current shortlist. Any suggestion, tank sizes, incompatibilities MF ratios etc. Are their levels of aggression suitable for a newb like me?

Metriaclima estherae

Cynotilapia afra "cobue"

Labidochromis Hongi

Pseudotropheous Saulosi

Sciaenochromis Fryeri

cpfc,

the amount of coral sand you put in does not dictate the level of ph it will buffer to.

Doesn't matter if you put a handfull or a bucketfull, it will buffer ph to 8.2 over time in an empty aquarium. If you want to keep malawi mbuna then ph 8.2 would be perfect.

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I now have an Auloncara Rubescens M + 2F and a Cynotilapia afra "cobue" M in the tank. The Afra is already asserting himself. One of the females and the Auloncara are getting food (NLS Cichlid). Not sure if the other is getting anything as she seems skittish and hides a lot.

I am also reading some people would not put Saulosi or Demasoni in with the Afra because of hybridisation. How significant is this risk?

When I get a chance I will try and post pics but at the moment I am more interested in monitoring chemistry which is stable.

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I had a mix in my tank but had no trouble with crossbreeding, I only had the fish breeding for 6 months though so may be too small a time frame to judge properly.

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I have now added another 2 female Afra Cobues. The male went nuts when he saw them, coloured up and was doing lots of shimmies. I also got a male and two female Copadichromis borleyi (Kadango).

Tank is now

1M 2F Auloncara Rubescens

1M 2F Cynotilapia Afra (Cobue)

1M 2F Copadichromis borleyi (Kadango)

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sounds like a good mix........... and pics are where :dntknw::lol2:

the Rubens are a line bred colour strain of Aulonacara Chipokae

which female isn't eating the dark or the light one ?

what size are they

great looking Mbuna the Afra Cobwe/Cobue and not suprising he

has taken up alpha male position

Chris

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Photos will be when wife and kids allow;) Both ladies are now feeding. If time allows I will try and take photos tonight but fish are still jumpy. The two mad toddlers running around does not help.

sounds like a good mix........... and pics are where :dntknw::lol2:

the Rubens are a line bred colour strain of Aulonacara Chipokae

which female isn't eating the dark or the light one ?

what size are they

great looking Mbuna the Afra Cobwe/Cobue and not suprising he

has taken up alpha male position

Chris

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Your getting there.

Did you fix the vibs in the filter, sounds like loose fitting as you said.

Kadango's do get big 15cm + but pretty mild fish for that size,easy to bred.

Same as Cobwe & pecocks.

You should not have probs with crossbreeding of Damasoni as you said, but they are real agro fish for there size.

If your female A chipokae is a albino colour its not a chipokae.They should be the same colour.

How big are your fish as it sounds like the A cobwe is about to give you fry?.

Good luck.

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Auloncara Rubescens Male probably about 5 - 6 cms. I am sure he has grown a cm in a week.

IPB Image

Auloncara Rubescens Female

IPB Image

IPB Image

Cynotilapia Afra Cobue Male

IPB Image

IPB Image

IPB Image

IPB Image

IPB Image

Cynotilapia Cobue Female

IPB Image

IPB Image

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Hi. I fixed the vibration with an Eheim Powerhead and a piece of 16mm PVC. The Aqua One poerhead was falling apart but it had been running a marine tank for 6 years. Fish are mostly 4 - 5 cm with a female red fin a bit smaller and the male Rubescens has shot up in size.

The whole family is captivated by the behaviour. I rearranged the rocks again to keep the Afra busy.

Your getting there.

Did you fix the vibs in the filter, sounds like loose fitting as you said.

Kadango's do get big 15cm + but pretty mild fish for that size,easy to bred.

Same as Cobwe & pecocks.

You should not have probs with crossbreeding of Damasoni as you said, but they are real agro fish for there size.

If your female A chipokae is a albino colour its not a chipokae.They should be the same colour.

How big are your fish as it sounds like the A cobwe is about to give you fry?.

Good luck.

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Pics 2 & 3 are sub males IMO are they the same fish ?

if an Aulonacara has egg spots and any colour they will

be boys :yes:

Nice male in Pic 1 but looks more like original Chipokae

Orange than the direction the initial Rubens were bred to

which was a redder shade of orange

great quality Cobwe male

nice Kadangos

all up :thumb

Chris

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I was sold them as a trio (breeding not guaranteed) with 1 male and pic 2 and pic 3 the females. I guess I will find out if they are females or males. The guy at the LFS will be very embarrassed if they are males as he prides himself in his knowledge. The other research I did (not exactly academic quality) is here

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1311

and

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/a_chipoka.php

Both seem to be the very similiar. I am glad I am not in the classification business.

I guess there are different looks depending on the line. I think you will know a lot of more reliable sources and I can see you know your stuff.

I saw the Kadangos dad and he will colour up nicely.

Nitrates hit 5 today so it seems I have a full cycle although there is still a tiny hint of green on the ammonia which is telling me to hold back on upping the KH. Nitrites are zero pH 8. Fish are hungry fellows. There is brown algae so time to bring in the bottom cleaners.

Pics 2 & 3 are sub males IMO are they the same fish ?

if an Aulonacara has egg spots and any colour they will

be boys :yes:

Nice male in Pic 1 but looks more like original Chipokae

Orange than the direction the initial Rubens were bred to

which was a redder shade of orange

great quality Cobwe male

nice Kadangos

all up :thumb

Chris

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like I said with the history of Rubens they were line bred for

a brighter redder colour base in the body but essentially are

the same fish

I could be wrong with the 2 females but PIc 2 has egg spots

developing in the anal fin and there appears to be blue in the

lips and parts of the face in both pics 2 & 3

nothing unusually for sub males to hold back colouring if they

are low on the social ladder or just don't want to be confronted

by the alpha male

can you try and get some more pics of the females Rubens

Chris

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I will try and get more pics tonight. Here is an interesting article on sexing the Aulonocara.

http://www.bigskycichlids.com/Juvenile_peacock_article.htm

What do you guys think?

It talks about the white colouration on the dorsal fin being a male indicator. The other ladyboy has orange on the top of the fin. Heshe is more brown in colour.

The actual origin is more of interest than a practical issue however the MF ratio is something I want right.

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I agree with Chris,,, both pic 2 & 3 look male for sure.

Nice colour :thumb:thumb on your alpha male Rubens at 5/6cm,

Will be a nice fish when older.Same with your other males, they will be fine fish when they grow.

Hard to sex peacocks at 4cm its a bit of a guess.But as Chris says egg spots like yours & colour are males.

Your fish to me look bigger than you state ?.

I see what you mean by one of the peacocks you hoped were female is lighter coloured but they are not albino.They look normal to me so disregard my comment last post.

Try taking the alpha male out for a while or put him in a container and your other males will show you they are male. :cryblow: sorry.

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I struggle to tell the difference myself. Its worse than Pat Pong. I am sure spots were not there last week. I will ring LFS and see what he says. Not sure what I can knock up to isolate a fish and keep them warm. How long before he would colour up?

Now measuring a fish is a challenge and 5-6 is a guess. I will have to buy a small ruler on way home and see what I can do.

Only thing I do not want is hybridisation.

I agree with Chris,,, both pic 2 & 3 look male for sure.

Try taking the alpha male out for a while or put him in a container and your other males will show you they are male. :cryblow: sorry.

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Try putting him in a bucket in the weekend.

Put a airstone in with him.

Cover bucket and change water a couple of times dueing day

Other male should/will take only a couple of hours

Floating a container half full of tank water on top of your water in the tank with a airstone will last days,I do this with my breeding female peacocks to spit the fry in there own time.

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