[Martins125]

Hi everyone

I am looking at setting up a 75 gallon tank. 48x18
My goal is to look for a beginner mbuna setup.

I am looking for fish that will not cross breed.
I am looking for fish that will not breed excessively.
I am looking to get a mix of different colors between females and males that won't overlap with other mbunas.
Can I do 4 species?

Can anyone PM me on a good online breeder?

Please share thoughts. I have been spending hours of research and trying to do the best I can.

Thank you all in advance.

 

[DJRansome]

Welcome to Cichlid-forum!

#2 does not exist...does that change your mind about mbuna? Or any African cichlid?

PM sent.

You can do 4 species with 1m:4f of each if you choose compatible species. Here is an example:

1m:4f Labidochromis caeruleus yellow labs
1m:4f Pseudotropheus acei
1m:4f Iodotropheus sprengerae rusties
1m:4f Cynotilapia zebroides Cobue

If you let the moms spit in the tank and stock 5 Synodontis multipunctatus you will rarely see any fry.

 

[Martins125]

I like the selection of fish. Those catfish seem they can grow up to 10 inches and not sure if will be suitable in a 75 gallon tank when they get to that size. I would think it would be to many fish with them also. 25 vs just 20. My goal is to get an overstocked tank on the low side and not high side.

Also are all species recommended to have 1 male and 3 females? Maybe I can get away with 1 male and two females.

What are the expectations I should have with the breeding? I guess I could sell
The fish. I don't think I would want to deal with excessive breeding.

 

[DJRansome]

You don't want less than 20 cichlids in a 75G to manage aggression. And minimum 4 females per group. The 5 synodontis do not count toward overstocking or managing cichlid aggression. Mine are between six and eight inches and some of them are 15 years old.

If you get the synos and let the moms spit in the tank, you should not have a fry problem. If you want to breed, you need extra tanks for raising fry of different sizes.