[njd3]

hi all!

I have a well established Malawi tank. It has been running for about 18 months. We have initially about 15 malawis. Over the course of the year we have lost some due to various water issues etc and now we have about 9. The water is now totally fine and the fish seem happy.

Due to the losses the tank unfortunately looks a bit empty and we want to add some more malawis.

I know that malawis are really aggressive/terrortorial and therefore I am not sure whether, now that it is very established, it is advisable to add more fish? My idea to counteract the issue is to add fish that are slightly larger than the fish that are already in and also add a group of say 5-6 in one go (as opposed to adding one that would get picked on individually and not likely last very long).

I appreciate adding a lot in one go has other issues such as water quality so I will make sure to do extra water changes initially.

Please can anyone let me know whether this is OK or whether I should avoid completely adding new malawis?

Also if so, can you recommend any particularly interesting/different varieties?

Thanks

 

[DJRansome]

What are the dimensions of the tank? What is your stocking? Yes you can add a group of fish (if the tank is big enough) and size is not important as long as the newcomers cannot fit into the mouths of your existing fish.

 

[gillmanjr]

Its actually better if you add smaller/younger fish. Your established mature fish will see them as less of a threat.

But tbh I've had no issues adding fish. I also added fish to my established tank around the 18 month mark. I added two fish that were the same size and three other younger fish. I also added a pleco separately. I had no problems adding any of them, literally no aggression at all. Just to help I fed them and then performed a water change right before adding the new ones.

 

[njd3]

These are mbuna cichlids. tank is 200 litres - juwel lido 200.

Any suggestions for what to put with them?

Thanks!

 

[DJRansome]

What are the species names and genders of the mbuna in your tank?

This is a 30" tank...too small for the majority of Malawi IMO.

Maybe the tank size is part of the reason for your losses.

 

[njd3]

Isnt it closer to 50 gal?

I have the following:

Labidochromis caeruleus x 4
Melanochromis auratus x 1
Pseudotropheus Zebra x 1
Albino Pseudotropheus socolofi x 1
Hemichromis bimaculatus x 2 (appreciate these are not mbuna)

they are all about 3 inches

 

[DJRansome]

The fish are territorial and fight to claim a portion of the bottom. Also they will chase for 36" before giving up and leaving the others in peace. So 48" is a minimum of many of the fish you have in the tank.

Gallons are only important for water quality stability. Length is the main factor in what fish and what species you can stock.

I Googled the brand you mentioned...can you measure the length of your tank in case it is longer than 30"?

 

[njd3]

it is 30 - therefore sounds like it is already too small?

 

[DJRansome]

Agreed.