[wsa88]

Is it possible to keep a tank with just cynos? Will they all get along with one another? I have a 55 gallon tank with two in there now and they seem to be getting along just fine.

 

[Gibbs]

You can have a species only tank with any fish.

The only thing you have to watch is your male/female ratios. 2M/7F would be fine,,,,,1M/5F even better

 

[trigger]

Yeah, I have a 240 liter tank with wildcaught Cynotilapia afra from around Likoma. They are doing great.

 

[Laurel]

If you're wanting 2 separate species, I think the risk that they'll hybridize is too great.

 

[cichlidaholic]

Do you mean that you're housing two different afra variants together? If so, I agree with Laurel, for breeding purposes.

As far as keeping one variant in a single species tank, they do great.

Kim

 

[wsa88]

Do you mean that you're housing two different afra variants together? If so, I agree with Laurel, for breeding purposes.

As far as keeping one variant in a single species tank, they do great.

Kim

I was just talking about an all male tank of them. No females at all. The cynos are definitely my favorite mbunas.

 

[cichlidaholic]

You could try an all male tank, but I'm not too sure it would work out...So many of the males look similar to each other, so you might have increased aggression among them, and might find that your less dominant males don't colour up like you want them to.

Kim

 

[wsa88]

You could try an all male tank, but I'm not too sure it would work out...So many of the males look similar to each other, so you might have increased aggression among them, and might find that your less dominant males don't colour up like you want them to.

Kim

So, what would be some other fish I could put in there with them?

 

[cichlidaholic]

If you're going all male, you need to pick out species that don't closely resemble each other in order to keep some semblance of peace.

It will also be important to remove any possible females if you start out with little ones and grow them out. Not always an easy task, but even one female in an all male tank can cause total chaos.

Kim

 

[Fogelhund]

Cynotilapia afra only seem to colour up if they are in a position of dominance in the tank. Not necessarily the dominant fish, but holding a territory at minimum. In a 55 gallon, I'm guessing that you'll have 2-4 males tops coloured up, with the rest looking no better than females. Of all the fish to do an all male tank, this would probably be one of the last ones I'd choose for that reason.

 

[cichlidaholic]

Even the White tops seem to be that way to an extent. I can have two males coloured up at once in a 55G, but that will quickly change if they notice the other one is showing off.

Kim

 

[why_spyder]

Cynotilapia afra only seem to colour up if they are in a position of dominance in the tank. Not necessarily the dominant fish, but holding a territory at minimum. In a 55 gallon, I'm guessing that you'll have 2-4 males tops coloured up, with the rest looking no better than females. Of all the fish to do an all male tank, this would probably be one of the last ones I'd choose for that reason.

I definitely agree. 55's are one of my favorite tank sizes, but they do really limit the total number of males that will color up. If you managed to get some males that were more docile, this could be pushed, but odds aren't in your favor.