[bearwithfish]

so as my tank nears the end of its cycle i have found just about what i wanted as my final stocking list (noted elsewhere) but today i came across an interesting dilemma.. i found another fish i also like and as many as i want for free. the issue (perhaps only in my mind) is that they are from different areas..

let me explain briefly
i want Demasoni (got a good breeder in the area) and i am waiting for the final funds to come in for them

i was debating labs (not so much luck finding them in my area a price i am willing to pay)

today i found Convicts and they got me thinking... after a little research the water conditions are very similar and the temp range also works...

is there a reason why a group of convicts would not work in this set up? again just asking before i make a huge mistake LOL.....

 

[fmueller]

Convicts are cool fish, but they are notorious for producing thousands, no, ten thousands of fry virtually overnight. Ever heard the story of the guy who bought two convicts, and they spawned in the bag on his way home from the store? :lol:

To make a long story short, it is no surprise that somebody gives away convict fry for free. Everybody who keeps convicts does - and is glad if you take as many as possible off his or her hands. If you decide to go the convict route, be prepared to look for suitable homes for fry soon. In fact, it would be best to keep a large predator in another tank who can take care of the fry for you.

Regarding the demasoni, when the convicts are breeding (ie always), they will be cowering in the corners of the tank. When we were kids my brother bred convicts, and they had a pleco as the only tank mate. On one rare occasion when the pleco dared to come out from behind his rock in a corner, the male convict chased the pleco clear out of the tank. Luckily, my brother was just walking into the room when the pleco came flying out of the tank, and could pick up the poor thing from the carpet.

Enough convict stories for today. Maybe somebody else wants to share their experiences, but I'd have another look around for the yellow labs

 

[bearwithfish]

thank you this is a lot of information.. i am glad you wrote back as i have read the profile here and some other information that leans the same way .... i can get good homes in this area as cichlids in general are a bit hard to get here with out traveling or paying a ton of money for them... now i have to decide what direction to go as i dont want to create a bad situation .... hmmmm weighing the options carefully at this point....

 

[fmueller]

If you have a quality strain of mbuna, regardless of species, you can always find somebody who wants them, in most cases you can actually make a bit of money that way and offset some of the costs of this hobby. In the worst case a store will take them in exchange for food or other supplies.

But you can have the most beautiful strain of convicts in the world, when you walk in the door of a store for the third time in a few months with a bag full of several hundreds of fry, the clerk will hide behind the counter

 

[ahud]

You can find convicts online for the cost of shipping on aquabid. If you thin you will be able to find homes for them, I don't think you realize how many fry these guys have.

If you want convicts why not pick up a smaller tank to house a pair? Most people agree its not wise to mix fish from different places. Not saying it can't work, but they do not speak the same language in terms of body language, aggression, ect.

 

[bearwithfish]

LOL good point...... again just trying to decide and with so many factors in play i am getting myself confused... i have a hard time with patience and it seems like i have been tested a great deal as of late so seeing a good break is hard to pass on. you know what i mean? i will have to ask the better half and she what she thinks.. it may be she just wants me to shut up and get some stock in LOL....

 

[bearwithfish]

You can find convicts online for the cost of shipping on aquabid. If you thin you will be able to find homes for them, I don't think you realize how many fry these guys have.

If you want convicts why not pick up a smaller tank to house a pair? Most people agree its not wise to mix fish from different places. Not saying it can't work, but they do not speak the same language in terms of body language, aggression, ect.

point well taken i guess as i think on it further is more of a Demasoni OR Convict debate.... as opposed to with each other.....

 

[ahud]

I think what Fmueller is trying to say is finding free convicts is not really considered a break. They are wonderful parents, they are common, spawn often, and they have large spawns. Most local fish stores won't even take them.

Ah, the other half debate. I always see people talking about what the other half wants when honestly do they care? My girlfriend would rather me never talk about fish than help me pick out some lol. Remember its your hobby and 90% if the time the other half won't care 2 months down the road what you have.

 

[bearwithfish]

i agree that at times its a matter of just getting me quiet but i must admit she also is into fish keeping and often has great ideas....

so let us look at this from another view for the point of argument and to help me "think out loud" if you will and please hand me some feed back....

IF

i do Demasoni i will be getting 20 in a few weeks and perhaps staying with those alone unless i find a great deal on labs and then i will thin the pack and put something like 10 labs in as well having a nice high contrast Mbuna tank

IF

i do convicts i would only do them alone and as i want a good number of fish in the tank from the out set i would most likely have major aggression issues and breeding much like the guppies i used to keep... as this is a 72 bow front i guess the question is how many to start with if i go this rout... 6? 10? 15?
as for finding homes for the fry.. if i re-home some and leave others in will they thin there own ranks?

will they respond to overstocking much like others do and spread the aggression to manageable levels if i keep the numbers high? say 15? i know i am a noob and asking simple appearing questions but these thoughts are there and i need to see what others think... i know the ultimate choice is mine but experience is a greater teacher and i have none as of yet

and before i go thank you all again for putting up with my nonsense i just dont want to cut my self off before exploring all angles...

 

[fmueller]

Demasoni - like all mbuna - are harem breeders. You can have a good number of fish in a 72G - in fact, it is often a case of the more the merrier.

Convicts are pair forming. They probably have some of the strongest pair bonds in the cichlid world. Once a pair forms and breeds, the pair will beat the $#!% out of everything else in the tank, and it really doesn't matter so much if that's a 29G, 75G or 125G.

Breeding convicts is a very worthwhile experience for any cichlid fan, but you can easily do that in a 29G with a sponge filter in a corner of your basement. I wouldn't use a 72G bowfront for that, but if I keep going on like this, I am bound to be flamed by some die hard Central American fan pretty soon

 

[bearwithfish]

well thats ok i have looked further and along with all your advice and the advice of the better half i am going with the Demasoni... again it was an exploration into the possible with out any of the side effects of finding out to late..... thank you all.......