Please help im a beginner

[tlindsey]

My experience with Mbuna from not doing research beforehand was a failure. I just bought some random Mbuna out of a mixed African Cichlid aquarium at a lfs Petco. The 6 small Mbuna were put in a 29 gallon aquarium with a small synodontis angelicus. Not even a day or two of having them noticed 2 of them ganging up on the other 4. One of them was a Auratis and the other looked like a Kenyi that killed the other 4 and harassed the synodontis angelicus but those catfish don't back down lol. My point is that some lfs and big box stores will not tell you how extremely aggressive some of the Mbuna are. Tbh most don't know.
OP please do further research on any fish prior to purchase .

 

[tlindsey]

Auratis

Misspelled Auratus

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

Here are my babies lol

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Lombardoi

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

OK update in what cichlids I have so the big striped ones a pseudotropheus lombardoi...then the blue ones a pseudotropheus socolofi..then a labidochromis caeruleus.then the yellow one is a pseudotropheus saulosi....last is the little one I call baby is a ps.sp elongatus ornatus.sorry the pic was very bad last time so il put new ones up...also good news I've now found a 300 litre tank for my birthday..so these guys will be staying with me 🥲🥲🥲

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

OK update in what cichlids I have so the big striped ones a pseudotropheus lombardoi...then the blue ones a pseudotropheus socolofi..then a labidochromis caeruleus.then the yellow one is a pseudotropheus saulosi....last is the little one I call baby is a ps.sp elongatus ornatus.sorry the pic was very bad last time so il put new ones up...also good news I've now found a 300 litre tank for my birthday..so these guys will be staying with me 🥲🥲🥲

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

They move so blimming quick am finding it hard to get good pics...

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

I just absolutely love them..I will definitely not be getting rid of them..they are part of my family now,same as any ither pet is...I love that they all have individual personalities lol Ray.well he's sneaky and does thinks the sneaky way..baby just dives strate in...blurs a bit of a bully but also a scaredy fish..orange is abit docile and just mind's he's own business and biggie well..let me tell you about the boss man..he's the Don of the tank..he's in charge of them all..he's lovely thu..he also makes sure the others play fair..like if any puck on baby then he goes n sorts them out.lol. when I call Ray or baby without them even seeing me they come out from there little hiding places to look for me.

 

[❤️ my yellow lab]

My experience with Mbuna from not doing research beforehand was a failure. I just bought some random Mbuna out of a mixed African Cichlid aquarium at a lfs Petco. The 6 small Mbuna were put in a 29 gallon aquarium with a small synodontis angelicus. Not even a day or two of having them noticed 2 of them ganging up on the other 4. One of them was a Auratis and the other looked like a Kenyi that killed the other 4 and harassed the synodontis angelicus but those catfish don't back down lol. My point is that some lfs and big box stores will not tell you how extremely aggressive some of the Mbuna are. Tbh most don't know.
OP please do further research on any fish prior to purchase .

Ohh that's sad sorry to hear that..so far I been quite lucky .1 can be a little bossy..I've been learning about these guys for a few months now...didn't know anything about them.not even what they're species was....proper stupid of me. Really stupid,something I'd never do again...I don't plan on getting anymore? Not even when I get the big tank. I think these 5 will do just fine in a 300l tank...going to put all rocks and use sand this time..thanks for the advice though

 

[Deadeye]

The funny thing about mbuna cichlids is that they are actually best off (reasonably) overstocked. They are highly aggressive and territorial, so having a lot tends to keep them from fighting as each one doesn’t want to leave it’s own territory.
You just have to make sure they’re all from similar aggression brackets (don’t mix mean ones like zebra, auratus, or kenyi with nicer ones like labs).

 

[Sinister-Kisses]

Ohh that's sad sorry to hear that..so far I been quite lucky .1 can be a little bossy..I've been learning about these guys for a few months now...didn't know anything about them.not even what they're species was....proper stupid of me. Really stupid,something I'd never do again...I don't plan on getting anymore? Not even when I get the big tank. I think these 5 will do just fine in a 300l tank...going to put all rocks and use sand this time..thanks for the advice though

Key words here - SO FAR.

If nothing else, that lombardoi (which is Metriaclima lombardoi, not Pseudotropheus for a long time, in case you're trying to find it online to research) is probably going to be a big problem eventually. They are hyper aggressive and there are no other kenyi for it to occupy itself with.

As mentioned, overstocking is the best bet with mbuna, as well as actually researching species BEFORE purchasing and planning your tank stock accordingly. Even the 300l tank you say you have coming, may not be big enough if that kenyi gets as rowdy as they often do. You may end up needing to rehome THAT one specific fish. Be prepared. And 5 individuals of 5 different species of mbuna in a 300l tank is not likely going to work - again with the overstocking thing. Youl'll probably NEED to add more.

Remember, these are juveniles and you haven't had them long. Things change quickly.