An Offer of Help
Hey crew! I was wondering if you guys have visited Duboisi.com. Well, on there they have a tank profile every month. Mostly all Tanganyikan Cichlids. I think it is a great site, although I would love to see something like that with marine tanks of all sorts. Reef, as well as predator tanks. I think it could be a great addition as I really enjoy seeing other people creations. I realize you all have enough on your plates, so if you'd need any help, I would love to volunteer my time. Let me know what you think.
<Will cc ScottF and AdamC here re... think they've already added such a component to our "Conscientious Aquarist" online zine. Bob Fenner>

Juvenile Malawi's
Hi,
<Hello>
I just have a quick question I hope you can answer.  I have recently started a Malawi tank and was able to find someone locally who breeds some fish from this lake.
<Neat>
  I picked out the following F1 juveniles;  5 Metriaclima estherae (1 blue male, 4 females), 3 Labeotropheus trewavasae (1 male hopefully - he is starting to get the orange top - and 2 females).  The estherae's are all about 1 inch and the trewavasae's are about 1.5 inches with both males a little bigger.  My question is when will the female estherae's start to turn orange and if the trewavasae is a male when will he start to get his blue as they are all colorless right now.
<Likely within a month, two>
I can't find any info about how fast they grow or how long it takes to reach maturity and this is my first time with cichlids this small as all at the LFS are bigger and have their colors already.
<Mmm, well, you can/could "speed things up" with frequent feeding, partial water changes... a bit high temperature... But better to take your time here... your animals will live longer, better lives for it.>
I also have 6 Aulonocara st. (cobue) on hold from this guy and won't be ready to bring home for another few months and just wondering the same question as with the others.
<These "Peacock's" grow more slowly, color up later... likely a few months for them>
The cobue's will have a separate tank from the others as I am hoping to witness all of these fish breed at some point.
Thanks
<They likely will. Bob Fenner>

Questions about Cyphotilapia frontosa
Hello,
Did a search on the Frontosa, but not much info out there. Was wondering if I could get help in correct care for these fish.  I have 2 fish, approx 3"/4" long in a 100 gallon tank. Tank temp is 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Tank is filtered by two Emperor 400 gal/hr bio filters.  They are the only fish in the tank except for some feeder mosquito fish which they seem to be ignoring.  What would be the correct feeding for these fish? Any other info would be most appreciated.
< Your Cyphotilapia frontosa are found all over Lake Tanganyika. They are primarily found in deep water. The water should be hard and alkaline. Your filtration is fine. They get up to 35cm. There are many different geographic variants so you should not mix Frontosas from different areas. One male to two or three females is best. In your tank you could probably have a group of up to 6 fish. In they wild they eat sleeping cichlids at night, so they will never chase your feeders. They like shrimp and worms when they are small but will accept pellets and flake foods too.-Chuck>  Thanks, FrankF 

African Cichlid Omnibus
Hi, and thanks for the great site. I am preparing to set up a new tank. It is a 72" x 24" x 30" that I will be using primarily for African Cichlids.
I have read so many conflicting articles and I'd like to set this up right from the start.
1. what is the absolute best filtration system/s I can use. Should I use wet/dry, add refugium? supplement with mechanical?
< The best filter is the one that you are able to service quickly and easily. I prefer hang on the back power filters such as the Emperor series from Marine land. Two emperor 400's will pump up to 800 gallons per hour. The bio wheels will provide plenty of biological filtration>
2. what kind of substrate?
< If you plan on keeping Mbuna then they really don't require that much sand. An inch or so of well washed sand should be plenty.> You could use crushed coral if you live in an area where the water is soft. Many people find it too bright and it washes out the colors of the fish.>
3. What is a recommended model of each of these?
4. What about fluidized bed filters? I have read that they keep down nitrates? Is this true?
< Fluidized beds work pretty well as long as the power is consistent. The bacteria live on the outside of each of the beads. AS the water is pumped over them they do a good job of converting ammonia and nitrites to nitrates. If they are working properly they should be generating lots of nitrates from the fish waste. That is what you want to happen.>
5. What size pump for the wet/dry?
< At least one that will pump 500 gallons per hour.>
6. I have several fish I will be transferring from other tanks and I'd like your opinion on how many I could add.
I have a giraffe catfish,
< This catfish will eventually get too big.>
3 jewel cichlids,
< Although these do indeed come from Africa they are not rift lake cichlids and would not be able to compete for long with the others.>
2 bumblebee cichlids,
< Pseudotropheus crabo is one of the larger Mbuna from lake Malawi and may turn very dark as it gets older.>
1 electric blue,
< Only the males color up. Females stay a silvery gray color. The males may not color up unless there are a couple of females in the tank.>
3 elec. yellow.
< These fish are relatively peaceful for Mbuna.>
I would like to add some peacocks to this mix, and maybe some red zebras.
< Red zebras and peacocks would go well in this tank. Look for a book by Ad Koning called " Enjoying Cichlids:. There is lots of good information about cichlids that will help you.-Chuck>
Please advise,
thanks,
Jim G.

Re: new set up
>Hi, and thanks for the great site. I am preparing to set up a new
>tank. It is a 72" x 24" x 30" that I will be using primarily for
>African Cichlids. 
>I have read so many conflicting articles and I'd like to set this up
>right from the start. 
>1. what is the absolute best filtration system/s I can use. Should I
>use wet/dry, add refugium? supplement with mechanical?
>< The best filter is the one that you are able to service quickly
>and easily. I prefer hang on the back power filters such as the
>Emperor series from Marineland. Two emperor 400's will pump up to
>800 gallons per hour. The bio wheels will provide plenty of
>biological filtration>
Q1: Is this option better than using a wet/dry with additional mechanical like an Eheim? I am looking for the best system, and am willing to put some time into maintenance and service. I am willing to spend the money also, so I guess my question, to rephrase it, is: if you did not worry about the money, and you were willing to spend some time on servicing/maintenance, what would you use for a 215 gallon setup for African cichlids.
< With money as no object ideally I would set up two Marineland Tidepool filters with the SOS surface skimmer attachments. Each tide pool would have a pump that pumped 400 GPH. In the filter trays I would use a coarse filter pad that comes with the filter then the finer blue filter pad. In the last tray I would place the crushed coral or oyster shell to keep the water buffered at a high pH.>
>2. what kind of substrate?
>< If you plan on keeping Mbuna then they really don't require that
>much sand. An inch or so of well washed sand should be plenty.> You
>could use crushed coral if you live in an area where the water is
>soft. Many people find it too bright and it washes out the colors of
>the fish.>
Q2: Is the African cichlid substrate (CaribSea African Sahara sand?) good to use?
< That would be fine.>
>4. What about fluidized bed filters? I have read that they keep down
>nitrates? Is this true?
>< Fluidized beds work pretty well as long as the power is
>consistent. The bacteria live on the outside of each of the beads.
>AS the water is pumped over them they do a good job of converting
>ammonia and nitrites to nitrates. If they are working properly they
>should be generating lots of nitrates from the fish waste. That is
>what you want to happen.>
Q3: If my nitrate levels are high, how do I go about getting them down. Assuming that the water changes are regular (25% weekly), and the water I am using has no real nitrate problem. I am getting readings in my 55 gallon tank of 100+, though ammonia and nitrite read fine.
< High nitrate levels usually indicate a high organic load somewhere in the system. Clean the filter and vacuum the gravel deeply to remove all the organics that have accumulated. Move rocks and things too and get the sediment out that has accumulated there too.>
>I have a giraffe catfish,
>< This catfish will eventually get too big.>
Q4: Too big for the 215 gallon? Can I let it go in my pond when it gets too big? The pond is in Texas (Houston) and it is one half an acre with an average depth of 5 feet. we have blue gill, catfish, bass, and gars in there now, with an assortment of turtles, frogs etc.
< In much of the literature they have this fish getting over 2 feet long. But I have personally seen one at the Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco close to 3 feet long. He needs warm water an would probably not make it through the winter.>
Q5: What is your estimate of how many fish I can keep in this 215 gallon, assuming it will be mostly peacocks, mbunas, etc.?
< With the filtration system I recommended above I think you could keep 100 fish with a 50 gallon per week (25%) water change.-Chuck>
Thanks again for all of the help,
Jim g

Free Fish? Yeah Right! 
Hi crew!! <Hi! Ryan with you> It's been a year since I've written. <Welcome back> 
I had a moderately successful 120 gal. Marine FOWLR then. Since then, I graduated and got a job, got married, moved into my own home, and had a baby (actually my wife had him, I just watched.) So you can imagine things got crazy. One of the first things to go down the tubes was the tank. Thankfully, the fish survived, and I was able to give away or sell them all. Had to throw away the LR, bloody shame, about $800 worth, but no one trusted it...I wouldn't have either. Anyway, great to talk to you again, on to the questions... As you can imagine, I haven't the time or the funds (no one told me home ownership and parent hood was going to COST anything!!) to redo the tank, because I would insist on at least $1500 worth of LR, and a new filtration set-up (my old one was terrible), etc etc....very costly. <Gotcha> 
But a new opportunity has presented itself. My best friend, maybe 10 months ago, decided he and his wife wanted a fish. They bought a 10 gallon set-up, one of the fancier ones, and 3 cichlids. I believe they were African, they were the really common colorful (blue and yellow) kind that every pet store in the world has, not sure exactly on sp, and went along. <Likely Africans> 
I told them that this tank would definitely dwarf these fish, and that they wouldn't live as long, and they were ok with that. <Eat each other is more like it> 
Well, the one killed the other two, and now is about 6 inches long and proportionately fat. I didn't imagine this could happen, but it did. Now the fish sits still all day long, and is neglected, because my friends have decided fish aren't for them. <Many make this choice> 
And my 6 foot long graduation gift sits in the garage making me want to cry. They want to give me the fish and the set-up and everything. I figure with the tighter budget, I cannot afford the LR necessary to redo the marine setup the way I want, and have decided that a colorful freshwater set-up is in order. I have a fluorescent hood, 2 Ebo-Jager heaters, air pump, all the stuff I need EXCEPT substrate and deco, and the filter. I plan on going with an Aqua Clear 500, because I've had great success in the past with them, and the shop I intend to buy livestock from uses power filters exclusively, with great success as well. SO... I'm going to start with this huge yellow cichlid and from there, I don't know. Are there any cichlids that can't be mixed with this one ( I think it's Aulonocara sp.)? Should I even accept the gift? <I have done extensive projects with African Cichlids- and there are limitations. There are few tankmates that can defend themselves, other cichlids aside.> Are there other fishes besides cichlids that can go in there? <Biotopic display is your best bet. Figure out exactly what type of African cichlid it is, and which lake it comes from. Add mates from there.> 
It is a 120, which is pretty big for a FW, so I thought I might have some options. <Lots, but keep it natural> 
I am particularly fond of Angels (which I know are a cichlid), Gouramis, Loaches and maybe a school of Tetras or Danios. <All South American fish- If you're going this route, don't accept the gift. Different water needs.> The shop I mentioned has a pair of gorgeous very dark blue Sciaenochromis fryeri that I would like to add next. And last but not least, I would like to use black sand. <Not recommended for this application> Is this appropriate? If not, what else can I use to enhance the colors of the fish? <Nice lighting, proper feeding regime.> And is there such a thing as black sand that can be had for cheaper than the $14 per 25 pound bag at the fish store? <Maybe you could split a bulk order with someone locally- Your best bet. I would really research a biotopic display- They're easier to maintain, more peaceful and more successful long-term.> 
Sorry for the novel. Hope all is well with everyone. Thanks as always.  Matt  <Anytime! Let's see some pics once you're up and running.> 

Frontosa Aggressiveness
Hey guys!
First, great site. Second, I have a few questions. :) Background info: several months ago, my husband and I purchased a small breeding colony of F0 Cyphotilapia frontosa, Blue Mpimbwe. There were two males - one missing an eye - and two females, all of which got along pretty peaceably. (We wanted to add more females to get a more desirable ratio, but we read that they would not be accepted as part of the colony.) We put them into a 125G tank in our living room and added aragonite, and later rock with caves. We try to feed them a varied diet; the other day I ran out of prepared food and fed both chopped up whitefish and frozen krill. Without intending to, I apparently induced spawning. Sadly, the next day One-Eyed Jack was torn up badly. We removed him to a quarantine tank immediately, but his injuries were just too severe, and he died. (He was my favorite, too.) On the plus side, one of the females was obviously carrying. I fed a few cubes of bloodworms to the tank later that day, and she dropped her eggs, unfortunately. I guess the bloodworms were just too tempting to resist. We were able to save one egg, which we later realized wasn’t even fertilized, but the others were eaten.  Now, a few days later, she is being picked on by the other female! Her dorsal and tail fins are a little ragged. After doing some research, I think that we will begin feeding smaller, more frequent meals to reduce the overall level of aggressiveness in the tank. I am also considering getting some more cichlids to make it more difficult for any one fish to consistently “track” a victim. My questions:
1. Is it true that more female Blue Mpimbwes would not be accepted as part of the breeding colony?
< Any time adding cichlids to an established tank you need to redecorate the tank to break up established territories. Unfortunately with frontosa being so large this is not easy to do. You could try to add more females but it will be very expensive with no guarantees of success. The more females you add the better it would be. Just make sure your filter can handle the extra load.>
2. If that’s the case, can two breeding colonies of the same species live together in a tank?
< If the tank was larger it might be possible but I wouldn't add any more males at this time.>
3. If that’s not possible, is there a particular species that works really well with Frontosas?
< In the wild these fish come from deep waters 100'+ where it is dark and they feed on sleeping Cyprichromis. Anything they can't eat whole and that can tolerate their water conditions can be a potential tankmate.>
4. Is our plan to reduce aggressiveness workable? Do you have any other suggestions?
< Depend on what you want to do. Do you want to show them off or breed them? If you want to breed them then I suggest that you get two large sections of PVC pipe. Each section should only be large enough for each female to fit into. The male being the larger fish should not be able to enter the pipes. Put a pipe at each end of the 125. A female should take over each pipe. At feeding time everybody will come out to eat. The females will then retreat back into their pipes. When a female is ready to breed then the male will entice the female out to breed in the center of the tank. When spawning is complete she will return back into her pipe. The trick is to get both females to spawn at nearly the same time. Lots of good food and a large water change should do it. I have seen this technique with a pair and it works. The egg crate method will work too. Separate the tank into 1/3 sections using an egg crate type of plastic panels used for overhead florescent lighting. The fish can still see each other but the male in the center section can't get to the females or each other. They can still breed through the crate material If you want to show the fish off too then you will need to come up with another suitable refuge for the females instead of the pipe that can be both attractive and functional.>
5. Is it possible that the carrying female actually interfered with the breeding and that the other female was the one who actually deposited the eggs? (We did not get to witness the breeding.) 
< Frontosa are greedy eaters. If there is a food source around like eggs then the other fish surely will try and get to that source. In the wild she would retreat to a crevice in the rocks away from the other fish.-Chuck>
Thanks, Evelyn

Frontosa's Mouth
Hi, Thank you in advance to reading my question.
<That is what we are here for.>
I have a group of frontosa cichlids that seem to keep their mouths closed, like they are stretching their upper lip downward. They are only about 3 inches and too young to be holding. It's only a few of them, the rest are fine.
<Something like that typically isn't an environmental problem. This might be a case of physical deformities, and these birth defects are growing more pronounced as they age.  Frontosas breed quite easily after the 3 year mark, and many people don't take into account that in order to have good and healthy fish, breeding needs to have multiple healthy blood lines.  Chances could be that the three fish that you have might be severely inbred by the breeder. Mouth and eye deformities are common in inbred cichlids. Many responsible breeders look for issues like this and cull those fry so to keep lines pure.. If the case is an issue of birth defects, then there isn't much you can do.>
When I feed them they don't/can't seem to open their mouths to feed, but they get close to the food and somehow scoop it. It is really puzzling and I can't figure out what is causing this. Any help you can lend would be greatly appreciated.
<Probably the best thing to do is keep an eye on them.  Make sure that they are given clean water, and monitor to see if they are eating properly.  With a hindrance to be able to eat they might not be getting all the food that they should.>
Thank You Adrian
<Wish I could be more definitive with an answer to help you and your fish.  But, I think it's best to keep an eye on them and see what happens. -Magnus>

Cichlid site - 10/16/03
Wow. I looked at cichlidrecipe.com... what a great site! <Isn't it? I love it!> Thanks for referring it. <My pleasure>  I am now going through and identifying my tank members and determining how to re-prioritize my tank. <Exactly what I did>  I do note though, in Matt Pederson's recommendations for a 55g tank he has a dozen cichlids plus 2 catfish...not far from mine at all, although the selection of fish perhaps does not include so many that grow as large or as aggressive. <Could be likely but just another point of view. He may have three filters on his tank and as you said more "like"  type fish. I still don't think over stocking an aquarium is a good idea at any level> I will study it more carefully. <Very well. Good luck to ya.>  Thanks again Paul. <Thanks for the question. We might have just helped a great many others with our exchange.....so........thank you -Paul>
Jeff

Scared Africans
Hi "Crew,"
I have had my 46 gal cichlid tank up and running for about 18 months now, and everything is going wonderfully well.  The water is as clean as a home aquarist can make it, and the fish are thriving physically.  I have one issue with my tank though, and I have never been able to get a good answer.  The problem is, the fish seem to be agoraphobic - if they see even a slight movement outside the tank, they disappear into the rockwork.  I have to hide behind my couch to enjoy my fish - it's unorthodox, but it isn't that big a deal.  I have to ask out of curiosity though, why are these fish so flighty?  All the cichlids I've seen in pet stores are more inquisitive than shy.  The particulars:  3 Malawi cichlids (1 Zebrasoma, 1 Pseudotropheus auratus, and one unknown, plus 2 Plecos.  I have no NH3, NO2-, pH is 7.9, temp 76.  The tank is in a corner of the dining room, not in a heavily trafficked area.<could be the dilemma>  The only thing I can think of is that the bowfront distorts the fishes perception and has warped their minds.<could be lol>  Do you guys have any ideas?<Maybe move the aquarium to a place where people are around it the majority of the time>  Thanks in advance,<Well from what you are telling me everything seems fine except for the fact that you fish are not used to your presence. They could be acting like this because you are not home a lot during the daytime hours, maybe they are just very timid? there are many factors involved. I would not be too concerned with this. Good Luck and I hope the fish become bolder in the future. IanB>
Nick

African Cichlid id
>Mr. Fenner, and or crew, I was wondering if you could tell me what kind of fish I have here, and if you could direct me to an online resource for researching my fish. Thanks Much.
>>Mbuna!  Or, it appears to be a large Pseudotropheus zebra, though it's been so long since I've even had access to my own book on African I.D. (this is a classic African lake cichlid, hailing from Lake Malawi, though other rift cichlids are from lakes Tanganyika and Victoria as well), and so much has changed these past decades concerning taxonomy of the Africans I could be wrong.  Try this place, Tim
http://www.africancichlids.net/index.html
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/
>>Best of luck!  Marina

What are African Cichlids? - 5/23/03
   This a completely stupid set of questions. <there are no stupid questions>  Are African cichlids fresh, brackish or salt water? <They are considered freshwater organisms. There are some trace salts and minerals in the waters of the lakes from which they come from, but not enough to make them salt water fish nor true brackish for that matter> Would a typical freshwater filter, lights, etc, be sufficient to have them thrive? (90 gallon tank)<Absolutely. You just described my Aulonocara tank. They key is to research the fish you want and then to get them as young as possible. Pay special attention to their full grown captive size so as to not overstock>   How many 2-4 inch fish could I keep in 90 gallons, with a decent rock layout? <More than likely, unless you go Tanganyikan, most cichlids from the African lakes range from 6 inches and up captive adult size. I think the current thought is about 1 inch per 3-5 gallons because of freshwater fish metabolism is a bit higher in part due to their general aggressiveness>  I love your site, and appreciate any advice you can give on these terrible questions. <No worries. Thanks for the kind words. Please go out and pick up a book on African cichlids as well as do a search in google or your favorite search engine for more information on them. Here is a site that I absolutely love as a start: http://www.cichlidrecipe.com/ Take care James. Paul>
James

Electric Blue and Yellow
Hi
I have a tank with Electric Blue and Yellow Cichlids. Could you send us as much information about them as possible (Breeding, tank setup etc).
<<Please go to http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwsubwebindex.htm and click on the links for Cichlids. You will find a ton on helpful info there.>>
Also I have heard rumors and mixed information about these fish, which I was wondering if you could clear up for me. 1) What are the stripes on these fish from? Stress? or Poor quality?
<<The stripes can be caused by any number of things. Stress, poor water quality (thus causing stress), excitement over something, adult or juvenile coloration, spawning behavior, etc.>>
2) In Electric Blue do you find that the male and female are aggressive to each other?
<<Depends on the fish themselves. Aggressive behavior is generally the norm but there are always exceptions.>>
3) Also how do you tell the difference between male and females? 4) What food is best? for little
electric blue and yellow and for big?
<<A combination of foods works the best. New Life Spectrum makes a wonderful Cichlid pellet but also use frozen bloodworms, krill, and some vegetable/algae foods. When using frozen foods, be sure to thaw them completely before feeding.>>
5) What plants are best?
<<Cichlids are notorious diggers so it's hard to get any plant to stay put in their tanks. They also tend to eat any of the softer species. Anubias works the best as it's a firmer plant that they don't eat but it will still need to be well anchored.>>
Regards Paul and Leanne
<<Take care, Ronni>>

Re: cichlids that change color
I have had an aquarium for several years now. About two years ago after a massive loss of fish in our tank due to a very aggressive fish we had to start from scratch. We once again got a cichlid. We believe it is an electric yellow but now are unsure. It was about six months after we got it that it started changing color. It went from bright yellow with black fins and the small distinctive white spot on it's lower tail to a black with blue stripes coloration. At first I thought it may be sick but it continued to eat and swim with no real strong behavior changes. That was about 18 months ago. Could it of just been reaching maturity? Or is it something else?
<<Very interesting. Electric Yellows should stay yellow/black even when mature but I don't know of any others with their distinctive coloration even when juveniles. Even though, I highly doubt that it's anything but a natural color change. The only thing that really come to mind for an explanation is depending on where you bought it, it's very possibly a hybrid. A true Cichlid breeder will frown on the crossing of two species but many people that keep them end up inadvertently crossing them just because so many of the species spawn so readily. They will then take the juveniles and sell them to an LFS who is often none the wiser. So if you got this from your LFS that could be what happened. If you got it from a breeder I'd have to wonder. If this is in fact a cross, without seeing a picture (and possibly even with one) I wouldn't even be able to guess what the Electric Yellow would have crossed with since so many of the blues/blacks look alike.>>
It's still healthy, with no physical indications of illness. The color has never reverted though sometimes it does look brighter than at other times.
<<This color brightening is not uncommon. Mine used to do this on a regular basis. It can be brought on by water quality, lighting, pretty much anything. Mine used to get very intense colors when they were angry or in the mood to spawn.>>
The only other fish is our "algae eater" (other name just to long) that is approximately5-6 inches in length and we've had it since we started the tank.
<<Well, whatever it is it sounds like it has the temperament of the Electric Yellow. My yellows were never a problem but I had several others that I was unable to put Plecos in with because of aggression.>>
Are we wrong about what kind of fish it is or is this just normal for this type of fish? Please help identify this fish if you can.
Brenda
<<Hope I was of some help. Ronni>>

African Cichlids
What is the most important pointers in raising a completely successful 60 gallon tank housing 6 African Cichlids?  At present my fish appears  to be experiencing Ich/Fungus.  Lots of shaking, white spots, and one with bulging eyes.  HELP.
I was told to raise the temp to 80 degrees and change 10% of the water for the next 5 days.  What is a good book to read that will cover starting a new tank and the care of cichlids?  Thanks in advance, Tracy
<Hi Tracy.  First off lets get the current fish healthy.  There are plenty of meds for ich and fungus, just be sure you are medicating for the correct disease.  Start here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwfshparasites.htm
Next up... Water quality.  Unless you purchased the fish in their current condition, chances are water quality brought about the current ailments.  I like the water change idea, should get things back in order.  Some good test kits for ph, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and since we are dealing with African Cichlids, you will want to test for water hardness as well.
Other pointers/considerations: compatible tank mates, full grown size (fishbase.org is good for this), proper tank decorations,  good food, good filtration, yadda yadda yadda, and a good book.
I personally do not have any recommendations, check out your LFS, amazon.com, and your local library.  I do however try to avoid the books that advertise a certain brand of product.
Oh yes, do check out our FAQs as well.  -Gage
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/afrcichlfaqs.htm  >

Cichlid Tank
I have a 220 gal tank I'm setting up for Tanganyika cichlids I will have a 5" inch bed of CaribSea rift lake authentic with about 200 pounds of moon rock. I was thinking about using HDL tri base palletized carbon with the right now bacteria and wondered if you have knowledge or experience with it's use.
<have not used it myself>
I have some mineral mud that looks more like dirt and wanted to grow some mangroves or house plants and maybe some aquatic plants. I was wondering what types to use seeing as some absorb ammonium/nitrites/nitrates better than others.
<Anything fast growing should work fine.>
Also I  would like some suggestions on what types of animals fish and inverts that are available to use in this endemic tank,
<I would invest in one of the many books available on Tanganyikan cichlids, there are plenty of choices, it is really up to you http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/afrcichlids.htm >
by the way the carbon would go in place of the bio balls, I was maybe thinking of using lava rock.
<avoid the lava, too much potential for problems. Best Regards, Gage>
or maybe a mix of that with cichlid mix with tufa chunks any suggestions please thank you in advance.

MALAWI CICHLID HOMEPAGE
has just been updated.
You can visit www.MalawiCichlidHomepage.com/aquarium/update.html to see what’s new this month in our website. More than 40 new pages and tens of high quality photos have been added this month. You are also welcomed to our new layout – which we hope you will like.
Please sign our GuestBook which is located at the bottom of every page. We are very interested in your comments and suggestions. This feedback will help us to improve this site.
In case you encounter problems with our new layout, we suggest you turn your letter size to “small” (option found in the “view” tab in your browser).
The Authors
Francesco, Frank and George
George J. Reclos Ph.D.
HOLARGOS– GREECE
<Thanks George. Will post on WWM. Bob Fenner>

Looking for cichlid pix and info.
can u send me a pic or info on Crytocara moorii
<Please read through the African Cichlid materials stored here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwsubwebindex.htm
Bob Fenner>

Re: Help with ID Please!
Hi Thanks for the IDs. Thought they would be Zebras but not sure. I took new
pics tonight that might ID them for sure.
http://communities.msn.com/RIOTFISHDUDE/newfishpicsoutofthebags.msnw
BTW my guess for the stripes is Red Top Zebra.
<it does appear that you are correct>

Help with ID Please! Cichlids
Robert or Anthony;
<Anthony here>
Thanks so much for all the help. 
<quite welcome>
Got the first batch today at the place mentioned in earlier posts. I got 13 fish including a pink convict (I think) don't know how I got him, never saw him in a tank but was in the bag with what might be red top zebras. 
<really should be returned in the long run...doesn't belong with Malawian African cichlids>
Could you take a look at: http://communities.msn.com/RIOTFISHDUDE/petesnewafricansoridplease.msnw?Page=1 and tell me what you think these are so I can feed them right and avoid any major incompatibles?
<standard African cichlid pellets and green based foodstuffs. Very hardy fish. Blue and Oranges are Zebras, Spot is a H. livingstoni or polystigma and the picture of the striped fish is not clear enough to ID>
Thanks Peter
<kindly, Anthony>

African Cichlid?
can you please help me I bought a fish from this guy and I don't know what it is
he said it was a cross between a red empress and a sulfur headed peacock it looks very very nice the body has blue and turquoise green all over the body and the top fins has green and baby blue and on the anal fin it has around 10 or 12 egg dummy thing can you please help me
Richard
<Sounds like a variety of Peacock cichlid, Aulonocara species. -Steven Pro>

Cichlid ID
Thanks you have been a great help.... I have one bumble bee cichlid can't tell if it is male or female....
it has only 2 dots on dorsal fin. I also have 3 orange and one is peach more than orange they are
males I think they are very colorful on fins ...lots of dots on them....do you know what type the
oranges ones are....I have also one blue one that has just 2 dots on dorsal fin...is that a female... 
I also have one little yellow one can't see any dots at all but it has stayed small I got them all about the
same time in June of last year... now I have 4 new babies.... that have gotten a little brave the last few
days...lol... they are popping out and shaking at the feeder fish that I have in the tank... guppies and
minnows .... I will am gonna try and take pics with my pc camera today and will send ya a pic of
tank... maybe you can give me more ideas... thanks very much for quick reply!!!!! Angela 
<Sorry it took so long for your reply. We had some technical difficulties with your email. You probably have what used to be referred to as Pseudotropheus zebra. This is no longer a valid name and your fish are probably hybrids when you consider the new taxonomy. Nothing to worry about though. They are still great fish when they are not being too mean to each other. -Steven Pro>

"The" African Cichlid?
Dear Mr. Fenner,
I was just wondering if you happened to know the scientific name of the African Cichlid. I am doing a report in school for this project and just wondering where I could find it at. I saw your webpage and decided to ask you if you happened to know it.
<Mmm, there are actually several hundred "African Cichlid" species... not one. Go back to WetWebMedia.com and pick out one by name (scientific or common), input the URL fishbase.org on your search tray, and plug in the name... Bob Fenner>