Cynotilapia Afra Puulu

[cyradis4]

Hi!

I picked up six of these at the March meeting, and unfortunitally lost 2 to a pH plumet (my water has high pH, but is very soft, and I have never had a high pH fish before, I keep South American fish and all my pHs are around or below 6.0). I have since located some African Cichlid salt stuff and have not had another problem. The remaining 4 are doing very well, and have probably tripled in size.

My questions are these,

What size tank is best for the 4?
What fish can I put with them in a larger tank?
What types of foods are best? They seem to LOVE the bloodworms, and only kinda like the flake, not sure how good this is for the fish.

Thanks!
Amanda.

 

[Tim]

Amanda,
Congrats on your new fish. C. afra I feel do best in tanks of 55 gallons or larger. Unlike most of the Mbuna from lake Malawi, C. afra can handle a more varied diet other than a strict vegetarian diet. But, high protein or fatty foods should probably be avoided. Pellets like NLS (New Life Spectrum) are great for them, spirulina flakes and occassional brine shrimp feedings will keep them happy enough. You should only be feeding them about what they can eat completely in thirty seconds or so. I used to fast mine once or twice a week.
C. afra do best, IMO, with other Mbuna from Lake Malawi. In a 75 gallon setup, you can keep them with a large variety of Mbuna. Avoid any fish with similar colorations. Check out some of the Psuedotropheus, Labidochromis and Metriaclima species. Most of these fish do best in ratios of one male to multiple females, with a few exceptions. In a smaller tank, say 55 gallons, stick with non-herbivore Labidochromis species, such as the popular L. caeruleus (yellow labid). Avoid Labidochromis species like L. sp "Mbamba" and L. hongi. As herbivores, you'll find they're much more aggressive and do better in larger tanks.
Tim

 

[Pat Kelly]

I am sure Mike can give you information on these guys. I know he and Bob have a lot of Afra.

For my thoughts, I would say some Yellow Labs would look good with them.

I also would try to use the blood worms only a couple of times per week. Get them on a good pellet food like NLS or something simular. I just dont like too much of one frozen food. A quality pellet will have more of what they need. More balanced diet?
They may not want it right away, but thats easy enough. Dont feed for a couple of days

 

[maddog10]

Those fish were raised in New Life Spectrum products, I feed once a day (and not too much) the 30 second rule is good to follow. It does not hurt if you skip a feeding or two every now and then. I would keep other mbuna that do not look like them. They are fairly aggressive. I have kept breeding groups in as small as a 20high (lots of water changes) but usually in a 40long with no problems. Provide rock piles with lots of hiding places. Somewhere on this forum I have a thread about breeding these fish, there should be a photo of a pair in breeding colors. The male gets a stunning light blue. I still have some of these fish if you need or want more. They are rarer in the hobby than a lot of other afras, that area doesn't get collected often.

 

[cyradis4]

I'm thinking of setting up a 55 with the Afras, and some Yellow Labs cuz I just love the look of them. What kind of red colored fish would go with these two in a 55, and what should the numbers of each be?

Thanks!
Amanda.

 

[Tim]

I'm pretty conservative when it comes to stocking tanks. I'd say with the Cynotilapia and a group of Labidochromis caeruleus, the tank was stocked in a 55. Red fish from Lake Malawi are pretty limited to the Utaka and Aulonocara species. I think a Copadichromis borleyi gets too large for a 55 gallon. One of the smaller peacocks may be OK with the afra and Labidochromis, but I'd limit the number to a total of about 12 fish. One male for each group.
Tim

 

[phishphorphun]

Hey Amanda, if you intend to use the 55, and you want a variety of color, stick to the mbunas that have been discussed. Don't waste your time with mixing haps/peacocks with them (as has already been suggested). Load the tank to the top back with rocks. I would overstock the tank and make sure you have twice the filtration you would normally use. I have found that the crowded tank keeps the aggression down because of the lack of available territory for them to defend.

Do lots of water changes, add salt to your mix, and feed them pellets. You live in Baltimore (like me), the water here is perfect to raise all Africans.

 

[Tim]

I aggree I'd stay with the Mbuna, Cynotilapia and Labidochromis, as I'd already stated. I only mentioned the Peacocks and Utaka because she'd asked about red fish.
Tim

 

[Laxison]

If you get a large tank (or have one to put these guys in) I have 4 young yellow labs I'd be willing to part with. I've been raising them for awhile now but soon enough they will be too large for me to keep given the limited tank space I have. They're about an inch in length each so they wouldn't be too large for your young guys. If you're interested let me know and I can bring them around for you at next month's meeting! Enjoy your Afras; they're some of my favorite mbunas out there!

 

[cyradis4]

Laxison,

I pm'ed you.

Amanda.