Obligatory New Guy Thread
- Thread starter gnuisance
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- guy obligatory thread
verbal
CCA Members
Welcome to the forum. Have you been to any East Coast Cichlids events?
mscichlid
Founder
Welcome to the forum!
D-money
Members
Welcome, I also keep Deppi...
Leffler817
CCA Members
turfboss
Members
Welcome to the forum - where are you in NJ??
I actually haven't been to any events period. Seeing all the pics and reports from the ACA convention made me wish I had been there this past weekend.
Nice! I think I see one in your avatar. I will be PMing you for some tips.
Thanks! I'm in North Jersey, about 30 minutes outside NYC
UNCLERUCKUS
"THE ALL POWERFUL Q !!
WELCOME TO CCA
dogofwar
CCA Members
Welcome!
Matt
Matt
thefishproject
Members
Hey Mike, my name is Juan Saavedra and welcome to the hobby.
The other guys are right about the P. dovii in that they are killers when they get larger and they'll need a separate tank, so now might not be the time to get a large P. dovii. Also it might get boring after a while if you don't have a full appreciation of the species that can be gained from... READ BELOW
I got my first Dovii 20 years ago at "1 and found that he did really well in a community tank with other Central American cichlids his size, i.e Jack Dempsey's, Fire Mouth cichlids, A. labiatus, Convict cichlids, etc.. and that was in a 30 gallon tank. Can you believe it!?!
With a 150-180g tank I'd suggest to have fun with it. Decide what kind of substrate you want ( gravel or sand), then go to a garden center and pick out some cool stones, large and small. Make caves with your stones and pile your gravel (or sand) over it and when the cichlids start moving the gravel/sand they'll start discovering their new territories. They'll fight over their territories and mate in them or get kicked out and then get them after a small skirmish. Get plastic plants and long-strip air diffusers to make it look beautiful. Also make sure you get a light and top(a given I guess) filters too.
Your new to cichlids right? Then I'd suggest to get small fish, I mean, like 1 inch. And get as many as you want 30... 40... haha that's kind of pushing it a little, but you get my point buy, buy , buy you have a huge tank! Get some Convicts, Salvini's, Green Terrors( a SA cichlid), the dovii you wanted, managuense, motaguense, carpintis, loiselli, Fire Mouths etc...
When you have a tank with a lot of aggressive Central American cichlids and they are raised as young together they tend to coexist well when they become adults.
This kind of start teaches you the behaviors of each species and why you like or prefer this species over that species. It'll also allows you to see growth over time as your fish mature into beautiful adults.
Fish are going to die! Trust me, it happens to the best of us, but remeber this period in your involvement with the hobby is the growth and learning stage so its a time to explore and have fun.
Don't let other peoples opinions of how things are "supposed to be" deter you from exploring.
If you want African cichlids with your Central Americans or South Americans, go for it man! Then as you start developing a passion/ addiction for the fish you'll migrate into more specialized areas of the hobby.
You might become the specialist or go to guy of a certain species that you've learned to love and appreciate and only keep that fish. You might decide that you like African's and not Central Americans ( not African people and Central American people, but the fish of course) and only keep Africans from Lake Tanganyika have tanks dedicated for specimens from a certain location (i.e." Kitumba"). You might decide that you like Dawrf cichlid's and only keep them. You might like all cichlids which is what ends up happening to a lot of us and have a little of this and that in their own separate tanks by continent or not. You might end up liking hybrid cichlids like the show discus or flowerhorns and you'll develop a lot of enemies for doing so. More so on the flowerhorn side of things not show hybrid-discus which of course they don't call them hybrids but they are.
Sorry for that, if you didn't notice I was having a moment there cause love my hybrids and the American Cichlid Association rejects hybrids and I am hurt that after 20 years of being in the hobby there is no place for people like me that are so passionate about the cichlids as they are. By the way I love pure fish cichlids as well.
Lastly, you might become a breeder who has no gravel in his tanks just water, fish and sponges filters all in a heated room where you will definitely sweat and be wiping the sweat off of your eyebrows and forehead and you'll be blind if you where glasses haha. And don't underestimate someone's setup just because it isn't pretty these tend to be the people who become legendary in the hobby. Now, of course, you can be a breeder and have a beautiful setup, but usually breeders spend there attention on beautifying a strain of fish and not necessarily their tanks.
So there you have it! Have fun, learn and get out to support your local pet stores, explore fish on Youtube and the different forums, become a member of your local fish club and enjoy God's beautiful creation - the Cichlid.
Nice retail sites for Central American cichlids
My hero in the hobby a true legend Don Conkel:
http://www.donconkels tropicals.com
Next, Jeff Rapps also legendary and has great fish:
http://www.tangledupincichlids.com
Lastly, Dan from Florida is what I call him:
http://www.cichlidsoftheamericas.com
Also, Aquabid.com come it huge! I don't know about everyone else but I visit http://www.aquabid.com just about every time I get online.
The other guys are right about the P. dovii in that they are killers when they get larger and they'll need a separate tank, so now might not be the time to get a large P. dovii. Also it might get boring after a while if you don't have a full appreciation of the species that can be gained from... READ BELOW
I got my first Dovii 20 years ago at "1 and found that he did really well in a community tank with other Central American cichlids his size, i.e Jack Dempsey's, Fire Mouth cichlids, A. labiatus, Convict cichlids, etc.. and that was in a 30 gallon tank. Can you believe it!?!
With a 150-180g tank I'd suggest to have fun with it. Decide what kind of substrate you want ( gravel or sand), then go to a garden center and pick out some cool stones, large and small. Make caves with your stones and pile your gravel (or sand) over it and when the cichlids start moving the gravel/sand they'll start discovering their new territories. They'll fight over their territories and mate in them or get kicked out and then get them after a small skirmish. Get plastic plants and long-strip air diffusers to make it look beautiful. Also make sure you get a light and top(a given I guess) filters too.
Your new to cichlids right? Then I'd suggest to get small fish, I mean, like 1 inch. And get as many as you want 30... 40... haha that's kind of pushing it a little, but you get my point buy, buy , buy you have a huge tank! Get some Convicts, Salvini's, Green Terrors( a SA cichlid), the dovii you wanted, managuense, motaguense, carpintis, loiselli, Fire Mouths etc...
When you have a tank with a lot of aggressive Central American cichlids and they are raised as young together they tend to coexist well when they become adults.
This kind of start teaches you the behaviors of each species and why you like or prefer this species over that species. It'll also allows you to see growth over time as your fish mature into beautiful adults.
Fish are going to die! Trust me, it happens to the best of us, but remeber this period in your involvement with the hobby is the growth and learning stage so its a time to explore and have fun.
Don't let other peoples opinions of how things are "supposed to be" deter you from exploring.
If you want African cichlids with your Central Americans or South Americans, go for it man! Then as you start developing a passion/ addiction for the fish you'll migrate into more specialized areas of the hobby.
You might become the specialist or go to guy of a certain species that you've learned to love and appreciate and only keep that fish. You might decide that you like African's and not Central Americans ( not African people and Central American people, but the fish of course) and only keep Africans from Lake Tanganyika have tanks dedicated for specimens from a certain location (i.e." Kitumba"). You might decide that you like Dawrf cichlid's and only keep them. You might like all cichlids which is what ends up happening to a lot of us and have a little of this and that in their own separate tanks by continent or not. You might end up liking hybrid cichlids like the show discus or flowerhorns and you'll develop a lot of enemies for doing so. More so on the flowerhorn side of things not show hybrid-discus which of course they don't call them hybrids but they are.
Sorry for that, if you didn't notice I was having a moment there cause love my hybrids and the American Cichlid Association rejects hybrids and I am hurt that after 20 years of being in the hobby there is no place for people like me that are so passionate about the cichlids as they are. By the way I love pure fish cichlids as well.
Lastly, you might become a breeder who has no gravel in his tanks just water, fish and sponges filters all in a heated room where you will definitely sweat and be wiping the sweat off of your eyebrows and forehead and you'll be blind if you where glasses haha. And don't underestimate someone's setup just because it isn't pretty these tend to be the people who become legendary in the hobby. Now, of course, you can be a breeder and have a beautiful setup, but usually breeders spend there attention on beautifying a strain of fish and not necessarily their tanks.
So there you have it! Have fun, learn and get out to support your local pet stores, explore fish on Youtube and the different forums, become a member of your local fish club and enjoy God's beautiful creation - the Cichlid.
Nice retail sites for Central American cichlids
My hero in the hobby a true legend Don Conkel:
http://www.donconkels tropicals.com
Next, Jeff Rapps also legendary and has great fish:
http://www.tangledupincichlids.com
Lastly, Dan from Florida is what I call him:
http://www.cichlidsoftheamericas.com
Also, Aquabid.com come it huge! I don't know about everyone else but I visit http://www.aquabid.com just about every time I get online.
DiscusnAfricans
Past President
Where did any of this come from?
I never found anything that mentioned he kept dovii.
I don't think plastic plants and long air diffusers are the way to make a tank beautiful.
Telling someone to "get as many fish as you want" is the wrong thing to say when starting a setup. You have to consider cycling and such, not to mention actually planning what you want to do long term.
"When you have a tank with a lot of aggressive Central American cichlids and they are raised as young together they tend to coexist well when they become adults." This seems pretty funny. Everyone I've talked ot has said once the CA's start getting big they will start destroying each other, regardless of how long they've coexisted.
If you want African cichlids with your Central Americans or South Americans, go for it man! Then as you start developing a passion/ addiction for the fish you'll migrate into more specialized areas of the hobby. The last thing I would consider telling a new hobbyist. I would never fault or condone someone for doing so, but telling someone to is not the right way to go. Things are much easier if you learn the correct way right off the bat.
My hero in the hobby a true legend Don Conkel:
http://www.donconkels tropicals.com
Not the first person I'd recommend for any fish. Will leave it at that, but many people believe he is not the most honest person.
How about instead of telling him to do anything, let him ask some questions and we can help him set up something specific that will thrive long term.
I never found anything that mentioned he kept dovii.
I don't think plastic plants and long air diffusers are the way to make a tank beautiful.
Telling someone to "get as many fish as you want" is the wrong thing to say when starting a setup. You have to consider cycling and such, not to mention actually planning what you want to do long term.
"When you have a tank with a lot of aggressive Central American cichlids and they are raised as young together they tend to coexist well when they become adults." This seems pretty funny. Everyone I've talked ot has said once the CA's start getting big they will start destroying each other, regardless of how long they've coexisted.
If you want African cichlids with your Central Americans or South Americans, go for it man! Then as you start developing a passion/ addiction for the fish you'll migrate into more specialized areas of the hobby. The last thing I would consider telling a new hobbyist. I would never fault or condone someone for doing so, but telling someone to is not the right way to go. Things are much easier if you learn the correct way right off the bat.
My hero in the hobby a true legend Don Conkel:
http://www.donconkels tropicals.com
Not the first person I'd recommend for any fish. Will leave it at that, but many people believe he is not the most honest person.
How about instead of telling him to do anything, let him ask some questions and we can help him set up something specific that will thrive long term.
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chriscoli
Administrator
Welcome to the forum!
How long have you been keeping fish? Tell us about what you currently have set up...Pictures are even better!
How long have you been keeping fish? Tell us about what you currently have set up...Pictures are even better!
LOL - What?? My name is not mike and I have no idea what you are talking about. I don't have dovii and none of the other stuff you mentioned has anything to do with anything mentioned in the thread? Is this spam?
Well I'm not much of a photographer but I have a few that I will show.
This was an old grow out tank that I used to have, those are juvi orangeheads that haven't colored up yet and some pearsei. The orangeheads came from Ken Davis.
Next is an overhead view of my current set ups. Right now I only have a 10 gallon with my little midas grow out and a 20 long that will get my deppi grow outs when they arrive.
Last is my little barred midas. I'm hoping for a male but the body shape is starting to make me think female, opinions?
thefishproject
Members
Ooooops my bad, I posted in the wrong thread. I was writing to the new guy from Cali, sorry.
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thefishproject
Members
"When you have a tank with a lot of aggressive Central American cichlids and they are raised as young together they tend to coexist well when they become adults." This seems pretty funny. Everyone I've talked ot has said once the CA's start getting big they will start destroying each other, regardless of how long they've coexisted.
DiscusnAfricans: I just thought I'd shared this link with you that I found on Youtube enjoy
.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxyQ7KLhpBU&feature=related
DiscusnAfricans: I just thought I'd shared this link with you that I found on Youtube enjoy
.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxyQ7KLhpBU&feature=related
DiscusnAfricans
Past President
Honestly, you think finding an example of something on the internet makes it true? You can find examples of anything on the internet if you look around enough. I'm sure you could find a colony of frontosa living with a colony of goldfish in a 30 gallon tank, doesn't mean it will work for most people.DiscusnAfricans: I just thought I'd shared this link with you that I found on Youtube enjoy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxyQ7KLhpBU&feature=related
First of all, that tank is totally disgusting, the fish barely have room to move. Second, did you notice the tank is about 1400 gallons? How many people do you know have tanks over 200 gallons? That would never work for the average aquarist.
I think its funny that you offered terrible, unsolicited advice and then you tried to justify it with a poor example of anything relevant.
UNCLERUCKUS
"THE ALL POWERFUL Q !!
WORKS FINE FOR ME!.BREEDING JAG PAIR, LOSELLI, RED TIGER MOTAGUENSE, VONTEHILLO, OSCARS, BIFA, SYNSPILUM PAIR, AND A ZONATUS ALL LIVING PEACEFULLY IN A 225. JAGS HAVE BRED IN THIS COMMUNITY TANK MULTIPLE TIMES AS WELL AS OTHERS. IVE GOT JAG WIGGLERS AS WE SPEAK THAT WILL BE MOVED IN A FEW DAYS. I THINK ITS HOW YOU AQUASCAPE AND LIKE STATED EARLIER RAISED UP FROM JUVENILE SIZE. I WAS TOLD ID HAVE MAD FISH FIGHTS AS THEY MATURED..THAT WAS A FEW YEARS BACK AND THEY ARE STILL SWIMMING. I WILL ADMIT THOUGH IT IS WISE TO REMOVE THE RTM TO THEIR OWN TANK WHEN BREEDING AS THEY WILL TRY TO KILL ANYTHING THEY FEEL IS A THREAT EVEN A PLECO.
UNCLERUCKUS
"THE ALL POWERFUL Q !!
THATS A LOT OF FISH TO HAVE TO FEED
GLAD I DONT HAVE TO DO THE WATERCHANGES TOO!