Westie community

[aarhud]

Hello,

Any hope of a two cichlid species community in a standard 55g (48x12x21)?

In general, how aggressive are Nanochromis parilus? Would they be a species I could mix with?


Thanks,
Aaron

 

[slimbolen99]

I've got Nanochromis parilus in with Tilapia (old genus) bythobates in a 75 (48x18x22). They seem to be getting along...even though the bythobates are spawning like crazy. Seems like to me the parilus like to dart into piles of rock; I use round fist sized and smaller rocks piled up with gravel slightly covering them.

 

[aarhud]

Alright cool. I may end up doing a species tank of Nanochromis parilus. Are yours aggressive towards their own?

 

[aquaticclarity]

N. parilus are a typical cichlid were they will have territorial disputes but nothing to serious. A pair with fry can be more of a force of course. But as long as they are in a well decorated tank with and fish can get away and out of sight from each other you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[Joe Gatchell]

I've been thinking of something like this too. I'm thinking of doing it in a 125g or larger if I can find it. Should be plenty of space to establish some territories.

 

[aarhud]

The only real fear I had about using Nanochromis is their reported aggression towards their own kind.

 

[aquaticclarity]

In a 48" tank with separate shelters/territories at each end and plenty of taller structure in the middle to break up the line of sight and think you have a good chance at making it work. Having some robust active dither/target fish in the tank will also help a lot.

 

[tjudy]

I think that if you keep to species that are about the same size and are of very different genera you will be all right. That being said, not much will survive living with 5-spot Hemichromis or some of the larger/meaner red jewels. I would not hesitate to mix Nanochromis with Anomalochromis, or Pelvicachromis sacrimontis/humilis/signatus/rubrolabiatus with some of the smaller jewels (H. cf. lifilili 'Moanda', H. stellifer or H. cristatus) in a 4' tank.

 

[aarhud]

The mix I had in mind was Nanochromis parilus, and a Pelvicachromis of some type. Would that be something that I could pull off? If so, would you go with a large Pelvicachromis or one of the smaller ones? If you guys that have worked with Nanochromis think another cichlid would inhibit them then please let me know. I think they are stunning, I would not hesitate to just make the tank a species tank with dithers.

Dithers dithers dithers. Is there anything on the market from West Africa that won't require me to get a second job or obliterate fry? I try to setup tanks where the fry last at least 2-3 weeks, I don't have room to raise them but parental care is my favorite part of the hobby.

 

[slimbolen99]

Dithers dithers dithers. Is there anything on the market from West Africa that won't require me to get a second job or obliterate fry? I try to setup tanks where the fry last at least 2-3 weeks, I don't have room to raise them but parental care is my favorite part of the hobby.

Clown killies are my favorite; they normally run in the $5 each neighborhood
Barbus fasciolatus is a great one (I think the genus has changed on them); they are around the killi price too
Neolebias philippei do great. They look like a gold neon tetra. Less than above, but more than a couple bucks typically.

Congo tetras might work; but they are pretty big and can be quite erratic if not kept in a larger group.

 

[aarhud]

Hey guys,

I think I ended up with Lympho, so as of yesterday I do not own a single fish. Culled everything I owned and am now drying the tanks out after giving them a bleach wipe down.

My 125g tank originally housed a pair of Thorichthys meeki and a pair of Cryptoheros cutteri. They were a really interesting combo, the meeki constantly flare, and the big male would challenge the cutteri pair. When guarding fry, the smaller cutteri (they were about half the size of the meeki) would gang up on the male to drive him away from their territory. The medium sized fish worked well, since there was enough room for each to have their own territories.

Now for my question, could I get something similar with the readily avaliable westies(Hint, something that does not cost $50 each or is impossible to find!)? I am tempted to try a community in my 125g, but having never kept westies I'm not sure if I can get the same scenes. The original stocking in the 125g was a joy to watch and I may end up going back to that stocking.

Thought I would get your opinions,
Aaron

 

[Mike Wise]

I would think that one of the small Pelvicachromis species and Anomalochromis species should get along OK since they use different parts of a tank.

 

[gerald]

Nanochromis and Pelvicachromis are pretty similar in shape and behavior, so they might see each other as more of a threat than other less similar species. As long as you've got tanks to move ore or the other if it doesnt work out, and can check on them often the first several days, try it and see.

Sorry to hear about the Lympho disaster. Lymphocystis is pretty mild as diseases go, very slow to spread, and rarely fatal. I've had cichlids live and breed for years with Lympho, and dont think I would have culled all my fish to eliminate it.

 

[aarhud]

Not at all what I have heard about Lympho. From what I have read, and been told it is a virus that spreads quickly. Not all fish show symptoms, but still may carry the virus. So if you trade fish that seem perfectly healthy, you could be infecting another persons tank with the virus. Most literature says the virus does not kill, its just ugly to look at. It can compromise the immune system and make way for secondary diseases though. Although it is thought that the virus is genus specific, so maybe thats what you mean by slow to spread?

I tried treating with Furan-2 and Kannaplex, but to no avail.

 

[Mike Wise]

Being a virus, Lymphocystis is not affected by antibiotics. The fish's natural immune system typically takes care of the problem. My guess is that most fish have it (like the virus/viri for the Common Cold in humans). It only gets out of hand when the fish become stressed (population or pollution). Removing the cause of the stress has always worked form me.

 

[gerald]

Last time I saw Lympho was about 6+ years ago when I had some Nannacara taenia. The female had it, but her mate never showed symptoms (~2 yrs I had them). It showed up on some of their offspring, but most looked clean. You may be right that all of them could be infected and carry the virus. And so could any new fish you acquire. (Same goes for Mycobacterium). Other than looks it (Lympho) wasnt much of a problem. They were the only N. taenia I'd ever seen, so it was worth the risk to me to keep them. Other fish have lived in that tank subsequently and no Lympho has shown up.

 

[aarhud]

Yeah, I treated with a broad antibiotic on the chance it was something other than Lympho.

From the articles I have read on it, the virus does not cross genera well. So that explains why it never spreads quickly for some, and like I said some fish never show symptoms. I had two different fish become infected, Thorichthys meeki and the A. siquia "Rio Cabayo". The meeki were fine for the most part save for two that had the bumps around the mouth and had difficulty eating. The cabayo on the other hand had a harder time. They are much smaller and tended to get the bumps along the gills and mouth, which would make them sluggish and slow to eat. I did not come to the decision of a mass cull lightly, but after reading case after case of the virus spreading and reoccurring I made the call. I know other people that finally ended up doing the same thing.

I doubt all fish carry it, if they do why don't we see it when they are stressed/shipped/beat up like we do ich? I think Lympho may be more common in aquaculture, as they seem to have more of a problem with it.

 

[gerald]

Yes THAT would be a serious problem. The few times I've had fish with Lympho it was on fins and/or body at the base of fins, never on the head where in could interfere with mouth, gills or eyes. I dont know how common the virus is, but fish showing Lympho symptoms are pretty rare IME. Don't think I've seen it more than a dozen times in 40 years, including lots of time scanning through tanks at local shops looking for odd/accidental fish. Wish I could say the same for Myco, but in the past few years I rarely leave a shop without seeing a few fish with Myco-looking sores or body deformity.

 

[gerald]

MODERATORS -- I suggest moving the lower half of this thread (from post #14 onward) into a new thread titled Lymphocystis.
(And then delete this post).

 

[aarhud]

Yeah I don't remember seeing it either Gerald. That's why I just decided to cull and start over, I like to trade fry and there was just no way I could ever let a fish leave my tanks with this lurking. Hopefully I won't encounter it again.