Lake Malawi cichlids and non-cichlids

[Rafini]

Howdy,
Over the years I have always kept some kind of dither fish with african cichlids or out of necessity had to move some fish from another tank temporarily.
I have always had success and in some cases long term. I'm not sure if it is just certain forums/communities that are very purist vs people new to the hobby.
I saw one thread that stated no 'community fish' or non cichlids can survive long term with Mbuna.

I have kept the following species over the years:

-Giant Danios with Placidochromis and a few tangynikans for 3-4 years with 0 issues
-Congo tetras with Mbuna for 2 years with 0 issues
-Rosy Barbs & Filament barbs with Mbuna for 4 years with 0 issues
- White skirt tetras with Mbuna for 4 years with 0 issues

I can't be the only one that has had success with non cichlid dithers in African Cichlid aquariums,
Here at MFK you see all kinds of combinations and some work more than others but in general I think MFKers are more likely to experiment with stocking and have the tank space to accommodate moving fish around.

So my question is why is there such a push for purity in the african cichlid hobby?

Interested to see what others have done over the years. What did and didn't work?

Rafini

 

[james99]

I think alot of people want to get their tank as close to the lake as possible, meaning rocks and cichlids.

The last version of my tank before I moved away from african cichlids had silver dollars and a paratilapia polleni with haps and peacocks. The tank worked great, no issues at all. I've also had giant danios which worked until some of the predatory haps got big enough to eat them. Also I tried serpae tetras when I first started out, they were a complete failure in a short period of time.

 

[KATALEKEEPER]

one of my favorite YouTubers keeps a parrot cichlid with his africans, and I decided to give it a try. This is the second day, but no issues at all. The [eacocks and haps just ignore them completely.

 

[Deadeye]

I put 3 Aussie rainbows with my mbuna and had to take them out quickly. One died from the injuries. I did put 6 skunk loaches in and they did great.

 

[DJRansome]

I had Congo tetras with mbuna early in my fishkeeping, it did not work. Not sure it is a purist thing, but if you need a dither, it is popularly believed that the best dithers for mbuna are more mbuna. Just that there could be better options.

 

[Stephen St.Clair]

I keep Y Modesta (Red Tails) & a Berdmorei Tiger Loach in my African tank.
The Loaches are actually a little more aggressive than the Cichlids.
When my Filament Barbs, Altus Tinfoils & YoYo Loaches get a little bigger they're going in too.

 

[Deadeye]

Tank size is the most important aspect. Anything under 55-75 the mbunas are going to be a lot more aggressive and willing to attack anything. As it gets bigger there is a lot more open space that other fish can be allowed in.

 

[duanes]

Being a bit of a purist, when I kept Tanganyikans, after much searching, I acquired Lamprichthys tanganicanus.
The biggest problem with them, was getting them from point A to point B without death.
That said these rift lake killifish look very similar to Australian Rainbows that also appreciate the type water conditions, perfectly fit for Rift Lake species, and are hardier, and much more available.
I also agree about tank size, in small tanks, dithers are easily corned and preyed upon by carnivorous cichlids.

 

[Milingu]

I have kept nearly all the species mentioned by op. And I can say they have no mature problems in slightly alkaline water. But they look way better when kept in softer water in a ph around or below 7. They show better colours and might even breed.
The most rift lake cichlids do not need any dither fish.

I am not a biotope purist at all and I don't think you need absolute exact water parameters. But why to combine fish that thrive better in way different water parameters?

 

[Rafini]

I'd like to point out that I am a huge fan of biotopes, If I had a bunch of tanks I'd do all kinds of different biotope setups.
For now I only have the one tank set up.

Mixing the non cichlids in really only works when the Mbuna are young, this way you have a higher chance of success.

I think most people (myself in the past included) look for ways to get more activity in different areas of the tank.
Barbs and tetras lack the personality of cichlids, yet in a lot of cases are more active and eyecatching.

This is the fun of fish keeping, the ever evolving nature of a tank.
A well researched biotope mbuna aquarium is a site to behold!