Acei being picked off

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JenTN

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Dec 17, 2007
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Knoxville, TN
Okay, I have a question, I'm copying some of this from another forum I posted on

Okay, I started out with:

4 red zebras
3 msobos (1 male, 2 females)
5 aceis

I have planned on getting more msobos- however, nobody has had them in stock (they have ordered them for me, but they are not in).

I have had 3 aceis die within the past few weeks. I don't suspect illness- none appeared sick at all- I have been watching them very closely since the first one died.

The male msobo is VERY dominant. The male zebra used to be, then when the msobo colored up (he is very beautiful) he became the dominant one. I have rearranged the rockwork, the msobo seems to think every nook and cranny in the tank is his.

I am wondering if he is killing the acei because they are similiar in color to him? What do I do? Should I swap the aceis for something else? If so, what? Or will he calm down when I finally do get more msobos? I know my tank is considered understocked right now for cichlids, is that part of the problem? I could get more zebras or acei but don't want to add to the problem and get more killed. Any advice?

I spoke to a LFS in another state that specializes in Africans, and he said my problem is not the number of msobos but the number of fish in general- I need more fish basically. He said that in a 55g with the fish sizes I have, I need around 20 fish! That seems like a lot, but if it will help I will do it. He said I could even add another species- just so long as I do regular weekly water changes which I do (and I plan on adding another filter, have a Tetra whisper 60 right now).
 
overstocking usually decreases aggressive, but i think 20 is too high
 
JenTN;2077176; said:
Okay, I have a question, I'm copying some of this from another forum I posted on

Okay, I started out with:

4 red zebras
3 msobos (1 male, 2 females)
5 aceis

I have planned on getting more msobos- however, nobody has had them in stock (they have ordered them for me, but they are not in).

I have had 3 aceis die within the past few weeks. I don't suspect illness- none appeared sick at all- I have been watching them very closely since the first one died.

The male msobo is VERY dominant. The male zebra used to be, then when the msobo colored up (he is very beautiful) he became the dominant one. I have rearranged the rockwork, the msobo seems to think every nook and cranny in the tank is his.

I am wondering if he is killing the acei because they are similiar in color to him? What do I do? Should I swap the aceis for something else? If so, what? Or will he calm down when I finally do get more msobos? I know my tank is considered understocked right now for cichlids, is that part of the problem? I could get more zebras or acei but don't want to add to the problem and get more killed. Any advice?

I spoke to a LFS in another state that specializes in Africans, and he said my problem is not the number of msobos but the number of fish in general- I need more fish basically. He said that in a 55g with the fish sizes I have, I need around 20 fish! That seems like a lot, but if it will help I will do it. He said I could even add another species- just so long as I do regular weekly water changes which I do (and I plan on adding another filter, have a Tetra whisper 60 right now).
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well he was wrong, "although overstocking will decrease aggression" i have only 8 afrians in my 55 right now and 3 of them are jewels!! i know what your talking about with your dominant thinkin he "owns" the tank, but in this case i would bet thats not the problem, as long as you have appropriate structure in your tank.. check your water params, ph, etc. And i agree with beth on 20 being a lil high, maybe 16-18 being your max, but its all up to you. gl
 
well he was wrong, i have only 8 afrians in my 55 right now and 3 of them are jewels!! i know what your talking about with your dominant thinkin he "owns" the tank, but in this case i would bet thats not the problem, as long as you have appropriate structure in your tank.. check your water params, ph, etc.

I think the guy at the store was talking about other rift lake cichlids not a west african fish?Big difference in a jewel cichlid and an rift lake african cichlid.I would increase your number of rift lake cichlids or you could add a few different fish,like jewel cichlids.
 
as long as you do the water changes,twenty sounds fine.I would keep 20-30 in a 55 back when i kept rift lake african cichlids.
 
hotfishgirls;2077280; said:
well he was wrong, i have only 8 afrians in my 55 right now and 3 of them are jewels!! i know what your talking about with your dominant thinkin he "owns" the tank, but in this case i would bet thats not the problem, as long as you have appropriate structure in your tank.. check your water params, ph, etc.

I think the guy at the store was talking about other rift lake cichlids not a west african fish?Big difference in a jewel cichlid and an rift lake african cichlid.I would increase your number of rift lake cichlids or you could add a few different fish,like jewel cichlids.
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???? what do my jewels have to do with his tank??? i was merely pointing out that his tank is not understocked. so i gave him an example.
 
My water params are fine- I know he is causing the problems, I watch him constantly tormenting other fish too.

I called another out of state lfs to see what they said, and they said 20 in a 55 gal is ideal for mbunas. I'll add some and see how that works then maybe add more.
 
Stocking levels all depend on the amount of filtration. If you can filter for more, go for it. (within reason)

I would definitely check the parameters of the tank. How big are these fish? What do the Acei look like after dying? Are they torn up? Do they look normal. Acei are very succeptableto being picked on and bad water quality can help that along very quickly. I speak from experience in this case. I lost one of my favorite Acei because another fish died while I was out of town.
 
Pharaoh;2077368; said:
Stocking levels all depend on the amount of filtration. If you can filter for more, go for it. (within reason)

I would definitely check the parameters of the tank. How big are these fish? What do the Acei look like after dying? Are they torn up? Do they look normal. Acei are very succeptableto being picked on and bad water quality can help that along very quickly. I speak from experience in this case. I lost one of my favorite Acei because another fish died while I was out of town.
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They have had gashes in their sides :(
 
hmmm that's really wierd. I've never had a problem like yours. I have...

3 red zebras
3 yellow labs
2 powder blue(getting one more soon)
4 demasoni

They all get along fairly well. The dominant red zebra is a real bully but nobody is picked on too much. You should consider certain things about your fish. You have to realize that acei aren't very aggressive and can be become a victim fast. Also make sure there are plenty of hide spots so that every fish can "escape" if needed. When did you add the fish? were they added at the same time or over a period of time? how big are the fish? Your list of fish sound pretty good to me. you shouldn't see any problems. As for the overstocking. You could stock a tank with 20 africans but you would need alot of hides and alot of filteration along with large weekly water changes. Also consider the size of the fish. stocking 20 demasoni is differnt than stocking 20 red zebras.
 
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