Got your DM. It wouldn’t let me respond. Thanks for the lead!Hey mate! I haven’t actually got them as yet. The bloke that I found that imports from Europe is going overseas and won’t be bringing fish in again until later in October. I’ll DM you his details
Frontosa stocking help!
- Thread starter Nyrkorey
- Start date
That’s a great idea! I have 10 CL’a in my 125gal w some tropheus. Added them for snail control but have grow to love their look & loachy antics. Having a group in the 5 hundo with the Gibbs and Mdoka would look awesome. Thx for the suggestion
Would love to have clown loaches but my lfs only sells ones that are ~1.5"-2". In the past 2 years I had two different batches of around 15-20 of these small clown loaches but due to their playful exploratory nature they eventually, one by one, get up into my overflows of my 180gal and die there. On my second attempt I tried attaching strips of poret foam over the overflow weirs but they just wriggled past. I guess I would first need a smaller grow-out tank (without overflows).
My opinion, having kept and/or bred Cyphotilapia for over 25 years, mainly C. gibberosa kapampa (I started with F1 from the original 1990 kapampa imports), and having been a mod/admin for years on a large, and at one time very active, forum dedicated to them--
I generally agree with most of the comments above with a couple of qualifications. First is that for me (and quite a few others) growth in one year from about an inch or so was generally to 6+ inches for most males, by which time, especially with experience, you can generally distinguish the largest in a group as males and the smaller ones as females, though there can be some in-betweeners you're not sure about yet. Ultimately males are larger and have longer fin extensions, usually pretty evident by year 2-3.
Not that it was suggested, exactly, but for the record I wouldn't keep Cyphotilapia with tropheus, virtually anyone on the forum who tried it regretted it due to both dietary and temperament issues, and they often recommended against it-- trophs are quite nippy and aggressive at the same time they're susceptible to bloat when everything isn't right for them. Preferred temperatures are also a bit different, with Cyphotilapia cooler, though there's a middle ground in that respect. It might be possible in a huge enough tank, though I don't know what that threshold would be.
Clown loaches-- a number of people tried this, most of them didn't stick with it, one reason was that at first they were okay, but eventually were too rambunctious for the Cyphotilapia and tended to compete with them rather than complement them.
Some less common, very nice, and geographically correct alternative tank mates for Cyphotilapia worth looking into would be the "feather fins," including Cyathopharynx and Ophthalmotilapia (some of the Cyathopharynx are gorgeous in breeding color), and Benthocrhomis, some call them giant feather fins, though they're not closely related. Just my opinion, but in a tank your size I would keep a few less Cyphotilapia, perhaps 12-15-- which, when you're talking about the Congo coast gibberosa, would make a beautiful display-- and make room for a colony of featherfins.
I generally agree with most of the comments above with a couple of qualifications. First is that for me (and quite a few others) growth in one year from about an inch or so was generally to 6+ inches for most males, by which time, especially with experience, you can generally distinguish the largest in a group as males and the smaller ones as females, though there can be some in-betweeners you're not sure about yet. Ultimately males are larger and have longer fin extensions, usually pretty evident by year 2-3.
Not that it was suggested, exactly, but for the record I wouldn't keep Cyphotilapia with tropheus, virtually anyone on the forum who tried it regretted it due to both dietary and temperament issues, and they often recommended against it-- trophs are quite nippy and aggressive at the same time they're susceptible to bloat when everything isn't right for them. Preferred temperatures are also a bit different, with Cyphotilapia cooler, though there's a middle ground in that respect. It might be possible in a huge enough tank, though I don't know what that threshold would be.
Clown loaches-- a number of people tried this, most of them didn't stick with it, one reason was that at first they were okay, but eventually were too rambunctious for the Cyphotilapia and tended to compete with them rather than complement them.
Some less common, very nice, and geographically correct alternative tank mates for Cyphotilapia worth looking into would be the "feather fins," including Cyathopharynx and Ophthalmotilapia (some of the Cyathopharynx are gorgeous in breeding color), and Benthocrhomis, some call them giant feather fins, though they're not closely related. Just my opinion, but in a tank your size I would keep a few less Cyphotilapia, perhaps 12-15-- which, when you're talking about the Congo coast gibberosa, would make a beautiful display-- and make room for a colony of featherfins.
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...I might just add-- females can produce eggs starting about 18 months or so, males take longer to reach breeding age, often 3+ years. So this is why a typical colony might not breed successfully until 3 years or so.
Wow, interesting growth rate report. I have grown out several groups of Mikula over the years, and bought a 4-5” group of Kapampa, but have never had any reach 6”, or grow more than 3” in a year.
I was an active member on cyphos.com when I moved to the US in 2013, and until Greg a multitude of challenging life events that resulted in the closure of LAA and the closing down of the 2 tang forums he developed. My recollection may be inaccurate but I thought most tank raised cyphos took 4 yrs + to reach sexual maturity & reproduce successfully. I will be stoked to have those thoughts disproven, especially in the ones I will be buying soon!
I agree fully, tropheus and cyphos would be a recipe for disaster!
My thought was to have the clown loaches until the cyphos hit breeding age and then remove them. No hurry to decide, but will definitely think that one through a bit more…
The feather fin option is a good one as I can provide lots of open space for big craters. Will males show good color without females?
I was an active member on cyphos.com when I moved to the US in 2013, and until Greg a multitude of challenging life events that resulted in the closure of LAA and the closing down of the 2 tang forums he developed. My recollection may be inaccurate but I thought most tank raised cyphos took 4 yrs + to reach sexual maturity & reproduce successfully. I will be stoked to have those thoughts disproven, especially in the ones I will be buying soon!
I agree fully, tropheus and cyphos would be a recipe for disaster!
My thought was to have the clown loaches until the cyphos hit breeding age and then remove them. No hurry to decide, but will definitely think that one through a bit more…
The feather fin option is a good one as I can provide lots of open space for big craters. Will males show good color without females?
I will likely start w 15+ @ 2-3”. Would prob sell the extra males, buy another 8 @ 2-3” and keep only females and sell the extra males. I would like to have a group w 3M12F 
