Tiny cichlids in a tiny aquarium?
- Thread starter TheKingOfDaFishes
- Start date
10-15 full size Mbuna in a 40 breed is way too much. I wouldn't attempt that many unless you had a 75 or 90.
There are, however, plenty of other cichlids that would be great in a 40. Tanganyikans like Calvus or Leleupi would work well. There's also plenty of Central and South Americans that would work well in a 40. And as some one else suggested, West-Africans like Kribs or Steatocranus would work well too.
There are, however, plenty of other cichlids that would be great in a 40. Tanganyikans like Calvus or Leleupi would work well. There's also plenty of Central and South Americans that would work well in a 40. And as some one else suggested, West-Africans like Kribs or Steatocranus would work well too.
I think the question was if mbuna can be kept a) in a small tank when they are small and b) in a 40b when adults. I think that if you have awesome filtration (aquaponics/turf scrubber), or just a lot of good water changes ( a must for mbuna anyway), and plenty of line of sight breaks. A 40b is a 48" tank, which is what most people use for mbuna. The low water volume just means water quality will be more of a problem. Overstocking is the most popular strategy to keep your mbuna from killing each other anyway.
I bought a few 1" from Petsmart, they are now 4"+, took more than 3 years to get to 4".
Some cichlid species grow slow, also proper filtration and wc's are crucial.
A 40 gallon breeder is not a 48" tank. It's a shallow 36" long tank. Overstocking is the only way to keep Mbuna, but not in a tank that's too small to do it in. Like I said, a 75-90 would be a lot better if you're going to keep that many. They grow to a decent size and get quite thick as adults. On top of that, they are very active swimmers and require a reasonable amount of water to "stretch-out" in.
Last edited:
I have never actually owned one of these tanks, but my lfs has a 48" they have labelled as a a 40g. I guess it must have been a weird size. I assumed it was a 40B. You probably know better than I do.
There is a 48" 40 gallon tank, which is just a chopped 55. They're typically referred to as a 40 long. So you're not wrong about that. 40 breeders just have a much different footprint.
