What's your thoughts on cichlids?

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Let me answer this with a labor intensive explanation
As I approach the last years of my fish keeping term, there were 5 species in my "holy grail" list, yet to get, before I kick the bucket.
2 are from so politically restrictive regions, that they are almost totally barred to me.
Nandopsis ramsdeni (Cuba)
Iranocichla hormusensis (Iran)
and 1 from a war torn area hot with revolution and also very remotely isolated nation, and disease riddled area
Heterochromis multidens (Congo)
and two, just slightly just kind of from a remote spot.
Isthmoheros tuyrensus (found only in the Darien region od Panama)
Darienheros calobrense (also restricted to the Darien)
So I chose the lessor political and dangerous of evils ... Panama... because I haven't had access yet, to these species....
And to do this, I moved to Panama to collect them myself in 2015.
Getting settled took tiime, and Covid got in the way of immediate progress...
Finally about 2 years ago I caught the two Panamanians,
and have been working with them ever since.
320bad04-a569-4d7e-aa66-e8d26f9505e1.jpeg
IMG_8746.jpeg
IMG_8648.jpeg
But I also want to clarify, success with any cichlid, for me, is not just acquiring it, and keeping it from being dead....
it means to me.... having that cichlid spawn in my tanks......and raising those young to maturity.
This had not happened for me yet, so there is a little yet to do.
a0dd3d6d-fd78-40c8-ab7f-c4166964ab21.jpegPHOTO-2024-04-02-12-34-09.jpeg
As you can see by the pics, time is getting tight
 
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duanes said:
Let me answer this with a labor intensive explanation
As I approach the last years of my fish keeping term, there were 5 species in my "holy grail" list, yet to get, before I kick the bucket.
2 are from so politically restrictive regions, that they are almost totally barred to me.
Nandopsis ramsdeni (Cuba)
Iranocichla hormusensis (Iran)
and 1 from a war torn area hot with revolution and also very remotely isolated nation, and disease riddled area
Heterochromis multidens (Congo)
and two, just slightly just kind of from a remote spot.
Isthmoheros tuyrensus (found only in the Darien region od Panama)
Darienheros calobrense (also restricted to the Darien)
So I chose the lessor political and dangerous of evils ... Panama... because I haven't had access yet, to these species....
And to do this, I moved to Panama to collect them myself in 2015.
Getting settled took tiime, and Covid got in the way of immediate progress...
Finally about 2 years ago I caught the two Panamanians,
and have been working with them ever since.
View attachment 1549264
View attachment 1549265
View attachment 1549266
But I also want to clarify, success with any cichlid, for me, is not just acquiring it, and keeping it from being dead....
it means to me.... having that cichlid spawn in my tanks......and raising those young to maturity.
This had not happened for me yet, so there is a little yet to do.
View attachment 1549267View attachment 1549268
As you can see by the pics, time is getting tight
Click to expand...
"But I also want to clarify, success with any cichlid, for me, is not just acquiring it, and keeping it from being dead....
it means to me.... having that cichlid spawn in my tanks......and raising those young to maturity." Well said, man. Me too!
 
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duanes said:
Let me answer this with a labor intensive explanation
As I approach the last years of my fish keeping term, there were 5 species in my "holy grail" list, yet to get, before I kick the bucket.
2 are from so politically restrictive regions, that they are almost totally barred to me.
Nandopsis ramsdeni (Cuba)
Iranocichla hormusensis (Iran)
and 1 from a war torn area hot with revolution and also very remotely isolated nation, and disease riddled area
Heterochromis multidens (Congo)
and two, just slightly just kind of from a remote spot.
Isthmoheros tuyrensus (found only in the Darien region od Panama)
Darienheros calobrense (also restricted to the Darien)
So I chose the lessor political and dangerous of evils ... Panama... because I haven't had access yet, to these species....
And to do this, I moved to Panama to collect them myself in 2015.
Getting settled took tiime, and Covid got in the way of immediate progress...
Finally about 2 years ago I caught the two Panamanians,
and have been working with them ever since.
View attachment 1549264
View attachment 1549265
View attachment 1549266
But I also want to clarify, success with any cichlid, for me, is not just acquiring it, and keeping it from being dead....
it means to me.... having that cichlid spawn in my tanks......and raising those young to maturity.
This had not happened for me yet, so there is a little yet to do.
View attachment 1549267View attachment 1549268
As you can see by the pics, time is getting tight
Click to expand...
Hey, can I ask something? Are malawi eye biters and malawi hawks fast growers compare to oscars, GT, Jack Dempsey, Jag and other large carnivorous new world cichlids?
 
First off, most new world cichlids "aren't" strict carnivores, (Parachromis yes), but species like JDs, Andinoacara (GTs)and Herichthys are opportunistic omnivores and get half their nutrition from vegetation, such as algae, and detritus.
IMG_7912.jpeg
Many JDs in nature miss 9 out of 10 attempts at predation, and end up eating vegetation.
A JDs mouth is not strictlyn predatory, compared to an obligate predator.
But Many new world cichlids get twice the size of, than those Malawian cichlids you mention.
 
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This is a tough ish question because of the roughly 3000 cichlids, almost 2 thirds are from Africa. I'd consider most central american cichlids hardy save for the bloat prone or somewhat pH/O2 content specific ones, but the whole "american" hardiness umbrella is tainted a bit by South Americans (caquetaines and geophagines mostly). Cichlids from Malawi are generally tolerant of wide ranges and can live in lower pH or hardness than they need but won't spawn or color up. Contrarily jewels, like the ones you'd find in Florida, have no problem living in swamps and ditches. So in my opinion it's the percentage of American cichlids that are hardy vs the number that are hardy in Africa, if you get what I mean.
 
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duanes said:
First off, most new world cichlids "aren't" strict carnivores, (Parachromis yes), but species like JDs, Andinoacara (GTs)and Herichthys are opportunistic omnivores and get half their nutrition from vegetation, such as algae, and detritus.
View attachment 1549281
Many JDs in nature miss 9 out of 10 attempts at predation, and end up eating vegetation.
A JDs mouth is not strictlyn predatory, compared to an obligate predator.
But Many new world cichlids get twice the size of, than those Malawian cichlids you mention.
Click to expand...
I second this... Even nandopsis are omnivores and need plant matter in their diets
 
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duanes said:
First off, most new world cichlids "aren't" strict carnivores, (Parachromis yes), but species like JDs, Andinoacara (GTs)and Herichthys are opportunistic omnivores and get half their nutrition from vegetation, such as algae, and detritus.
View attachment 1549281
Many JDs in nature miss 9 out of 10 attempts at predation, and end up eating vegetation.
A JDs mouth is not strictlyn predatory, compared to an obligate predator.
But Many new world cichlids get twice the size of, than those Malawian cichlids you mention.
Click to expand...
When I forgot the word "omnivore" exists.
 
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New world is definitely where my heart lies and fish I prefer over other, in terms of the more commonly available fish in the hobby for the most part cichlids from the americas like Oscar’s, Jack Dempsey, green terrors, Cichla, Crenichicla, parachromis, and Kronoheros, etc, will grow a decent amount quicker compared to peacocks, mbuna, tropheus, and haps, in Africa. I can say my Oscar’s definitely grew quicker than my Malawi hawks and gar, but there are anlways exceptions like geophagus which in my experience grow pretty slowly.
 
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