# I want to start breeding African Cichlids



## ChuckRum (Sep 11, 2010)

my 30 gal is no longer being used as a growout so im bored and have this empty tank just sitting there, so ive decided to attempt at breeding africans. 
Ive bred south americans before, and the only africans ive ever bred were brichardis wich were an insult to my intelligence, as beautiful as they were. im not familiar with the different african species either. i do want a bit of a challenge this time though.

so far ive looked at electric blues, and tropheus cichlids, i dont want to breed any super cheap cichlids either as i need some store credit LOL.

any other suggestions to species i should breed?


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## TBemba (Jan 11, 2010)

Well if you want a challenge in breeding Africans you could go with Apistogramma's they are a challenge with water quality. There are many different types to choose from.

If you want some cool behaviours Shelldwellers are harder to keep and breed in shells

Not many Malawi for a 30 gallon: Mbuna Cynotilapia sp. "Lion" (Lion's Cove)
Here is a list of some Mbuna's

Cool mouthbrooders

But all in all most Malawi are pretty easy to breed, like rabbits most Africans are pretty easy that is why most aquarium club members breed them and sell them at local auctions. Hamilton's club will be having one March 6th

good luck they are fun


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## ChuckRum (Sep 11, 2010)

TBemba said:


> Well if you want a challenge in breeding Africans you could go with Apistogramma's they are a challenge with water quality. There are many different types to choose from.
> 
> If you want some cool behaviours Shelldwellers are harder to keep and breed in shells
> 
> ...


thanks for the info, right now i have my heart set on leleupi cichlids. also do you know of any LFS that sells africans and arent too pricey. like i said im new to africans so i wouldnt know.


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## TBemba (Jan 11, 2010)

I would check with Finatics for leleupi but if you want them cheaper I would try to make it to the peel auction closer to you. some hobbyist breed them pretty often and will sometimes bring a group or fry to the auction and you can get a great deal. 
Maybe even someone on here might have them.

Tropheus are easy to breed but need a big group a dozen or more and 75 gallon or bigger. Most Africans need minimum 75 gallon or larger due to their aggression.


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## ChuckRum (Sep 11, 2010)

TBemba said:


> Well if you want a challenge in breeding Africans you could go with Apistogramma's they are a challenge with water quality. There are many different types to choose from.
> 
> If you want some cool behaviours Shelldwellers are harder to keep and breed in shells
> 
> ...


How many afra cobues do you think i can put in my 30 gal?


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## saltwater junkie (Feb 18, 2011)

*dead coral*

I have had great success with using small dead branching coral
in a big tank and the fry live in there and the bigger fish can't eat them they come out for food or just sprinkle for in to the coral

and it also works as a ph buffer

i know it is little off topic but if you ever get a larger tank you can have fry with no extra effort


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## Philip.Chan.92 (Apr 25, 2010)

You can use texas holey rock, it has a ton of little holes and tunnels that will suit the fry perfectly and other bigger fish won't be able to get even close to them once they are inside the rock. If you make your entire rockscape using THR then tons of fry will survive. You can also use pebbles for substrate, about 1"-2" diameter and make a layer about 3" high and the fry will definitely survive in that as well. There are a few among many different ways to keep fry alive but if you really want to have a ton of fry (maybe to sell or trade-in) then I advise getting a few 10 gallon tanks and one females are holding, net them and put them into a 10 gallon tank by themselves and once the females spit, put them either in a recovery tank or right back into the main tank (i would suggest doing the latter only if you have sufficient overcrowding in the tank or the weakened female will be at risk of being picked on as being a newcomer to the tank). Hopefully this helps.


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## TBemba (Jan 11, 2010)

6 is a good number. 2 male 4 female spread out aggression.Have rocks to prevent line of sight and have places to hide for the females and sub male. 

good luck


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## bluegularis (May 12, 2010)

TBemba said:


> Well if you want a challenge in breeding Africans you could go with Apistogramma's they are a challenge with water quality. There are many different types to choose from.
> 
> If you want some cool behaviours Shelldwellers are harder to keep and breed in shells
> 
> ...


I don't want to seem to critical but calling Apistogramma's African cichlids, you need to check your geography, Apistogramma's come from The Amazon in South America, Brazil, Peru, The Guiana's -

In regards to breeding Africans it seems that you like the tanganyikan cichlids, tropheus and leleupi are all from lake Tanganyika.

Mike at Finatics has a large selection of Tanganyikan cichlids, other nice ones are Calvus, Neolamp. Buesheri,the smaller shell dwellers or the Julidchromis species ( eg marlieri).

You did mention that you wanted to get some return on your breeding, leleupi are common as dirt in the stores and relatively inexpensive, if you want some return try the buesheri's or the calvus etc, however the calvus are extremly slow growers.

Hope this helps,
Thks


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## TBemba (Jan 11, 2010)

bluegularis said:


> I don't want to seem to critical but calling Apistogramma's African cichlids, you need to check your geography, Apistogramma's come from The Amazon in South America, Brazil, Peru, The Guiana's -
> 
> In regards to breeding Africans it seems that you like the tanganyikan cichlids, tropheus and leleupi are all from lake Tanganyika.
> 
> ...


You are 100% correct that Apistogramma's are south americans. I apologizes for this misinformation. But what i was trying to get at is they are more difficult to breed and are more desirable (get more $$ back for fry). They also are a good size for a 30 gallon tank.

I also agree that most Africans are cheap as dirt as you would say because they are so easy to breed.


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