Buying a Small Cichlid

As a newcomer to the hobby, I always feel as if I'm not worthy/prepared enough to keep Cichlids. (Pronounced "sick-lid" or "cyclid"). But I figured sooner or later I'll need to try something new, so I am beginning my research on Dwarf/Small Cichlids (My 29 G couldn't possibly house a regular sized one that grows up to 15inches!)

Here's some info I've gathered for myself, and may be useful to you too! Check out pics of these cichlids! I don't have time to post any but they do look beautiful.

Relatively Small-ish Cichlids that are Beautiful at the Same Time
(what a terrible title. :P Anyways.)

1. Jewel Cichlid

- Origins: Shallow rivers in forests of West Africa (cool!)
- Max Size: 4 inches
- Difficulty: Medium
- Compatibility: ** NO SMALL FISH (i.e. tetras), only MEDIUM SIZED fish (i.e. Rainbowfish, Barbs. Territorial and Aggressive when laying eggs.
-Neutral-Low pH, soft, acidic water

2. Ram/Butterfly Cichlid

- Max Size: 2.5-3 inches
- 6-7 pH; Soft, acidic water
- Origins: Colombia & Venezuela rivers in South America
- Compatibility: **** Ok with small fish
- Difficulty: Medium-Hard (needs established tank, lots of cover, sensitive to poor water conditions)


3. Kribensis

- Max Size : 4 inches
- pH 6-7; Soft, acidic water
- Compatibility: **** Can be kept with almost all fish. Aggressive when spawning
- Difficulty: Medium (needs lots of cover, territory dividers)



4. Angelfish

- Max Size: 6 inches (Very tall, vertically, not lengthwise)
- pH 6-7; soft acidic water
- Origins: Amazon River
- Compatibility: *** (eats smaller fish and fry)
- Difficulty: Medium (needs tall, large tank with territorial markers)

Stocking Ideas

......I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up setting up more tanks. It's quite rewarding and really addictive! My poor parents would have a fit over the electricity bill though...But in my imagination, if I could buy more tanks, these might be some of the setups I'd choose:

*The larger the tank, the easier it is to maintain. Remember that! Try cleaning the gravel in a small 10G tank and you'll know what I mean. Before you even clean half the tank, 50% of the water is already gone!! Water chemistry changes, temperature changes....etc. stress your fish!*

Anyways. My dream setups, given that I could have unlimited space, energy, resources, power, money etc...*ahhhhhh* Don't laugh at my naive compilations. I'm a beginner, remember that! My stocking ideas are probably amateur-ish...but the whole point of this exercise is to have fun - so here goes!

1. 40G Long.
- 12 harlequin rasboras (~12 inches)
-12 neon tetras (~12 inches)
- 6 rummynose tetras (~6 inches)
- 6 spotted cory cats (~12 inches)
- 10 Ghost shrimp
- 4 Honey Gouramis (~10 inches)


2. 40G: Cichlid Tank

- 2 Rams (breeding pair) (~8inches)
- 6 Kribensis (24 inches)
- 2 Clown loaches (~12 inches)


3: 40 G tall
- 2 Angelfish (~14 inches)
- 1 Golden Nugget Pleco (~4 inches)
- 6 Steel Blue Killifish (~18inches)
- 6 Pygmy cory cats (~9 inches?)


4. 29 G Betta Tank + Planted

- 1 Blue Half-Moon male Betta (~3 inches)
- 6 Oto catfish (~12inches)
-10 cardinal tetras (~15 inches)
- 15 Cherry shrimps

5. 50G: Planted + Tetra Tank

-6 Bleeding Heart Tetras (18inches)
-10 Serpae Tetras (15 inches)
-6 Lemon Tetras (9 inches)
-6 Neon Tetras (9 inches)
-10 Amano shrimp

6. 10 G

- 3 African Dwarf Frogs (6 inches)
- 5 Cherry Shrimp
- 1 Male Betta fish (3 inches)


7. 10 G

- 5 female betta fish (15 inches)
- 7 cherry shrimp

8. 60 G: Dither Fish Tank

- 4 Silver Dollars (24 inches)
- 10 Pearl Danios (20inches)
- 5 Coolie Loaches (~20inches)
- 1 Red-tailed Black Shark (~6 inches)


9. 40 G - Barbs Tank - Planted

- 6 Rosy Barbs (12 inches)
- 4 Black Ruby Barbs (10 inches)
- 4 Cherry Barbs (10 inches)
- 2 Siamese Algae Eaters (8 inches)
- 10 Amano Shrimp


10. 80 G

- 3 Rosy-Line Sharks (~18 inches)
- 6 Silver Hatchetfish (15inches)
- 10 Neon Dwarf Rainbowfish (25 inches)
- 2 Kissing Gourami (12 inches)
- 2 Bristlenose Plecos (12 inches)
- 3 Pictus Catfish (15 inches)


11. 29 G

5 Glass Catfish (~15 inches)
5 Lyretail Mollies (~15 inches)
10 Ghost Shrimp
2 Oto catfish


12. 60 G

12 Adolf's Cory Cats (24 inches)
10 Black Phantom Tetras ( 2o inches)
10 Red-Eye Tetras (2o inches)
2 Dwarf Cichlids (4 inches)


13. 45 G

6 Paradise Fish (28 inches)
2 Three Spot Gourami (10 inches)
6 Tiger Barbs (15 inches)
6 Bumblebee Goby (6 inches)

14. 50 G Livebearers

6 Sailfin Mollies (18 inches)
6 Dalmation Mollies (18 inches)
6 Swordtails (24 inches)
4 Upside-Down catfish (12 inches)

15. 45 G Livebearers

15 Fancy Guppies (30 inches)
7 Peach Platys (14 inches)
6 Panda Cory Cats ( 12 inches)

16. 90 G Oscars

4 Red Oscars (56 inches)
1 Sailfin Pleco (15 inches)
4 Tinfoil Barbs (40 inches)


17. 80 G Discus Tank

5 Discus (40 inches)
12 Peppered Cory Cats (36 inches)
20 Neon Tetras (30 inches)



18. 70 G

3 Albino Severums (30 inches)
6 Jewel Cichlids (25 inches)
1 Bristlenose Pleco (6 inches)


19. 15 G

2 Dwarf Gourami (5 inches)
15 Endler's Livebearers (15 inches)
7 Cherry Shrimp


20. 1 G (Last one!)

NOTHING. Nothing will thrive in a 1 gallon tank other than algae, dust, and bacteria. Especially if it's unfiltered and unheated. Don't even bother trying.



Hope you enjoyed this ridiculously long post! More to come! Hopefully I'll update on a weekly basis. =)