Compatible Malawis?

[valdega]

I have a 30 gallon tank with an electric blue hap/ahli cichlid (i dont think its a true ahli but thats what its referred to as). He's about 4.5-5 inches long. I know it might be a relatively small tank but its the only size that i have room for.

I've tried getting him a tank mate, a red zebra, and i introduced them the way i was instructed to at the store:
1. remove current fish from tank
2. re-arrange everything in the tank
3. put the new fish in
4. wait for about 10 minutes before putting the original fish back in.

At first my ahli was chasing the zebra around a bit. But then they seemed to get along well for a day or so. After 2 days i noticed that the red zebra had taken the ahli's original hang out and was coming out and chasing him whenefer he ventured near the zebra's side of the tank. I hoped it would subside, but after a few days my ahli was looking terrible; his fins were all torn up, his scales were scratched and white, and he was hiding behind a plant at the bottom of the tank. I decided enough was enough and gave te zebra to a local fish store.
The ahli is looking much better now. The scraping has cleared up from his sides and his dorsal fin is almost completely healed up.
What i need is a less aggressive fish to put in with him, something that wont be beating him up all the time. I'd really like to find a couple females of his species but i'm having such a hard time finding any that im beginning to suspect that they dont exist. does anyone have any ideas about what i can do? know where i can find female electric blue hap/ahli? is there anything at all that will coexist with him?

Thank you for your help.

[Fishguy2727]

I do not think you really have the room to be adding any fish. With him close to full grown it will be very hard to find any compatible species of adequate size. In addition, a 30 is bare minimum for a few small to medium Malawian cichlids, and with him being in there so long he knows it is his home and adding more will almost always result badly for the new fish.

[valdega]

the thing is, the new fish never get a scratch. its my original fish that is beat up :(

[Dixie]

It's still probably because the tank is to small. Labidochromis caeruleus or electric yellows, as they are sometimes called, are about the most mellow to mix with peacocks, from what I've read. I'm not familiar at all with haps though.

[Fishguy2727]

Ahlis are not peacocks. They are more aggressive and part of the open water piscivore group, not the peacock group.

[Dixie]

I know they aren't peacocks. The OP called it a hap and I said I wasn't familiar with haps. I was just trying to point out that yellow labs are more easy going than red zebras.