Cycle done and my new fish! - Pics

[f1oored]

After 3 long weeks of waiting, my tank has finally cycled. Today I checked the nitrites and got a zero so I did my 50% water change and headed to the LPS. My wife and I came home with 4 Yellow Labs.

I'm pleased to introduce you to Olde Yeller 1, Olde Yeller 2, Olde Yeller 3, and Bob.
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/f1oored/fish003.jpg

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/f1oored/fish006.jpg

The fishless cycle went perfect. The nitrites dropped very quickly from off the charts to zero in less than 2 days.

[Cichlid_Man]

You picked my favorite fish!
I have 4 yellow labs about that size also.
They are the coolest fish I have.
Calm....peaceful....

Good luck!

[Lady Hobbs]

Nice fish-nice tank-good job.

[kimmers318]

Nice pics...hubby has 2 in his 75, here is a pic of my favorite....
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/75%20mbuna%20tank/100_1083.jpg
She is so docile and striking in color and I love the way she frequently peeks out of decor.
The other one we have started out as yellow as yours (and the pic I posted) but has changed and is very dark with faint horizontal stripes showing at times. The yellow has almost been replaced with light black.

[f1oored]

These four seem to be sticking together almost like a schooling fish. The four of them are always close to each other like in both pictures. I'm guessing that once they grow a bit they will tend to be less close. This was probably my once chance to get a picture of them all at once.

I just fed them for the first time today and they are so much fun to watch. These are my first african cichlids and so far I am very happy. I'll probably get another 12 mbunas (not labs) over the next 3 weeks (groups of 4). My wife and I are considering the snow whites, kennyi, red zebras, and maybe golden cics. Any thoughts as to which ones I should add next? I think we are going to go with all female kennyi because we like the blue.

I'm glad I'm finally part of the malawi club.

[Lady Hobbs]

Love that picture Kimmers.

And Floored.......just which one is named Bob? LOL

What can go with Yellow Labs without a huge hassle? Another thing that I notice with Yellow Labs is that the female is as pretty as the male. In so many of the cichlid species, the female is often drab in color and not very pretty.

[f1oored]

Bob is the yellow one with the black on the top. From my understanding, just about any other mbuna can do well with the labs as long as the coloring isn't too similar. Fish that look alike tend to have problems from what I've read.

[Fishguy2727]

I also like the auratus and electric blue johanni, both are mbunas. What are you feeding?

Sounds like the color-shifting lab is most likely some sort of hybrid.

[Lady Hobbs]

http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/malmbuna.htm
Here's an informational link regarding mubunas, water readings, food, etc. Also lists the more aggressive and less aggressive of this species.

[f1oored]

Right now I have Topfin cichlid pellets and HBH spirulina soft pellets. I also have regular flake food and blood worms but those are mostly for my betta. I also have a veggie clip but nothing to put in it right now.

[Fishguy2727]

The HBH Super Soft is good from what I have heard. I would totally stop feeding the Top Fin though. Hikari has a food specifically for herbivorous cichlids, it's called Hikari Cichlid Excel. I would also seriously look into New Life Spectrum. Check out the testimonials on their site: http://nlpublish.com/fishfood/

[f1oored]

I haven't even opened the top fin yet. I'll take it back and get the Hikari. I can't seem to find NLS anywhere which is hard to believe because it is such a common recomendation. Thanks again for the advice.

BTW I'm going to start campaigning for you for December MOTM

[Fishguy2727]

I think there is at least one big place online that sells NLS. I can't remember where though. You can probably find places by going through sellers and their links on aquabid.com, I know I've seen it there.

[Cichlid_Man]

This is where I get New Life Spectrum for cichlids

www.fishsupply.com

[Hevydevy]

I have two yellow labs and they're great fun to watch.

It's funny though, the first week or so when it was just them and the rainbow shark they were VERY shy and would dart into their cave whenever I approached.

Since I've added more fish they don't seem too concerned anymore. Maybe they're just used to me.

But I agree, it's hilarious to see them pop into a hole and just poke their noses out every now and then to see what's happening.

Have to say my Red Jewel has a great personality as well. Always frolicing and when I go up to the tank he heads straight to where I am and looks at me. When I open the lid he swims to the surface to greet me (and hoping for food I assume).

Never knew how much personality fish can have.

[f1oored]

We just added more fish today. We got four red zebras and they seem to be mixing well with the labs. I hope we didn't add too many too fast. Since we did the fishless cycle we should be fine. Our bacteria levels should be able to handle 8 small fish. Anyhow I'll post some new pictures once I have time.

[Fishguy2727]

Go slow now. You may have been ready for 8 small fish when you were immediately done with the fishless cycle, but now your tank's good bacteria are populated to handle the fish you have now, not much more. You should be fine, but I'm just saying, their life cycle is about 36 hours if I remember right, so it doesn't take long for them to drop in population.

[f1oored]

36 hours! Wow! I'm cutting it close. Maybe too close. I'll keep an eye on the nitrites and ammonia for the next few days. I read that you should add cichlids in groups to reduce aggression. I was going to add four more in another week or so, is four too many to add at one time now that my bacteria are down?

As always, thanks for the advice.

[Fishguy2727]

I would still do 3 or 4 at a time. Just watch your ammonia and nitrites between additions to ensure you aren't throwing everythign off.

[kimmers318]

Not sure what is going on with the "color shifting" lab. Both were exactly like the pics f1oored posted, just one has changed as he matured. Hubby originally figured it had something to do with adult male/female coloration, but then saw the bright yellow with just the black top fin at a shop in Cleveland that breeds most of his own stock for sale and said they were male. I don't know if hubby ever researched further, and don't know if he even cares! Both are striking fish that get along well in the tank. Here is a pic of the darker lab, although it doesn't show "his" coloring that well, you can get an idea. I will have to work on a better pic, maybe even with the 2 together for comparison. It will be interesting to find out if one is hybrid.
http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h216/kimmers318/75%20mbuna%20tank/mbunafish2.jpg
You can see "him" just in front of the obviously bright yellow of "her". Sorry, the him/her thing just stuck and that is how I distinguish them. Will def. work on getting a closer clear shot of the 2 this week. Have another doctors appt today, and then promised the kids cookie baking time tonight so may be too busy.

[Hevydevy]

36 hours! Wow! I'm cutting it close. Maybe too close. I'll keep an eye on the nitrites and ammonia for the next few days. I read that you should add cichlids in groups to reduce aggression. I was going to add four more in another week or so, is four too many to add at one time now that my bacteria are down?

As always, thanks for the advice.

Yeah it's recommended to add no more than four at a time.

Even though your cycle has finished the tank is used to having no fish so once you add some it will affect the water.

I found the same last week when I added four fish and had a spike that night that seriously stressed my fish. I was lucky they all made it through. I'm actually going to cut it down to two at a time from now on.

Also, wait at least a week between adding fish each time to give your tank time to adjust.

[Fishguy2727]

Only adding two at a time can lead to the new guys being beaten up. You need enough so that the old ones can't focus on just one or two. I would still add three or four at a time. One thing you can do is feed heavily for a few days before adding new ones (this raises the bioload) and then once you do add, don't feed or feed just enough to keep them happy, this helps reduce their waste output.

[f1oored]

Increase the bio-load by feeding extra for a few days before adding the fish... thats pretty smart!

I got the hikari cichlid excell which is harder to find than NLS. Three of my local stores carry NLS and only 1 of 7 carries cichlid excell. Anyhow thank you for all of your help reptileguy.

Here are two more pictures.
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/f1oored/fishes011.jpg
This is Chunk, one of our new zebras. We call her that because she was/is missing a few chunks out of her fins. She was like this when we got her. Now she is the tank bully. She even bites me when I put my hand in to get the veg clips. I'll get video of that sometime, it's pretty funny.
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c45/f1oored/fishes017.jpg
This is a new family shot showing all 8 fish. Sorry these pictures aren't as great of quality as I would have liked.