n. brichardi tank mates

[Trevor]

I have reserved 5 n. brichardi at my lfs and bought a new 60 cm tank for
them that at a rough guess will be holding a bit less than 50 litres after
rocks have been added.

A book I have and other internet literature suggests a 60 cm tank is ok. I
am buying all 5 in the hopes of improving the chances of getting at least
a mating pair. Hopefully a trio or quartet (1 m 2/3 f).

My water is alkaline out the tap (ph8+) but needs buffering which to
maintain that ph to which end I will be adding coral fragments to the
substrate (silica sand)

Any suggestions for tank mates, lets say assuming I end up keeping 3
brichardi. Tangynikans seem to be hard to come by in the trade in South
Africa and this is the first time I have seen brichardi in the shops I
frequent, so finding suitable Tangykikan tank mates might be difficult. I
have seen some Julies once so are there any that would be compatible. I am
not really intending to keep any plants with the exception of an anubias
nan or two if that is and perhaps some java moss.

Any non Tangynikans that are appropriate. I mainly want to see the
brichardis breed So I guess I would be happy to keep a species tank (also
considering that it is not a huge tank) but variety is the spice of life.....

Thanks

Trev

[MarAzul]

Midposted..

Post by Trevor
I have reserved 5 n. brichardi at my lfs and bought a new 60 cm tank for
them that at a rough guess will be holding a bit less than 50 litres after
rocks have been added.
A book I have and other internet literature suggests a 60 cm tank is ok. I
am buying all 5 in the hopes of improving the chances of getting at least
a mating pair. Hopefully a trio or quartet (1 m 2/3 f).

A trio is highly unlikely as the brichardi is a monogamous cichlid. And a 50
litre tank is only 15 US galons (unless my conversions wrong). This fish
needs at least twice that.
Brichardi's spawning can kill off any other tankmates, so generally a
species tank is recommended.

http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/Fishindx/nbrichar.htm

http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/other/neolamprologus_brichardi_rutunga_burundi.html

http://www.africancichlids.net/Tanganyika/Neolamprologus/N_brichardi/

Mar
--------------------------------------------------
If the poodle got loose, I figured I could take it. I was armed.
- Laurell K. Hamilton from the Anita Blake series

Post by Trevor
Any suggestions for tank mates, lets say assuming I end up keeping 3
brichardi. Tangynikans seem to be hard to come by in the trade in South
Africa and this is the first time I have seen brichardi in the shops I
frequent, so finding suitable Tangykikan tank mates might be difficult. I
have seen some Julies once so are there any that would be compatible. I am
not really intending to keep any plants with the exception of an anubias
nan or two if that is and perhaps some java moss.
Any non Tangynikans that are appropriate. I mainly want to see the
brichardis breed So I guess I would be happy to keep a species tank (also
considering that it is not a huge tank) but variety is the spice of life.....
Thanks
Trev

[Happy'Cam'per]

Marazul, indeed you are correct. to the OP. I have a 3 foot Tanganyika
setup, 1 N. Brichardi, 4 N. Multi's and 2 N. Brevis. They all get along
famously. 5 N. Brics in a 60cm tank will be disaster, too much aggression!
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

Post by MarAzul
Midposted..

Post by Trevor
I have reserved 5 n. brichardi at my lfs and bought a new 60 cm tank for
them that at a rough guess will be holding a bit less than 50 litres after
rocks have been added.
A book I have and other internet literature suggests a 60 cm tank is ok. I
am buying all 5 in the hopes of improving the chances of getting at least
a mating pair. Hopefully a trio or quartet (1 m 2/3 f).

A trio is highly unlikely as the brichardi is a monogamous cichlid. And a 50
litre tank is only 15 US galons (unless my conversions wrong). This fish
needs at least twice that.
Brichardi's spawning can kill off any other tankmates, so generally a
species tank is recommended.
http://www.thetropicaltank.co.uk/Fishindx/nbrichar.htm

http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/other/neolamprologus_brichardi_rutunga_
burundi.html

Post by MarAzul
http://www.africancichlids.net/Tanganyika/Neolamprologus/N_brichardi/
Mar
--------------------------------------------------
If the poodle got loose, I figured I could take it. I was armed.
- Laurell K. Hamilton from the Anita Blake series

Post by Trevor
Any suggestions for tank mates, lets say assuming I end up keeping 3
brichardi. Tangynikans seem to be hard to come by in the trade in South
Africa and this is the first time I have seen brichardi in the shops I
frequent, so finding suitable Tangykikan tank mates might be difficult. I
have seen some Julies once so are there any that would be compatible. I am
not really intending to keep any plants with the exception of an anubias
nan or two if that is and perhaps some java moss.
Any non Tangynikans that are appropriate. I mainly want to see the
brichardis breed So I guess I would be happy to keep a species tank (also
considering that it is not a huge tank) but variety is the spice of

life.....

Post by Trevor
Thanks
Trev

[Trevor]

Post by Happy'Cam'per
Marazul, indeed you are correct. to the OP. I have a 3 foot Tanganyika
setup, 1 N. Brichardi, 4 N. Multi's and 2 N. Brevis. They all get along
famously. 5 N. Brics in a 60cm tank will be disaster, too much aggression!
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

This is exactly why I posted my question. The fish I am wanting to buy
(have not purchased them yet!) are juvenile. I wanted 5 to be sure of
getting a mating pair, as what I really want is to see them reproduce. I
guess I would be very happy with 2 in the tank with their fry. I will keep
all 5 till they match up or outgrow the tank.

So would a pair in a 2 foot tank be alright? Would it be possible to get
some other tankmate/s in that setup?

How would a community of 5 do in a 3 foot tank? Obviously with enought
caves/hiding spaces.

Two books I have consulted have suggested a 2 foot tank - but then
again they never specified just a pair or any number in fact.

I have a 3 foot with just a pleco that I am wanting to move to my Oscar
tank - which means I will now definately get rid of the two malawis that
are in the oscar tank. Pity as they are lovely fish - I just do not have
the space for another suitably sized fish.

Trev

[Happy'Cam'per]

MIDPOSTED

Post by Trevor
This is exactly why I posted my question. The fish I am wanting to buy
(have not purchased them yet!) are juvenile. I wanted 5 to be sure of
getting a mating pair, as what I really want is to see them reproduce. I
guess I would be very happy with 2 in the tank with their fry. I will keep
all 5 till they match up or outgrow the tank.

I see :)
If they're juveniles you'll get away with it for a while. Only one pair, as
you say, can be kept in this 2 footer, but not indefinitely.

Post by Trevor
So would a pair in a 2 foot tank be alright? Would it be possible to get
some other tankmate/s in that setup?

N. Brichardi will most definitely spawn for you in this tank if the water
chemistry is to their liking. Around this time they are HIGHLY aggressive
and anything that threatens the fry will be attacked. A 2 foot tank would be
considered way to small a territory for any tankmates to be introduced. Once
N. Brichardi fry have grown up a bit they are notorious for also helping
defend the territory and new generations of fry. Kind of like one huge
aggressive, possesive family ;) So you can see that it would just be cruel
for any tankmates in a 2 footer!

Post by Trevor
How would a community of 5 do in a 3 foot tank? Obviously with enought
caves/hiding spaces.

I would'nt do it. Your fish will be constantly bickering. Just stay with the
mated pair in this tank. You could introduce some other fish too. Possibly
some of the julies: Marlieri, Dickfeldi etc...

Post by Trevor
Two books I have consulted have suggested a 2 foot tank - but then
again they never specified just a pair or any number in fact.

Probably just a pair. Ideally the tank should be bigger than 3 foot! IMHO :o

Post by Trevor
I have a 3 foot with just a pleco that I am wanting to move to my Oscar
tank - which means I will now definately get rid of the two malawis that
are in the oscar tank. Pity as they are lovely fish - I just do not have
the space for another suitably sized fish.

You have Malawis with Oscars?
Think small fish, generally alot of the Tanganyikans are small fish. Instead
of getting N.Brichardi why don't you introduce some shell dwellers. You can
setup loads of shells on either side of the 3 foot tank. Put 2 different
species of shell dwellers in the tank with a pair of Julies (Ornatus is
peaceful). This is a low aggression setup and most entertaining, and besides
shell dweller fry can be sold for much more than N. Brichardi can!!! lol
Good luck...
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

[Mean_Chlorine]

"Happy'Cam'per" <***@c.c.c> wrote in message news:<cbghun$6ud$***@ctb-nnrp2.saix.net>...

As noone seems to have mentioned it... N. brichardi, like N.
multifasciatus, forms colonies with joint defence. Once you get a
breeding pair, the aquarium will fill up with offspring - which are
tolerated by the alpha-pair.
The bond in the colony isn't as tight as with multifasciatus (IME),
and their communal defence not as effective, but you'll still likely
end up with 20+ brichardis coexisting in that 3' tank.
I'm told colonies in nature can consist of hundreds of brichardis.

That's also the reason brichardis have a bit of a bad rep - they're
not really very aggressive, as tanganyikans go, but their continuously
increasing numbers mean they tend to "take over". With a bit of
intelligent rockscaping you can keep the original pair with e.g
julidochromis in a 3' tank just fine, but as time progresses odds will
shift, and eventually it'll be one pair of julies against the joint
efforts of perhaps 20 brichardis.

Keeping their numbers down is easier said than done, too.

Personally I feel that they form colonies with communal defence and
care of the fry, which AFAIK no cichlid outside Tanganyika does, is
terribly interesting behaviour, but it does make them a bit
troublesome in smallish aquaria.

[Happy'Cam'per]

"Mean_Chlorine" <***@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message news:***@posting.google.com...

Hi Mean_Chlorine

Nicely said and I completely agree with you. As I was reading your post I
thought of another way to possibly keep the N. Bric numbers under control:
Perhaps adding a predator like a Calvus or Compressiceps might help?

FWIW, You seem to know your Tanganyikans, did your Multi's breed readily for
you in the community tank or did you separate them to a breeding tank? How
many fry did a mated pair produce? What were you feeding them?
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

[Mean_Chlorine]

Post by Happy'Cam'per
Nicely said and I completely agree with you. As I was reading your post I
Perhaps adding a predator like a Calvus or Compressiceps might help?

Possibly. I've not tried. I know people have used that approach to
limit the numbers of multis in a tank.

Post by Happy'Cam'per
FWIW, You seem to know your Tanganyikans, did your Multi's breed readily for
you in the community tank or did you separate them to a breeding tank? How
many fry did a mated pair produce? What were you feeding them?

1) Yes, they bred readily, although not as prolifically as brichardis.
There were seemingly always little fry scurrying around among the
shells, and the colony steadily grew in size.
2) I have no idea. I got the impression they didn't produce that many
fry per batch. Still, after a year four had become 17 adult multis,
and they'd taken over the 45g tank, killing off the various other fish
one by one, and built a large and rather unsightly complex of
interconnected spawning pits.
3) Nothing special - shrimp mix, various live and frozen foods,
flake... Neither multis nor brichardis are particularly demanding
fish.

Multis are without doubt the most interesting fish I've ever kept, and
they're beautiful in their way, but their digging rivals even that of
convict cichlids. And don't let their size fool you - they're
unyielding fish, tough as nails.

[Trevor]

Thanks for all the advice.

I am going to keep the two foot tank (It has been customized for me - and
I made the lfs change the customization as it was not to my liking so I
feel I can;t take it back!) and turn it into a small community tank.

I will use my nearly empty 3 foot tank to house the 5 brichardi. Funny how
when you first notice something you tend to see it everywhere. I called
another lfs and they have brichardi and today I Went to a breeder I had
not been to before and he a tank full of the buggers. SO I bought three
from him and will buy two of the 5 I reserved (diversifying the gene pool
a bit!) and stick them in the 3 foot. When I am sure of a mating pair the
others will be returned and I will look for some other compatible
Tanganyikans (as per some of the posts to round off the community.

I am glad I asked first!

Guess I could have avoided the Malawis/Oscar situation if I had asked
first. In fact the Malawis were a bit of an impulse buy and I did not have
another tank. There does not actually seem to be any problems - the
malawis (peacocks) get on fine.

Trev

[Happy'Cam'per]

Thanks for the reply M_C
Much appreciated :)

--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

[Happy'Cam'per]

Hey Trevor

I see you're from South Africa....ME TOO...DOH
Where exactly are you?
I know a few good places in JHB that sell Tanganyikans. Send me your address
and we can keep in touch!
--
**So long, and thanks for all the fish!**

[Trevor]

Post by Happy'Cam'per
Hey Trevor
I see you're from South Africa....ME TOO...DOH Where exactly are you?
I know a few good places in JHB that sell Tanganyikans. Send me your
address and we can keep in touch!

Hiya Camper

From Cape Town

email me on thereaperman69Spam at yahoo dot spamcom

do the usual to get the real address!

trev