# Dither Fish for Mbuna



## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

I've got a tank full of mbuna that are pretty jumpy, whenever I walk towards them they all freak out and run and hide. I was thinking about picking up some dither fish - not to curb aggression, but just to calm them down. ive read that getting a school of small, fast dithers would help it. that cichlids are smart if smaller fish don't sense any danger, then they wouldn't be so afraid. anyone have any experience in this?


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## Vancitycam (Oct 23, 2012)

Giant danios work


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## mollyb (May 18, 2010)

check your pH


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

pH is fine, it's at 8. they've always been jittery.


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## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

How big is the tank? How many fish? You can add more fish and overstock.. that seems to help.

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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

I've gotta 33g. I've got 30 fish...about 8 adults. The rest are juvies and babies.


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## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

Once the juvies and babies start getting bigger and the tank gets more crowded they should get less jittery. How often do you do water changes? 

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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

I used to be on top of it, doing wc's every week but now it's gotten to about once every 2.


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

it probably wouldn't help that i'm thinking about thinning out my stock. :lol: ive gotten fond of my OB fuelleborni and Ive been thinking for a while now about maybe selling/trading my red zebras and orange fuelleborni.


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## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

what you could try is removing all thier hiding spots for a while until they are used to you again.


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## Sidius (Mar 25, 2012)

I find with my african's the more hiding places they have the more secure they feel, in turn the more active/brave they are.. How many caves/hiding places? That's a lot of fish for a 33g footprint, what species?


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

yeah i did that too for a few months. I took out all the rock work and when I approach the tank....they all go buck wild and cuddle up in the corner. They'd calm down every now and then, but it was never consistent. As much as I don't want to bring in more fish into my tank....I think I'm gonna look around for some dithers, just as an experiment. Maybe someone on here might offer them for a cheap price?


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

I dunno how many hiding places/caves I have. I just stacked my rocks in different ways. The tank's a 36" footprint. I've got fuelleborni, red zebras, callianos pearls and two red empresses. I'll post a picture of my tank in a little bit, I'm having issues with photobucket.


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

Here we go.


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## Sidius (Mar 25, 2012)

Tank looks good.. The red empresses need a way larger tank. They'll get 9" .. The most likely culprit is that they don't feel safe in that footprint. Unfortunately, it's just too small for all those fish. That stocklist is meant for something with a 48x18 foot print.


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## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

Ive heard of people covering their tank with a blanket for a a certain period of time. I think it was for cardinal tetras. Might work with Africans. Read up on that and see if you can find some info.


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

@sidius thanks for all this info! yeah, hehehehe i got the red empresses just to get my feet wet with peacocks....i've never had anything else except mbuna. A member had a few, so i did an even trade for two. i figure by the time they get big...i'll have experience the colour change and give them away to a good home. they haven't changed yet...but one looks like he's starting to colour, just a little bit.i think the other's a female. 

@jbyoung i'll look into that, thanks!! how's your tank btw? you have an all male tank, right? i tried the opposite, all-female...well, i've only got three males in my tank - but all the aggression seems to be coming from the females. i guess it's like everyone's PMS'in in room. i remember you were selling your OB fuelleborni a while back. I've still got mine. Ive gotta new tank I'm looking to set up and I've been thinking about making it an OB fuelleborni tank maybe put in two blue males just to make a colony - hopefully i could get a marmalade cat out of it? heheheh! i could dream!


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## charles (Apr 21, 2010)

maybe I am too slow to response to this thread, but I think the best ditcher fish for mbuna = more mbuna.


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## Fish n Chips (Mar 30, 2011)

Acei are by far the best rift lake dithers. But your tank is too small to house a shoal of em plus what you have already.


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## -DC- (Apr 21, 2010)

The only thing that survives long term with mbuna are other Mbuna and even that can be tricky ! As they mature fish become much more bold and will stop being so timid. Be patient they will come around and will start begging for food. Many of my more dominate males actually attack me through the glass as i approach the tank lol. 
Young ones hide frequently. Any dither type fish will just get killed by mbuna, as will most hap's. I agree a nice school of acie will boost the activity, I've had success with some Victorian species. Lab species also tend to work, in larger groups they behave a lot like acie unfortunately the red zebras will likely disrupt this behavior chasing them back into hiding. 

With all that said, I'm sorry to say your tank is too small. Don't ad to it, you had the right idea in thinning out the stock. 

In a tank that size if you want to keep healthy active fish stick with the plan of picking one species, get 2 males and 4-6 females. That tank isn't big enough for more then one dominate male mbuna and it will only get worse as they get older, even females will really take a beating in a tank that size from time to time when the male gets worked up. Almost any mix you try in that tank will eventually end in deaths. Female aggression is also normal they don't tend to beat others to death like males though it's more just chasing from time to time. A single species with a dominate male will lessen this as well, a hierarchy will quickly form and the male will police and break up fights. 


If you want a mixed look stick with species who have high diversity fuelleborni are a good example, although they get quite large compared to other mbuna. Another option is wild type red zebras, the males of the wild type are blue. You could get a couple wild type males a mix of females between orange and OB's females, you could probably get away with mixing in a couple female yellow lab's the red zebra males will except them as their own. Although I know yellow lab's will work with red zebra males, be careful if you decide to try females of other species, I know lab's will cross with zebra so they don't get killed. Females of some species are VERY picky on who they mate with and a female who refuses a male is just as likely to get killed as another male in a tank that size.

Hope that help's, 

EDIT: I just wanted to add, Very nice setup! , I really like the look ! In time you might want to consider smooth river stones over rough one's. I've tried many types of rocks but It's really fascinating to watch Mbuna grazing on smooth stones, especially fuelleborni ! Also as they get larger and more mature fights become more intense, they will likely start bumping into stones during fights/chases and those rough edges can really cause damage. 


Devon


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## mikebike (Sep 8, 2010)

Thanks for the Excelent and informative reply Devon.


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## bingerz (Mar 3, 2011)

Hey DC!
Long time no see!! Thanks for the advice! I remember you showed me your yellow lab/red zebra mixes way back! How are those coming around? A few months ago, I told you that my female red zebra had mated with possibly my fuelleborni male. I never expected it. When I stripped her...there were darker brown and orange fry. I ended up dropping the fry in, survival of the fittest....and one of them is still alive. not as pretty as your mix, heehhehe!! he looks a little OB, he's not pretty though. (i wasn't meaning to have them mate btw, to others reading this post...don't wanna start a fight here) 

how long does it take for a fish to grow to adulthood? Does a female holding mean that they've reached adulthood? Is that a dumb question? Cuz human teens can become pregnant - they're not necessarily ADULTS. but that's another topic. how does it work for fish? i've had my older fuells for about 3 years already. i've seen their "uglies" bulge up (all females)...but does that mean they're adult? 

i've gotta 195 in the basement that i'm still in the works of putting together - just putting it together real real slowly. I had acei about 6 at one time...but they started dying one at a time...different reasons and i miss having them. I was thinking putting making that tank and OB fuel tank. ive noticed that with my females...they only chase each other around. I've only seen once them actually lock mouths, but that was early on when i just got them and they were little. 

ive originally had only the limestone in my tank and i would see them graze on that...or the walls of the tank. you know...not that i'm condone fighting...but you telling me that. i have something to look forward to. because, i guess they're not adult....cuz fights aren't intense. its just a little chasing.


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