why are tanganyikans so hard to get, malawis are so easy even most of the dwarf, south american and central american cichlids but it seems near impossible to get any lfs to stock tanganyikans... does anyone know of a good tanganyikan stockist around munster the only one i know of in the west of ireland is aquapaws in Barna and while they do a great stock of all types of cichlid, there has to be another source i could look at but have to be good quality fish, i've got used to the high standards at aquapaws
Seamus

why are tanganyikans so hard to get, malawis are so easy even most of the dwarf, south american and central american cichlids but it seems near impossible to get any lfs to stock tanganyikans

Seamus,

It's, Im afraid, a case of 'horses for courses' here.
Shops stock Malawis because they can sell them the best...they are reluctant to get in stock fish which they will not be able to readily sell - believe me I wish more of the less-common Cichlids were available - especially in North Munster - but they aren't, end of story.
Come to think of it I just wish there were some LFSs in North Munster at all !!!
There is the shop you mention, I agree - but that's in Connaught, and the best part of 1-1/2 hours away from me here (at the speed I drive anyhow, not to mention the pipe-laying STILL going on at Craughwell)...

John

I agree with John. I say it's just down to demand. There are a lot more Malawi keepers than Tanganyikan.

Bit of a catch 22 here i'm positive if they where brought in they would sell very well yet because they are not regularly asked for they are not ordered.. a lot of fishkeepers i know dont keep them because no one supplies them and when they do its glenkragg who supplies them and then you might only get the odd julie, brichardi, frontosa or tropheus if your very lucky and then when you order them from glenkragg they dont arrive.. typical
Seamus

what are yr looking for guys? i work in a shop in waterford and i know of one other in New Ross which usually has a decent choice. Can you not ask your local shop to order them?

The problem is that because they are not frequently kept, they are not bred in such high numbers as many of the Malawi standards, this gives them a higher price tag, some common tanganyikans still come at absurdly high prices. I myself stock Tropheus Moori and Duboisi, Julidochromis, Brichardis, Lelupis, Frontosa and others but find that they are slow sellers. A few decades ago Malawi fish were very expensive but because of such a high demand they were bred in higher numbers in captivity, therefore lowering the price. If more people asked me for Tanganyikans I would stock more, but as it stands in the past 6 months say, I've been asked maybe 3 times. I still stock them in the hope people will come round to them, but not in any high degree, I have 2 small tanks dedicated to young Tanganyikans and about 15 dedicated to Malawi. If people show the pet shops and aquatic centers a healthy interest in Tanganyikans then they would be a lot more common and the price tag would drop significantly.

Hi Trimax and Yellow, great to hear of others stocking Tanganyikans, where are ye're shops must pay a visit if i can... can you pm me your fish in stock
Seamus

there will be tangs available very soon in shops around ireland there is something in the pipe line and this is not glen krag supplied fish,

Cheers Ger,

Great news pls keep me informed, changed 2 aquariums now to tangs and ordered a big one for frontosa, so looking for quality stock nit the GlenKrapp, whoops Glenkragg idea of quality..
Seamus

sheag35 wrote:
Hi Trimax and Yellow, great to hear of others stocking Tanganyikans, where are ye're shops must pay a visit if i can... can you pm me your fish in stock
Seamus

Petmania Santry, take the Ballymun exit off the M50 coming North, first left turn. Drop in anytime we're open late thursday and friday, mention the ITFS and i'll look after ya. oh and my names Jim. At the moment we have several hard to get tropheus Moori varieties and Tropheus Duboisi. We also have Julidochromis Transcriptus, Frontosa (Juviniles going cheap), and are due in Lelupis, Brichardis and some more rarer fish in the pipeline.
We get about 3000 fish in every friday. Check the Petmania section under the sponsers part of the forum for fish list, have to post a new one soon that ones quite old but it gives you an idea of whats here.