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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

Cichlids. African vs American

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10 Sep 2007 08:30 #1 by ricko10 (jamie)
What are the pro's and con's of these different cichlid locations? What are the nicer fish and easiest to look after, and what are the more exotic fishfrom these locations?

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10 Sep 2007 11:25 #2 by apistodiscus (apistodiscus)
Replied by apistodiscus (apistodiscus) on topic Re:Cichlids. African vs American
Hi Jamie,
Central American cichlids grow grather large (for the most part) and require rather big tanks. They are prolific substrate spawners and thus need rather large territories and are quite aggressive. This is why they have fallen somewhat out of favour.

South American cichlids like Eartheaters (Geophagus) do have substrate and mouthbrooders in the genus. Not half as aggressive as their Central Ameican cousins.

African cichlids and I assume you were referring to Rift Valley cichlids like Malawis, require pretty much the same hard water as their Central American counterparts but require smaller territories since they are mouthbrooders and have a smaller number of offspring. To keep their aggression in check you will need to overstock the tank.

You could also go for dwarf cichlids like Apistogramma, Mikrogeophagus,Taenicara, Pelviachromis (kribs and their relations)need less space (there are excemptions to that rule, see Apistogramma diplotaenia) but are harder to keep due to their specific water requirements and nutritional requirements. Some are quite hardy like the krib but some should be left until you have at least some experience with dwarf cichlids.

And of course you still have a lot more species, like angels, discus, severums, Uaru, etc.

Have a look in what species you would be interested in and I am sure somebody on the forum will be able to give you a few pointers in the right direction

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10 Sep 2007 11:49 #3 by ricko10 (jamie)
I really am undecided. i have a spare 36 x 15 x 15 tank kicking around that i want to use for cichlids.i like the Apistogramma nijsseni, so if i can get some would like to stock around those. i know i would be limited to fish due to tank size so im just open to suggestions.

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10 Sep 2007 13:05 #4 by apistodiscus (apistodiscus)
Replied by apistodiscus (apistodiscus) on topic Re:Cichlids. African vs American
Good choice. Not very agressive for an Apistogramma and monogamous (rare in Apistos). You have enough space for a pair in your tank. Throw in a couple of dither fish, like Corydoras or even some killis. Avoid any fast swimming tetras if you are planning to breed them which isn't all that hard. Alternatively, you could go for Apistogramma panduro. Looks very much like a nijsseni but has a black spot in the caudal fin. The females look very much like A. nijsseni. BTW the picture in this montjs PFK shows an A. nijsseni male and a panduro female (not entirely sure about the female but sure look like a pandura since the black spot mid-body is quite small).
Anyway here is a male panduro www.aqua4you.de/inc/thumb.php?image=fisc...CHzWPa.jpg&w=200
this is a female
www.apistogramma.com/cms/images/stories/...es/a_panduro1581.jpg

a male nijsseni
www.apistogramma.com/cms/images/stories/...mages/a_nijsseni1570.

and a female
www.apistogramma.com/cms/images/stories/...s/a_nijsseni1571.jpg

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10 Sep 2007 13:16 #5 by ricko10 (jamie)
thanks holger,
would 1 pair be maximum stocking for a 3 foot tank?
and the next question is who has any?

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10 Sep 2007 14:01 #6 by serratus (Drew Latimer)
Hi we currently have nijsseni in stock, very nice fish, as well as agazzizi, cacatuoides, hongsloi and borelli.

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10 Sep 2007 16:19 #7 by apistodiscus (apistodiscus)
Replied by apistodiscus (apistodiscus) on topic Re:Cichlids. African vs American
@Jamie,
yep that's all that will go in a 3 foot tank. Apistos need a bit of space. If you went for one of the more polygamous species you could have one male plus 2-3 females. Apistogramma hongsloi are cracking fish if you get the red or blue morph.

Blue: tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:GkD22MEwCAQ...20hongsloi%2520M.jpg

red: tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:B2t_pXRE-Xr...apistogrammatorf0903

The red morphe is a bit of a freak form that came about when breeding in captivity. The females are bright red and black when they have eggs or young unlike the bright yellow and black that all other Apistogramma females exhibit.

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10 Sep 2007 21:04 #8 by Acara (Dave Walters)
One piece of advice given on this site,is you should match the fish to your water,not the water to your fish.I can vouch for this as I live with hard water,ideal for Africans,but I'm more interested in the Sth(& Central)Americans.I find it a bit of a hassle getting water in,I don't use ANY water from my tap,so can be a hassle alright.Having said that,I'm prepared to do it to be able to keep the fish I want.Worth bearing in mind.
I havnt kept any apistos(YET),but believe the acara family are easier to keep?I may be corrected here,just going on what I've read,not my own experience.
Aquatic Village have a good deal on the sheepshead acara(laetacara curviceps)at the moment,they are very easy to breed,a good starter.They also have some lovely laetacara dorsigera up there too.(if googling,a lot of sites still list them as aequidens,instead of laetacara)

Dave

always on the lookout for interesting corys.pm me if you know off any!

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11 Sep 2007 16:01 #9 by apistodiscus (apistodiscus)
Replied by apistodiscus (apistodiscus) on topic Re:Cichlids. African vs American
I agree, dorsigera are stunners but you can keep nijsseni within the same water parameteres as the dorsigeras, however you will have to get a group of them since they are hard to sex especially juvenile fish<br><br>Post edited by: apistodiscus, at: 2007/09/11 23:03

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