Creating a Central American Cichlid tank - V

by John and George Reclos

No matter how well you have washed your sand, it is never well enough. This is how the tank looked after we finished. Hardly what we hoped for.. A matured internal filter (950 liters / hour) which had been running for a couple of months in another tank was added.

After 6 hours most of the dust has settled and the actual aquascape is now visible and the fish were added. We stayed there for not less than 6 hours to make sure that the two Parachromis managuensis would still be two and that the bogwood formation could be used by the smaller one effectively. Needless to say the smaller one was added first, allowed to search the tank for a couple of hours and then we added the larger one. You can also see the large Glycopterichthys gibbiceps (almost 25 cm) which was added as an algae eater. Initially, the catfish was largely ignored by the cichlids. Unfortunately, the two P.managuensis tried to spawn after some days and the catfish had to be urgently removed with half its tail and dorsal fin torn to pieces. The large P.managuensis even grabbed the catfish by the dorsal fin and knocked it all over the tank. The damage done to the catfish in just an hour was tremendous. The fish recovered completely in a couple of weeks in the large Malawi tank. As you can see the matured internal filter is still in its place.

After a couple of months the water was becoming less "yellow" from the stuff released from the bogwood. Still the tank needed two 30% water changes per week. The internal filter was now removed since the two remaining filters were supposed to have enough bacteria to keep the tank going. This photo shows the tank just before a programmed water change. As you can see in the left corner, the tank is already partially redecorated by the inhabitants. A large amount of sand was removed from the center and piled in the left corner since the female decided to make its spawning pit next to the stone. It is worthy to note that if the bogwood formation was not glued together and on the filter it would have fallen apart many times. Those cichlids have a tremendous power..

A view of the tank immediately after a water change. If you compare the color of the water you can see how much stuff is released from the bogwood (already two months in there) in just three days. Don't ask where the cichlids are. During water changes they both retreat to their favorite spots. One under the internal filter (the large one) and the other one among the bogwoord pieces. Their names ? Silvestre and Barbaro (ferocious and wild respectively, in Portuguese).

A toothy grin by Barbaro. Or is it Silvestre ? Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder... Photo of the larger (female ?) Parachromis managuensis.