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What is the best foods for the following:............
(scientific names where I think there is more than one variety going by that common name)

Venustus
Hongi Island
Sunshine peacock/Chipoka (Aulonocara stuartgranti)
Rostratus
Red Empress (protomelas taeniolatus)
Electric Yellow (labidochromis caeruleus)
Maingano
Mpanga
Crimson tide (haven't been able to find anything online for this common name & don't know scientific name sorry)

Mainly vegetable based dried foods each day.
Blood worms once per week.
Cucumber/zucchini once per week. <========== is this a good regimen? Suggestions???

Would they like algae wafers? Or are they mainly for plecos?

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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

My Yellow Labs eat the algae waffers.

Most fish will practically anything. I did say "most".

It is extremly important to give a very good variety and rotate it each day. Dont be afraid to try some thing different. Think about what they would eat in the wild, and their location.

Have a look in My Profile at the foods I have used over the years. After been a fisherman for too many years nothing would supprise me what fish eat, from smokers buts, to flowers and leaves.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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MAIN QUESTION: vegetable/protein ratio

I want to know if they should be on a mainly vegetable diet with little protein. Or should I up the protein?

I do vary the diet (spirulina flakes, blood worms, pellets, fresh cucumber/zucchini). I know the importance of lots of vegetables and the possible link with high protein and HITH disease.

Would just like to know from others with africans what will make my guys healthy and colour up nicely.

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Thanks K, I know most fish will eat almost anything but I do as you say and try to mimic their wild diet if poss (ie, not keen on giving tomato, pumpkin, cheese etc since it is not like plants they would eat in the wild). I took a look at your profile but it doesn't look like you have an African setup.
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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

My fish are happy with anything they can get their lips on. I rotate flakes and pellets...but they like the flakes better. Sometimes some blood worms or shrimp pellets. They fish will look healthier with a varied diet...making sure not to give treats as full meals, only as suppliments. Doing so, you'll have some very happy fishies!

I've got a fever... and the only prescription... is more cowbell!

I would stay away from blood worms as pure protein will most likely cause malawi bloat. For protein, i would go for a shrimp/vege mix with vegetables making 70% of the mixture, and thats only once a week. In wild, algea makes the largest portion of their food, so algea wafers should be great.
Finely sliced Cucumber/zucchini is appreciated.

Great stuff... Thanks for that.

Might get the eQuarium algae wafers. Has anyone with mbuna's fed their guys these? Don't want to buy 1kg and have my kids turn up their nose. Could swap the algae wafers with another forumite for rocks if this happens.


Any more Mbuna owners with menu tips ???

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~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

I've got several types of African lake cichlids and a few are the same as yours (Venustus, Aulonocara & Protomelas).

I've been repeatedly warned to NEVER feed mbunas bloodworm so I don't buy it any more.

My pigs love Aquarian Tropical flake, cucumber, frozen daphnia, frozen mysis shrimp and a red crumb/spirulina mix that we blend into pellets.

They also love Hikari sinking algae pellets but I've run out and they're banned from import in the UK at the moment.


For the red crumb and loads of other top quality dried foods I highly recommend you look on:
http://www.ta-aquaculture.co.uk/

They ship worldwide, are very cheap and have an agent in Australia.

We also use the small sized (grade 3) red crumb for all our fry and they love and thrive on it.

get a product called New Life Spectrum(NLS)its made specifically for African cichlids, I think you can purchse it online if you LFS doesent have it. You can also try Dainichi products that also makes food specifically for african cichlids http://www.dainichi.com/cichlid_food_ultima.html that works very well. Algae wafers will rarely get touch after using these, I use both and occasional flakes plus they like cucumber and lettuce.There are also a number of prepared foods you can make if you want to go through the trouble.

By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.
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I happen to have become a philosopher

I checked out the website that 'wiseives' recommends and I don't think much of it.
There's nowhere on the site that even suggests that they post anywhere that isn't the USA or one of their 'colonies'??
They also seem very obsessed with colour enhancement....

lol, thats cool but Ijust vouch for it, & the better product that is most recommended by most avid Mbuna keepers is the NLS (new life spectrum),at least from my limited experience in the past year. There's a site called Malawi Mayhem that is mostly geared to african cichlids & you could find alot more of info or advice when it comes to them. Hope its OK to mention the site, but take a look at it.

By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher.
Socrates-
I happen to have become a philosopher