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The "Ultimate Shelldweller Tank" article? I should probably tell you ... there's been some suspicion about that project (photos were never posted, etc) and most people who've tried "higher levels" find that the shellies all move back down.


I didn't list the gorgeous shellies because you specified colony dwellers, but you could have a group (not colony) of basically any shelldweller you like in that size tank, unless you decide to buy a 1' adult male N/L callipterus.

-Molly
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Not half as likely as with guppies. Besides, you'll be paying attention, so I'm not too worried. Generally they'll slow down on breeding as the tank fills up, too.

-Molly
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isnt it possible for them to over populate the tank? i know guppies wont stop they just keep going and ive heard them to discrive how prolific these guys really are. wouldnt want to see the tank max out and crash on me.

Not a bad plan! Have fun with the cockatoos in the meantime, they're nice fish.

-Molly
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ooooooh a 125g with shellies. oh i bet thats gona be a sight to behold once its up and running ful blown soap opera lol. wish you the best of luck with it and again thanks a ton for all the help i really appreciate it.

the plan is at follows i think. im gona get a pair of apisto cacs and place them in a 29g i have now. ill take the proceeds from them to support a future shellie habit heheh. wont take long i have a few dozen fry sold allready and once i build a rep for quality they should go quickly around here.

Really really tons. You'll often hear about people who have in a ten gal 80+ multis of various sizes and ages. I'm not exactly recommending that, but they're a colonial fish - living practically on top of each other is what they do.

This is also true with similis. Especially once there are a number of them, aggression will be minimally noticeable. The main difference will be that you'll probably have to remove similis males, while most multi males will be tolerated in a large colony.

I can strongly recommend Neptune Aquatics for similis, but there are lots of other top-notch sources (though also a few bad ones - there's a guy on Aquabid right now selling "similis" with a photo of multis - I emailed him about it but he's, well, in denial, I suppose). The Cichlid-forum retailer review section can help you out. 'Fraid my fish are tied up - I won't have saleable multi fry for a few months and as I'm trying to create a thriving similis colony in my 125 I'm keeping all my fry. Good luck, though, they're worth a little trouble to find.

-Molly
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really tons? what about similis? you mentioned thier agression and ive read up on them now and beyond 20g tanks people stop giving info.

i was just worried i would only be able to have 5-6 in a 30 and i dont want that. i wanna watch a nice sized colony at its best. dont want agression ruining the effect if your following.

i think similis are the better looking of the 2.

LM thanks a ton for all this help, you have really helped alot on deciding what to do. this is deffinetly starting to sound like a great adventure heheh.

one last thing other then the question above. any recomendations on top notch breeders? that is of course you yourself dont ship out i know you take great care of your own fish so i wouldnt hesitate dealing with you at all



Last edited by Sin in Style at 22-Apr-2005 12:50

Goodness, a lot of them. I'd start with somewhere between six and ten, they'll multiply into - well, tons. Your job is just to keep the water changes up and make sure there are lots and lots and lots and lots of shells (none of this sissy "two or three per fish" stuff ).

Julies really don't hide that much, IME. They can be spooked but so can any fish.

-Molly
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ya im after the colony aspect. i deffinetly think thats cool and that out weighs pretty. i got a 75g for "pretty" and theres plenty of it. problem with pretty is they just look pretty all day lol.

How many Multis in a colony could i keep in a 30g? i think these are the route im going. they have the better temperment toward each other which means more in the tank with less issues in comparison to the similies.

i really like the juli trans idea too. i allways wanted some but i never wanted a tank of just them because they hide so much. the shellies would really pick up the slack with that i think.

hiya LM
i have an oppurtunity that has come to my attention and im not sure what to do and was hopeing you could lend a hand. i have a chance to rig up a 30g tank ( im trying to find a long ) for breeding. my original plan was Apisto cacs but ive also had shellies in mind for a while also. so i was curious what my options were with shellies in a 30g (possible long) as far as colonies go. i wanna be able to enjoy them along with breed.

right now the Apistos and shellies are the only 2 fish tempting me so im just looking for comparisons. ive researched apistos pretty heavily but unfortently i dont have a tang book to reference.luckily everyone in my shoes has you to fall back on hehe.

as far as water goes i have tang heaven. 7.6ph, 10ºdGH, 6ºdGH. another topic is money. im not looking to break the bank from breeding im just looking to break even and enjoy it.watching a nice colony and getting some fry out of the deal sounds like a mini soap opera im dieing to see heheh.

anyway a little expert insight would be greatly appreciated. im sure you dont wanna sit here for hrs on end typing info so links would be more then helpfull.

thanks for the help LM

Sin in Style

wow LM your not makeing this very easy lol. this is a tough call to say the least. my water woudl love shellies and the colony idea really grabs me. the fact i could give them a very suitable tank size to see everything they have to offer. and i could also get apisto cacs and put them in my 75g tank with out ill effects. so im really leaning toward shellies. so this begs the question lol which ones lol.

i know Neolamprologus similis are your favorite, atleast ive seen you say it on occasion. they kinda lack the "pretty" colors but make up for it in being less common. i hate being common lol. they are also more agressive which is a downside i think. i dont wanna be netting any beat up males.

on one of these links there was a 125g super tang tank lol in this tank they glued some shelving on the back wall to house more shells and more fish. could i do the same in a 30g and expect the same results? or is this researched for the larger tanks that allow room for multiple colonies to form?



Last edited by Sin in Style at 22-Apr-2005 09:23

They're fairly efficient ... but you could certainly get a good solid colony going and *then* add Julies.

-Molly
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oooh oooh a rock dweller....what about julis heheheh...oh they so coool. but that wouldnt work to well trying to breed would it. very eficient hunters

Last edited by Sin in Style at 22-Apr-2005 08:45

No, no, it's still very much worth getting, just you might as well think about either a rockdweller or perhaps some schooling non-Tang (dwarf Neon Rainbows, say) for the top levels. But the multis will be more than fascinating enough not to need anything in the upper levels to keep you watching the tank.

-Molly
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oh ya thanks for all the links lol. im sure ill be reading up all day about shellies and weighing out my options heheh.Thanks alot LM i knew you would be the one to see

not much i can do about the height thing. i cant seem to find a 30Long no where. next best thign was a 30 or a 40breeder and the breeder isnt gona fly. i couldnt even find a 30 breeder. figures the size i wanna play with has no other options.

Ooh, a 30. VERY nice shellie tank, although tall.

If you like colonial, there are few species better than N. multifasciatus. They're not the only colonial shellie but they're perfected it. You could have a quite siginificant multi colony in there (and quickly! ), and they're unbelievably fun fish, not to mention easy to get ahold of.
N. similis is a closely related species, and in some ways more attractive. They're slightly more aggressive (but in a large colony that'll be minimally noticeable, I suspect) but less common and therefore quite saleable, and a lovely and interesting fish all around.
Plenty of other species tolerate fry well, especially with 3' of space, so you don't necessarily have to stick with "the usual suspects" in terms of colonial behavior.

Great water!

Links:
http://www.shelldwellers.com
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/shelldweller_corner.php
http://www.finsout.com/words/articles.html
http://www.cichlidae.info/articles/a065.php
http://www.africancichlids.net/Tanganyika/Neolamprologus/N_multifasciatus/index.html
http://www.cichlidae.info/articles/a065.php
http://www.finsout.com/words/articles.html
http://www.fishinthe.net/html/section-viewarticle-10.html
http://www.uvm.edu/~jdion/fish/shelldwellers.html
http://www.gsas.org/Articles/1996/multi9606.html
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/n_multifasciatus.php
http://www.cichlidae.com/tanks/t016.php
http://www.finsout.com/fish/multiinfo.html
http://www.finsout.com/fish/similisinfo.html

Last edited by LittleMousling at 22-Apr-2005 08:36

-Molly
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