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I've been thinking about changing my tanks, and I'm playing with the idea of starting a cichlid tank. My problem is that the tank that I would free up is only a 63 litre (measurements 60cm x 30cm x 35cm) so it isn't a very big tank. Would it be possible to convert this into a cichlid tank with their need for territories? I'm quite interested in Julidochromis transcriptus, would this fit in the tank? Are there any other compatible tank mates that would fit in? Any other hints and tips on tank set up or workable stockings would be gratefully received.

I think you could do one J. transcriptus with rocks on one side of the tank and a pair of N. brevis with a few shells and some sand on the other side of the tank.

I do think the tank is too small for a pair of transcriptus or really any other shellies (other than brevis) in with a single transcriptus.

Eric

If you're going for African cichlids you'd only really be able to have a colony of shellies in a tank that size, either Brevis or Multifasciatus, I don't think a Julidochromis transcriptus would settle well and it'd be too small for a pair of them.

If you go with having Shellies all you'd need would be some sand as a substrate about 1-2 inches deep and a few piles of shells and then just leave them to it.

Where in the UK are you as I know a few people that breed and sell good quality Shellies?

Read up about shellies. I just got a multi tank going.

Shellies are so interesting and the environment that makes them happiest (as 'cichlid crazy' describes in 2nd last para) makes for a tank decor that looks STUNNING

Some members were kind enough to post some pix in this thread
http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/threads/3544.1.htm?0.6496867#275507


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

Thanks for the help - I think I knew that my tank would be too small, but I love the idea of the shellies (great link by the way, Wish-ga).

Right, I'm going to do some research, and then work out if I can free up my second tank.

Thanks a lot and expect more questions in the coming weeks about shellies!!!

I would LOVE someone to chat to about shellies.

i only stocked mine a few days ago so we would be both setting up new tanks about the same time

Good luck with your research.

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

Glad you're going with the shellies - they are great fun and some types have some serious bottle - ie: Occelatus - anyone whos ever kept them will tell you they are so funny and squabble continuously amongst themselves and talk about attacking anything that goes into the tank........

Still trying to work out the logistics of the changes that I need to make to free up the 2nd tank for some shellies. I just wondered, should I keep it as a species tank or are there any that would be suitable for a community of shellies?

Most of the Shellies already mentioned will live as a single colony they just bicker & squabble like an old married couple or young children

Being a tiny tank you would not get away with 2 different species.

These guys are so amazing that a single species is enough to keep my interest. .... don't worry about trying to do a mix.

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

I'm going to slip back in here and say that a pair of N. brevis and a single J. transcriptus (or dickfeldi or ornatus) would work in your tank.

Here's an article I wrote on brevis: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/n_brevis.php

Brevis are not truly colonial in nature - they're pair bonding cichlids. Also, they are much more fun with other fish in the tank because of the male's territorial display (they have teeny, tiny territories).

Eric

I stand corrected on Brevis behaviour - like I said I only have 1 pair so I'm not an expert on them.
Excellent article /:'

Thanks! I like all shellies, but have a particular fondness for brevis because they're such oddballs in the shell dweller world (I also really like multis - little bulldozing wolves with fins - the ultimate colonial fish IMHO).

Another neat thing about brevis is they are soooo easy to sex and at the LFS if they have shells the pair will dive into the same shell so you can easily buy a pair by plucking out the shell.

Eric

All this talk of shellies has gotten me really interested in these guys! I would love to have a tank of them, but I looked all over Reno today and couldn't find any really good specimens. The best one I saw was a Lemon Cichlid, or Neolamprologus leleupi. It was just one fish alone in the tank though. Would the fish be ok living on its own like that? If i ever found mate would I be able to introduce the two or would they fight too much? The LFS had a few other kinds, but I really didn't think they looked as interesting as the lemon! They also didn't clearly separate them so that I could tell which species they were that were in there. I am not in a rush to get this fish though, so should I not get a Lemon at all? I'd buy a tank specifically for the shellies, hopefully a 20 gallon. I'd love to hear any feedback on the idea though! The more I read about shellies, the more I love their behavior and want one!

The pottery that growls!

Leleupi are nasty buggers...they do very well by themselves. If you had a pair, they can be rough with each other so at least a 20 long with lots of hiding spots for a pair. They also really like shellies...but not in a good way if you like shellies!

What were the other fish in there? Any chance they were N. caudopunctatus? They're fairly common (for Tangs which are rare)...a whitish fish with a bit of yellow on the fins. If they were, they're very cool fish. They can be shellies, but some prefer rocks - offer both and let them choose. They also are very active for shellies and patrol the tank and form nice colonies...all in all a very nice fish even if at first glance they're not much to look at.

Eric

That may be good if it could live happily by itself! The mixed shellies at the LFS were tiny. They were mixed in with non-shellies too, so it was really confusing as to what was what. There were small striped fish and a pale brownish greyish one that looked like it was stuck head first inside of a shell.

I really should have asked if they were getting any more shellies in soon I guess. The few in that tank weren't exactly impressive. That Leleupi was way across town at a Petco, but was really the best looking fish I saw. What size tank would it need? Maybe I will keep checking on it to see if it is still there and find out if my LFS gets shellies in often.

The pottery that growls!

Unfortunately, I'm going to have to abandon this idea for now I had planned to move all of the current inhabitants of this small tank into my bigger tank. However as you might have spotted in another thread my Kribs have just started breeding and I didn't realise just how vicious the male would get in defending his fry. I think it's best that no-one moves for the time being, I don't think they'd survive in with the Kribs.

Thanks for all the advice though, it's definitely an idea to keep in mind for the future. Perhaps I could get a 3rd tank if I could just find somewhere to put it............

I'm sorry you have to abandon your tank, waldena. Breeding kribs is pretty exciting though! Once the babies are old enough, then you can start on your shelly tank maybe!

The pottery that growls!