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Thanks for the comments. Let me answer some questions.

Is that Texas Holey Rock? Yep - the two pieces on the left are texas holey rock, the rest is a rock called travertine, which is calcite-based. I got the holey rock on ebay, and the travertine at the LFS.

How many fish are in there? Right now I have 10 L. caeruleus, 6 P. acei, and 1 Aulonocara jacobfriebergi. And before anyone scolds me, yes, I know the Peacock prefers a higher protein than the vegetarian Acei. I feed them all Omega One veggie flakes and Hikari Cichlid Gold pellets. So yes, it's diet has probably less protein than it should, and yes I understand this so please no comments from the purists.

How do I differentiate the alpha male from the rest? Well, there a few big signs but also some subtle ones. The biggest factor is his appearance - he's the largest of my labs, has the best color, and has tremendous amounts of black on his fins. Subtle signs are behavioral, which include observations of dominance and courting. Check out the "Malawi Buddy Shot" - he's the 2nd lab down near the Acei and is in focus in that shot. You can also see a sub-dominant male below and to the right.

What are they staring at in the Malawi buddy shot? I'm not sure what they were doing there. They usually get all excited when I am up near the tank, and start swimming around all crazy and back-and-forth, presumably because they think they're getting fed. I think I just got lucky with that one and they all ended up facing that direction.

That's simply awesome, you have my envy.

The Labs will do fine a a 29 and the Acei are best suted for a 55.

Awesome photos! I know the trials of trying to get pics of an alpha male - it's been my life's mission to get a good pic of my male johannii, because I think he's about the most stunning fish alive . Problem is, being the alpha male, he's always swimming around chasing other fish away from his territory, he never sits still long enough to get a good shot!

Great colour on the labs, and a nicely aquascaped tank. I love how the fish are the real focus in a malawi tank!

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. - Oscar Wilde

nice pics, it looks so clean

im so stupid.. its FW. whats the minimum tank size for them?

ehhh is that FW or SW?
good looking tank though, your fishes look awsome (sis says they look hot )

How can you tell the difrence between the males and females? E yllows?

The alpha male is just plain.... er, stunning!

I did a brief photo session last night on my 75G Malawi. I took about 90 pics, and got a little over 20 decent ones, which was a lot more than I usually end up with. Here's a small set of them:

The Tank


My Alpha Male Lab - Isn't he beau-tee-ful?


Believe it or not, last night was the first time I've been able to get my alpha male on camera without him looking like a huge yellow blur!


Alpha Lab with my new Acei


Big Malawi Buddy Shot


Hello


Holding Female


Holding Female 2
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[span class="edited"][Edited by EdgarFanCLS 2004-06-16 11:56][/span]

Exellent photos, great setup.

just wondering but how do u diferentiate the alpha male from the other males? is he bigger and more colorful? any way very nice tank i love the photobooth...so many great pictures here

Not bad, I know that sand causes no end to metering nightmares when it comes to shooting the tank ... I like the "Big Malawi Buddy Shot" what were they all looking @


^_^

From pics I've seen I think one of the biggest indigenous plant species from the Rift Lakes are algal... The Rift Lakes are oligotrophic, which means they don't have a whole lot of nutrients, so I don't think they'd support very much plant life. I could be wrong, but that's my guess.

The alternative is more rocks. :%)

[span class="edited"][Edited by Shinigami 2004-06-16 14:38][/span]

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

*stares* It looks.. good...

With Malawi tanks, do people usually go with the sparse look? Not my thing, that's why I'm curious. I like to see plants, rocks, etc... ya know, fill it up.

"What are those rocks on the left? Texas Holey Rock?"

You took the words right out of my mouth.

How many Cichlids do you have in there?

[span class="edited"][Edited by T/A 2004-06-16 13:37][/span]

Gorgeous color on those Electric Yellows, Edgar.. It's almost enough to make me want to buy some cichlids

What are those rocks on the left? Texas Holey Rock?

[span class="edited"][Edited by Oleta 2004-06-15 23:37][/span]