Freshwater aquarium fish

[armorguy]

Hey Guys,

Got a quick question about adding new fish to my tank. I've had my 55 gallon setup going for a while now, and it's been running smoothly since the cycle finished.

Added 3 new fish about 6 days ago - a red zebra, cobalt blue, and a yellow lab. They're almost full grown, so I figured they'd be okay.

Been testing the water every day, and all levels look good. No spikes from introducing the new fish last week, so that's a plus.

Just did my first water change tonight - 10 gallons. Now I'm wondering if I should add more fish tomorrow. If so, how many should I add? If not, how much longer should I wait?

Thanks for the input.

[waveborn]

I think you're good to add 2-3 more fish a week, just keep a close eye on the water stats after you add them. Don't overfeed and you should be fine. The fish you already have are schooling fish and do better in groups, so you might want to consider adding a few more to each species. For example, a good ratio is 1 male to 3 females, so you could up those numbers a bit. Just a heads up, the red zebra and yellow labs might interbreed since they're similar colors, and the cobalt blues might do the same, which could be a problem long-term.

[armorguy]

I'm freaking out over here.

I just added 4 new cichlids tonight from the LFS.

Now my cobalt blue, which was one of the originals, has been super aggressive for the past 2 hours, chasing everyone nonstop and stressing them out. The other fish are all good, it's just this one being a problem.

I've got 7 fish in the tank now. Should I be worried and remove the cobalt blue? I don't have anywhere to put him except back to the LFS.

Is the aggression going to calm down or should I be really concerned?

My other option is to add more fish tomorrow, but I don't want to risk overstocking the tank and messing up the water balance too soon.

I need some advice, ASAP.

[waveborn]

Hey Guys,

Got a quick question about adding new fish to my tank. I've had my 55 gallon setup going for a while now, and it's been running smoothly since the cycle finished.

Added 3 new fish about 6 days ago - a red zebra, cobalt blue, and a yellow lab. They're almost full grown, so I figured they'd be okay.

Been testing the water every day, and all levels look good. No spikes from introducing the new fish last week, so that's a plus.

Just did my first water change tonight - 10 gallons. Now I'm wondering if I should add more fish tomorrow. If so, how many should I add? If not, how much longer should I wait?

Thanks for the input.

When adding new cichlids, you've got to expect a power struggle for dominance. I'm kicking myself for not warning you about this in my previous post. This is totally normal behavior.

What I usually do is perform a maintenance routine and completely rearrange the tank's layout while refilling it with water. At the same time, I introduce the new fish to the tank, which helps confuse the existing fish and blur the lines between their territories.

As long as the cobalt blue is just chasing the other fish and hasn't actually attacked anyone, I'd say leave it be for now. By tomorrow, you'll likely see some lingering aggression, but within 2-3 days, everything should settle down as the pecking order gets established. If you're concerned, you could also try keeping the lights off for a day or two to reduce stress.

If things escalate and you notice any actual damage, then it's time to intervene and segregate the aggressive fish. This kind of behavior is pretty common in African cichlid tanks, so it's up to you to decide when it's getting out of hand.

One thing I've learned is that blurring territories is a good way to go when introducing new, territorial fish. Confuse them into accepting each other, and you'll be fine.

Having a separate tank on hand is always a good idea when keeping mbuna, just in case things get out of hand. Even in established tanks, you can have a fish that just freaks out one day.

If you're looking for a quick fix, you could try doing a 50% water change and rearranging everything in the tank. This will give even the established fish a fresh start and help establish new territories. You can always put everything back the way it was a day or two later.