Choosing Rocks for My Cichlid Tank

One the earliest versions of my Lake Malawi tank consisted of piling rocks on top one another to create the natural environment that the Mbunas enjoy in order to keep aggression and stress levels down. Just take a sweep across Youtube, and you'll see slews of videos where owners of African Cichlids pile rocks on top of rocks like its the only rule for owning these species. And quite honestly, I was never a big fan of that particular style, just having a giant pile of rocks in the middle of my tank seemed very simplistic and lacked any kind of cosmetic appeal to a hobby that is all about creating the touch and feel of a world that is just as beautiful as it is mysterious.

So after a few weeks of the status quo rock pile in my tank, I had had enough of it and headed down to Home Depot to see what more I could do other than using the river rocks found in the field next to my house. One of the things that frustrated me most was that there was no uniformity to the rocks I was using, thus any structure I tried to build either wasn't stable, or lacked any style. It was a situation where I would always tell myself that this is the best I can do, and settled for that.


So my trip to the Home Depot was an attempt to find some rock structures that allowed for a bit of uniformity and style, while also keeping in mind what was the best possible dwelling structure for my Cichlids. And thus, I noticed these simple yellow/tannish colored stepping stones in the outdoor section of HD. I was able to use these stepping stones as caps on top of my rocks to give the dwelling stability, as well as a nice look, almost as if it's a long lost underwater civilization that had been flooded over. The color themselves blended well with the environment, as even the slightest growth of algae gave the caves a more defined look and feel. My Pleco especial loved the flat surface to graze off, and my Cichlids never hesitated one bit from these dwellings. Bottom line: I think they look a whole lot better than a pile of rocks that looks as if a 5 year put together.


The rocks were very cheap, (granted not as cheap as the free river rocks I found) about 75 cents a piece, and because they are a relatively good size in diameter, I didnt have to buy a whole lot. Quiet honestly, my entire cave dwelling cost me under 10 dollars, not too bad.

YoYo Loaches Are My Saviors

For the longest time I had difficulty trying to decide what bottom feeders would work well with my African Cichlids. I initially tried a few Cory Cats, but soon found that all there fins were getting shredded by the very aggressive Cichlids. Then I had read that Clown Loaches could work with Cichlids, as they are a fairly peaceful fish, but in difficult circumstances they do and can hold there ground.

So I went out and got a small pack of Clown Loaches to add to my 55 gallon African tank. And, quite honestly, they worked out great. The Clown Loaches were not intimidated by the Cichlids, not one bit. And, they did a fantastic job of keeping the bottom of my tank clean. Then, however, like is often the case with Clown Loaches, a disastrous bout of ick hit. Now, generally speaking I keep a close eye on my fish, and if any disease is discovered I take the proper steps of isolating the sick fish and treating them with the proper medicine. However, in a Cichlid tank that's full of rocks, a fish can do one hell of a job of hiding if he or she wishes not to be seen. To make a long story short, I lost the entire pack of Clown Loaches. I treated the water, and the Cichlids were fine. But, still, I was heart broken to have lost the entire pack.

So, I asked myself, what was I going to do with having effective bottom feeders in my Cichlid tank, that were not going to get there butts kicked by the aggressive Africans, but at the same time were not a susceptible to ick like Clown Loaches? Answer, Boatia Loaches, other wise known as Yoyo Loaches. I actually found them at Wal-mart of all places, even though I am the kind of person that prefers a local fish shop, I gave these little guys a try. Well, they are awesome. They do a fantastic job of keeping the bottom of my tank clean, and they hold there ground against the more aggressive Mbunas. They are not as susceptible to ink like Clown Loaches, and in fact they're the fattest fish in the tank. These guys are very active, I got three of them and they are all over the place bringing alive the entire personality of the tank that very few other bottom feeders can present to any aquarium.

Little Boatia Yoyo Loaches get two thumbs up!

The Current Stock In My Lake Malawi 55 Gallon Tank

I purchased this tank about 3 months ago, with the intention of stocking it with Lake Malawi Cichlids. I initially had a few of these Cichlids in a 29 gallon, while they grew and while I had a chance to upgrade to the 55 gallon. I have purchased most of these Africans very small, 2 inches or smaller. So my current stock is a as follows:

2 Electric Blue Johannis
5 Yellow Labs
1 Red Zebra
2 Blue Zebras
1 Auratus
3 OB Marble Peacocks
1 White Albino Zebra
1 Acie (blue and yellow)
1 Mixed breed (white w/ yellow stripes)
1 Lamp Brichardi (Lake Tanganyika)
3 Yoyo Loaches
1 Chocolate Albino Pleco

Does it seem a little over stocked? Yes, but the aggression is very much under control with no deaths in 3 months, the water is in very good condition, and hardly any nipped fins. I watch the fish closely, to see what kind of stress may be going in a tank with this many fish, and it seems that there are too many for anyone one dominant fish to terrorize. The only concern I have is that I do have 2 male Electric Blue Johannis, and the bigger fish seems to push him around quit a bit. I'm think about trading the smaller one in for another Cichlid species, but because I haven't found a particular fish that I like enough to replace him, and the fact there has been no major wounds to the smaller Johanni, I'm being very patient before I pull the trigger on this trade.

Video: My 55 Gallon Lake Malawi as of May 20th 2011

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