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There is nothing so colourful as a tank of Malawi Cichlids going about their business but Malawis are NOT a general community fish.  I hope by sharing some of my experiences and knowledge you will be more informed and set up the right conditions so you too can enjoy the pleasure of these wonderful fish!

LET'S START WITH UNDERSTANDING MALAWIS!

Malawi Cichlids are typically good sized fish ranging from 4" and upwards.  They are also VERY aggressive so if you want to go the Malawi route then its all or nothing! 

Malawis are quite an intelligent fish and soon learn that their human companion supplies food.  They sense when I am about to feed them and all come out of hiding to greet me with open mouths.  Even cleaning the tank is an ideal opportunity for a Malawi to have a little nibble at your hand just in case it may be food!  Very alarming the first time but they never do any harm.  They will eat as much as you dare to put in their tank so do not let that cute little face tempt you into adding more food than is required.

MBUNA vs HAPS AND PEACOCKS

Not all Malawis are the same and so let's take a closer look.

Mbuna are highly aggressive and rock dwelling fish which in nature live in large groups but are not a schooling fish.  Mbuna are vegetarians and in the wild would spend their time scraping Algae from rocks although insects and crustations would be eaten that live within the algae.  Being vegetarians also means that plants are fair game so be warned!  You may get away with Java fern as they don't seem to like that too much and its copes well with the alkaline water conditions needed for Malawis.

Mbuna are smaller than haps and peacocks and are typically sized between 4"-6".

Haps and Peacocks are moderately aggressive.  Unlike the Mbuna Haps  live in open water and are very rarely seen in groups.  Peacocks are live close to the sand and are some of the most stunning coloured fish of all!  These fish are also piscivores, feeding on small fish in the wild.

This group of Malawis are generally much bigger than the Mbuna reaching double the size of many Mbuna.  They do take much longer to reach sexual maturity than Mbuna and do not usually take on adult colours until they reach 2.5" or so.

CREATING THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENT

The tank

As fishkeepers we are told "Do not overstock your tank" but with Malawis the opposite is true.  By overstocking a Malawi tank the most dominant fish have a hard time picking out a single individual to bully and ultimately kill.  It is therefore advisable to have a minimum tank of 55 gallons for Mbuna and 75 gallons for Haps and peacocks.  Overstocking a tank increases pollution therefore you will need to over filter the tank to compensate.

The substrate, rocks and salt

Malawis live in alkaline water, therefore unless you are fortunate to have a PH of between 7.8 - 8.6 coming out of your tap you will need to increase this through other methods.

I personally have a PH of 7.6 so in order to increase this I have added coral substrate and ocean rock (which is perfect for Mbuna to hide in) to all of my Mbuna tanks.  This naturally increases the PH to within the range stated.  If you have very low PH and even after adding the substrate and rock still find it is below 7.8 then Malawi salts can also be added.

My Hap/Peacock tank is slightly different with boulders placed on the substrate as these Malawis are not rock dwellers.  I also add Malawi Salt to this tank to increase the PH.

IF YOU REQUIRE EITHER ROCK OR CORAL GRAVEL THEN DROP ME AN EMAIL AND I WILL WORK OUT A PRICE FOR YOU WITH DELIVERY AND THEN PUT IT ON A BUY IT NOW.

Temperature

I have found that 76f works well and although the fish may not always be in full colour they do have a more natural breeding cycle and not constantly in breeding condition as with higher temperature.  Even Malawis need a break!

FEEDING AND BREEDING

Feeding

A good balanced diet will combine both frozen and dried foods and I use these on alternative days.

Frozen foods such as Spinach, Brine shrimp and Malawi mix are a good source of food. For a treat  also give Krill and mysis.

DO NOT feed them Bloodworm or Beefheart as this has been linked to a condition called Malawi Bloat!

Dried foods are available that provide a good nutritional meal such as Hikari Malawi Cichlid pellets, Tetra Prima, Spirulina sticks and they love the JMC Catfish pellets. 

BREEDING

Probably the easiest thing of all to do is breed Malawis provided that the conditions they are kept in is right and they are of sexual maturity. 

Malawis are mouth brooders and are a delight to watch as they go through their mating dance.  I have on many occasions had very worried previous buyers contact me because one of their Malawis is shaking next to a rock!  This is just one part of the dance that leads to breeding.

The male will come into condition and will colour up, which basically means he will be brighter and more colourful than normal.  He will then pick out a female and try to attract her with his display while chasing anything that moves in the tank away from his chosen breeding spot.  This may go on for hours and even days if the female is playing hard to get!  He will guide her to his chosen spot and shake like he is having a fit, to impress her.  When she is ready she will lay one egg on his spawning site and he will follow and fertilise the egg, she then picks up the egg in her mouth and lays another...till her mouth is full of eggs!

After about 21 days (varies between individual species) the eggs in the females mouth start to hatch.  Females are good mothers and will try to hang on to their babies for as long as possible but eventually she has to let them go, this is called spitting them.  Chances are if she does this in the main tank most if not all the babies will be a tasty snack for the adults.  The method I use to save the babies is to place the mum with a mouthful of eggs into a spare tank on her own.  I wait till she has spat them then remove her back into the main tank and leave the babies to grow up in safety.  Please note that while the female is Holding (mouth full of eggs or fry) she will not eat so don't worry this is normal!

I am sure there are many questions I have not answered here so this is really work in progress that will be added to as new questions arise.

Be sure to add me to your favourites list!

Diane