Clown Fish question

If you don't mind a little constructive critisizm. Your tank mates are all wrong for each other. The Platty is a live bearer, and a community fish, and the others (barb and cichlid as more of an agressive species, they wont do very well together IMO, and a crayfish will kill and eat anything it catches. Besides that this mix will stress out the fish and in turn enhance the chances of ICH taking over.

Dont take me wrong, I just want to make sure you learn more so you can enjoy the hobby.

 

Thanks for your concern. The Chiclids and the Barbs are distracted by each other, so they don't even bother the Platties. And as far as the Crayfish goes, he just sits in the castle most of the time, and the fish have learned not to enter his territory. And he only has one and a half of a claw. But all of my fish are doing well, nice colors and they're eating well which is a good sign. I added a plant last night and that made a big difference as well.

 

What kind of cichlids do you have??

 

One is an African Cichlid, and the other one is a Rainbow.

 

Cichlids require special care, and thrive much better in an environment similar to their natural habitat. Not to mention your rainbow cichlid is found in central america and not Africa.

Which lake is your African Cichlid from? Malawi? Tanganyika? Victoria? What species? Each has their own special needs and corresponding water quality. They can be just as entertaining and rewarding to care for as saltwater fish, but you can't just throw them in with the other inhabitants and expect them to do well. I use to breed Labidochromis caeruleus - I had a 55 gallon that was set up with these guys and it was a great experience.

 

I know the African Cichlid is of the Astatotilapia desfontainii species, he was a hand me down so I have no idea what lake he's from, but he sure is cool to watch. I'm not sure about the Rainbow though. I picked him up from Big Als the other day, and there not overly helpful for being a fish store. Overpriced to as I recently discovered. But all my fish are doing great, very active and playful, really nice colors. They all have grown quite a bit since they were given to me to, I think they were neglected.

 

Are you sure? That would be a find... Astatotilapia desfontainii is rare to find in the wild, much less in aquariums. It's also on the species at risk list (endangered). Do you have a picture? Source

 

I'd watch the crawfish with them - eventually they will harass it and can kill it (when the craw molts it is very vulnerable). I seen this first hand with a pair of parrot cichlids my girlfriend had.

 

Here's the picture, I hope that worked. It's the best one I was able to get of him. I also have a Mexican Axolotl, which I'll get a picture of and post it later. He's endangered as well.

 

Pretty fish. Hard to tell exactly, as the colors may be faded some, but if you go to http://www.africancichlids.net/gallery/astatotilapia_desfontainii8.jpg - markings don't quite match. Females and males have different markings, but not quite like either.

What you may want to consider (which is fun and you learn quite a lot in the process) is setting up a tank that replicates their natural habitat. With cichlids, you can have an excellent time creating different rock formations, aquascaping with live plants, etc. It can be challenging, but will create a striking addition to your house.

Water params also vary by lake. If you match the qualities specific to the lake your fish is from, colors will improve, the fish will be more active, and with a pair, even spawn.

ph, for example -
Lake Malawi..................7.4 - 8.6

Lake Tanganyika...........7.8 - 9.0

Lake Victoria..................7.2 - 8.6

There's some overlap, but depending on what your params are, it may be too low or too high.