new fish

[alucard0822]

The trick with Cichlids is to keep the water hard, warm and alkaline, a lot of fish folk don't like to mix AC species from all 3 different lakes, Malawi and Victoria are close enough to be OK, Tanganyika is a lot more alkaline than the others, so while a few others have had luck mixing all 3, or keeping Africans in neutral PH and soft conditions with unrelated tankmates, I haven't in my tanks or others I've helped with. Fish get stressed, then start to get aggressive, sick and die off eventually, the higher toxicity of Ammonia in high PH ranges also kills a lot faster In new tanks or where the bioload gets increased fast. Zincubus is right on, more fish and more hiding spots cuts down on bullying, so too few fish they get picked on, but too many too quick, and they get sick, AC tanks are pretty much the reason fishless cycling came about. Best advice is to use sand as a substrate, easy to spot clean to keep bioload down, and the fish seem to like it, add a pile of rocks containing limestone to keep the PH up around 8-8.2, and KH up at 10-14, small water changes often with enough buffer added to keep the PH consistent, and they will be happy. You will have to change gradually being you already have fish, and the Shark should probably find a more compatible home. Can't wait to see how they grow