Cichlid Fighting, Help!

[fiberzap]

Hi.

I'm new to Cichlids and just bought, I think, 2 yellow African Angels. Beautiful fish. 1 is about 1" long and the other is about 1 1/2". The bigger one keeps attacking the smaller fish in the tank and now the smaller fish is all injured and depressed. It won't eat and stays tucked in a hidden spot in the tank.

I would take one of them out and separate the two so they won't fight again. But that's just a short term solution and I only have 1 tank. What should I do? How do I keep them from fighting? Is adding 1 more fish going to help?

Thanks.

[matt1066]

I would add some rock structures to form caves in which to hide.

You might also set up some sight barriers, so the more aggressive fish cannot see the other. You could also add more fish to disperse his aggression.

I don't know what species you have, or the size of the tank, and what other inhabitants you have, so it is difficult to say anything more.

Let us know some more details on the tank, and the fish-"two african angels does not bring to mind any species that I know of.

Good luck,

Matthew

[davoz]

Yes more details would be helpful.

What size tank
How many fish in the tank
What decor in the tank
What fish is it

[Haplachromis]

Sounds like its tryin to breed with it,id put another set of them in and some structure only accesible by the female.Hope yah gots a salt to slap her in a net an give that fish a good blast of it,could also try a divider.

[cjbots]

I dont think they are trying to breed, I am no expert though. I have a pair of cichlids that are hooking up for the second time, and they "tease" each other. I agree with Matt, add more fish and add some caves or barriers.
What is you Ph level? What about the temp of the water, Is there enough/not enough oxygen in the water?

Chris

[fiberzap]

Thanks for responding, guys.

I honestly don't know what the species of my fish is. It's yellow with some black highlight on its back fins.
My tank is 10 gallons and is equipped with a fake driftwood with enough hiding place if needs to.
The smaller fish is now in a pretty bad condition, with loose scales and chipped fins.

Thanks.

[aharris]

Well, tank size is probably your first problem. It sounds like you have Yellow Labs. They're pretty common and usually pretty peaceful, but they're too crowded in a 10g. The larger fish will probably kill the smaller unless you provide lots of hiding spaces pronto. I'd start looking for a bigger tank, too. You might be able to get away with 29-30g with some of these, but even then, they'll reach 5+" at adulthood. Your 10g will eventually be too little even for one of your fish.

Assuming they are yellow labs of course. :confused:

[davoz]

Ditto aharris. That sounds like "Yellow Lab" Labidochromis caeruleus. A 10g is way to small for any africans other than shellies and a pair of dwarf riverine species. The tank is to small and even with the rockwork your headed for trouble. You only option is to get a larger tank asap. These rish grow to 3-4in and require at minimum a 20g for a trio. Sorry for the bad news but you can take both fish back or get a larger tank.