Peacock Cichlid Help

Hi all. I have just about started to keep peacocks and I noticed that they don't swim with their fins spread out all the time.

Some will do this for a short period of time. I have seen other tanks wherein the peacocks seem to swim with their fins fully spread out.

Is this due to under feeding? Maybe other fish that are too boisterous? Maybe water temperature?

Any thoughts. .

 

They clamp their fins when they are coming down with something, usually brought about by inadequate acclimatising.
Up the temp slightly, increase aeration, and monitor for parasites, etc. Add salt if you haven't already done so.

 

They're not clamping their fins as such. They just not portraying their fins as I would like. No signs of parasite or disease. Temp is already at 28.4'c.

The Fish are really active. Not as docile as a normal peacock and hap tank.

 

Is it possible for you to post some pics?
picture worth a thousand words...

 

Temp is too high. 24 - 26 is fine for peacocks. If you are going to keep it at 28 make sure you have good aeration and water movement other wise they will not look their best. IF your water is clean they will settle in a day or two and start to colour up and show off their fins.

 

I have decreased heater temp but on hot days the temp goes up to 27. What can I do to lower temperatures?

Also do peacocks like fast flowing water?

 

Run your lights for less time during the day. I also run a small fan in the canopy to keep condensation under control but it is also very effective at keeping the temp down.

More important than keeping it below 27 is keeping it stable, you dont want temp swings all the time.

In my experience they dont like strong currents. Lots of air bubbles they seem to like.

 

Currently im running lights for 5 hours max. Will try lowering current and put my air pump back on then.

My temp is always between 26 and 27.5.
Is that too much fluctuation?

 

Do you have a larger than the rest (or noticeably aggressive) male in the tank? Is there enough hiding spots for them?

Peacocks or any lake Malawi cichlid for that matter tend to dart through the water when rattled or stressed out. Clamping their fins allow for faster movements or show signs of stress. In turn it comes down to my first question...

 

There is 1 bigger peacock in the tank than all the rest, however he doesn't bother anyone at all. I do have two very active fish in the tank, but they rarely chase any of the other fish. There are no real aggression issues apart from the odd small dart now and then.

 

They are all male