Baby Malawi Cichlids

Question
HI,

we have had our tank set up with 7 large Malawi Cichlids for about 6 months.  we noticed last weekend that we have 2 baby Cichlids in our tank.  they are being very smart and staying hidden under a ledge in the decorative rocks that we have in the tank, but the larger of the 2 keeps coming out to explore and find food and almost got eaten yesterday by one of the larger fish (he got back under his ledge just in time).  I am not sure whether we should try to separate the babies from the rest of the tank.  on one hand they are better off getting used to the fact that the larger fish are a threat, but on the other they may not last into adult hood because at the moment they are about mouth sized for the bigger fish, and Malawis are very aggressive.  do you think we should try to separate them, and if so can you recommend the best method for separating them (we have a 300 litre tank, and trying to catch them might be difficult), I wondered if you knew of any sort of device that we could use to divide the tank?

thanks

Answer
Hi Deborah,
If it was my tank. I'd probably let the babies grow up in the main tank. They have survived this far and trying to catch them might cause them to get hurt let alone the stress it'll put on them and you.

Multi-generation cichlid tanks are very common. You could use a divider but I don't know if they make ones big enough for a 300 litre and making a divider might be a lot of hassle I'm not sure if you want to go through. Giving them extra nooks and crannies to hide in that other fish cannot go into might help lots.

I hope all goes well!!!
Karen~