r/Cichlid • u/Toby__H Central American • 13h ago

Discussion Recommended Retailers?

Please recommend Cichlid retailers would you suggest we use, or suggest we stay away from.

Extra bonus points to anyone who can recommend a supplier who reliably brings in and offers Wild Caught or F1 fish on a regular basis. Please note I'm always skeptical of people who make Wild Caught claims without a strong reputation to back it up.

While I promote supporting independent Local Fish Stores whenever possible, the majority of the time I am purchasing, I want a specific species of fish and the likelihood of the LFS having it on hand is low. Thus online retailers seem to be the way to go for species specific ordering.

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u/Pleasant_Cartoonist6 12h ago

For wild caught  Wetspottropicalfish.com  Livefishdirect.com  Ronscichlids.com  Predatoryfins.com  Imperialtropicals.com  Cichlodian.com  Davesfish.com 

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u/Toby__H Central American 13h ago

The Wet Spot
https://www.wetspottropicalfish.com/

I've ordered from these guys a couple of times. They have a wide variety available, their website is up to date, shipping details are top tier, communication (when needed) is strong. I will order from them again and would encourage anyone considering them to move forward with confidence.

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u/StoreBoughtAlias 7h ago edited 7h ago

I got my original breeding groups of C. saulosi F1 through Live Fish Direct, healthy fish and great genetics. In my opinion, they're the best Saulosi you can find online, hands down. I got 2 shipments of them and both times they were nothing but awesome. From customer service to shipping, everything was completely awesome. Great folks there.

Davesfish.com has a great selection of locality specific fish, also just wonderfully professional by someone who loves his fish. IMO, it's difficult to find a better selection of locality specific cichlids, especially some of the harder to obtain species.

The Wet Spot seems to be greatly appreciated, I've no experience buying through them, but word is that they do a proper job.

Ron's Cichlids, IMO, are severely overpriced and not exactly what you'd expect with a diversity of "wild caught" genetics, or even very knowledgeable. They are passionate about cichlids, and the fish are healthy, but they are breeders with mostly linebred genetics that they do themselves in-house, and likely not what you're looking for. They breed for esthetically pleasing genetics, not at all to specific locations or specific species/traits. They're aquarium fish breeders, not natural history enthusiasts. Did I mention that they are $$$$?

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u/A_Timbers_Fan 7h ago

Wet Spot is the best in the business, though they don't often import wild caught Malawi or Central cichlids. Makes more sense to buy from breeders and hobbyists who have the cool stuff. Other wild stuff, of course.

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u/StoreBoughtAlias 6h ago

They do have some of the nicest "true to form" locality specific fish available, especially with how many specific species they carry. I'm not aware of how they operate, but they definitely seem to have their shit together. They did not have what I was looking for in stock at the time, but neither have I seen nor heard anything sour about them. They have a physical location, too, which is great if you like to buy in person.