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My Top 10 Favorite Victorian Cichlids, From the Mind of a Cichlid Mad Man

December 4, 2009 2 Comments 5686 Views

What’s up everyone, Jose here again. I’m back for another installment of my top 10 Cichlids. This time, I’m going to talk about some of my favs from Lake Victoria.

In the last 20 to 30 years many Victorian species have been driven to extinction by a variety of factors, including the introduction of
the Nile perch, increased human population and also increased pollution. It’s a real shame, too considering many species were still undiscovered. One more reason why we should never release non-native species.

Vics are very hardy and easy to keep and will do well in most dechlorinated tap water with a ph of 7.5 and up.

Many people have asked me why I would keep certain fish over others and it’s tough to give one  reason. I like them for their rarity, color, attitude and spawning behaviors just to name a few, and most Vics do well in an easy-to-mange 36×18 tank. Well let’s begin with my top 10 in no order.

Astatotilapia Aneocolor– Known as the Yellow Belly Albert this 3 to 5 inch species is a stunner with a red back

and a yellow belly and blue dorsal. One year I put one in my patio pond for the summer and when i brought him back

in he had a purple back and his belly was gold. I would keep them in a 55 as they are pretty aggressive.
Astatotilapia nubilus– If there was ever a candidate for anger management this is the guy. The nubilus tops out

at 4 inches. I like this fish because it is jet black with red fins and some striking egg spots in the anal fin.

 

Haplochromis sp. Dayglow– This 4.5 inch herbivore has a powder blue head, a black verticle bar across the eyes,

red tail fin that contrasts a yellow green body, a red blotch behind the gill and 3 to 4 orange egg spots outlined

in black.

Hap sp. Ruby green– This 4 inch herbivore is sometimes confused with hap Flameback. Males have a red back with a

green bottom, they also have a blue dorsal and large orange egg spots in the anal fin. I have kept and bred this

species and can say that I have had males color at 2 inches. Highly recommended.

 

Paralabidochromis Chilotes– This 5 inch carnivore has many geographical color morphs. The particular strain I like

has a blue face and back, a red body and a blue anal fin. It also has fleshy lips. A very odd and awesome fish to try.

 

Pytochromis sp. Hippo Point SalmonPytochromis sp “hippo point” – Another 5 inch carnivore that is mildly aggressive towards other fish except that it

hates other males. It also likes to feed on the snails Bellamya and Melanoides. Its most striking feature is the

bright crimson red on the majority of its body with the remainder being green. During breeding and fights it also

has a white face with a black bar going through its eye.

 

Pundamilia nyererei Ruti Island Pundamilia Nyererei “ruti island” – A 4 inch fish, this is another one of those species that has a few different

color morphs. I chose the ruti island because i thought the red was really intense  with its mixture of green

and yellow body, black barring and red dorsal. I’m happy i did.

 

Xystichromis phytophagus– The christmas fulu. This 4.5 inch herbivore lives up to its name with its red,yellow,

green,marroon body and blue dorsal. It also has a black bar going through the eye and on its cheek; and a red tail.

 

Harpagochromis sp “blue rock hunter“– This 5 inch piscivore is an aggressive species that needs plenty of room.

Males are mostly blue with some tints of yellow or green in the body and a white dorsal edge.

 

Haplochromis sp “all red”- This 6 inch herbivore is a relatively peaceful species except towards its own kind.

It colors up pretty much like a Nyererei except that it has more red in the head and chest area.

 

So there it is: my top 10 vics. I hope this blog might get someone interested in these awesome species. Check out my top 10 Malawis if you haven’t.  Until next time.

Jose

Species Profile: Pelvicachromis taeniatus “Moliwe”

March 5, 2008 5 Comments 7180 Views

Today we have a new guest blogger on That Fish Blog, Brandon Moyer. Brandon has worked in the fish room here at That Fish Place for the last couple of years, he is a Marine Biology student at Millersville University, and an aquarium hobbyist. Brandon wrote this blog to share his experiences with a recent aquarium that he started.
Welcome Brandon.

Species Profile: Pelvicachromis taeniatus “Moliwe”

General Information

Pelvicachromis taeniatus is a smaller, more colorful cousin of the popular P. pulcher, or Kribensis as they are commonly named. They are found in rivers throughout West Africa where the water is soft and slightly acidic. There are several variants of the species which differ in coloration. Each variant is named for the area they are found in the wild.
The “Moliwe” is named for the village in Cameroon, Africa, where the variant is most commonly collected. The Moliwe females are very striking. They have an orange-gold dorsal fin, bright purple stomach, and a yellow face with a blue edge to the gills and around the eyes. Males, which grow larger than females, have a dark cross-hatch pattern on their sides, blue eyes, and a mix of reds and yellows in their dorsal, anal, and caudal fin. This is a general description of their color, which may change as a result of Age, mood or environmental conditions. As a pair they draw a lot of attention within the tank.
I began setting up the tank with Eco Complete Planted Aquarium Substrate and a few plants including Sagittaria platyphyllia and Cryptocoryne petchii for cover. I also added a small hiding cave usually used for reptiles, but figured that it would be a good breeding area as Pelvicachromis species are cave-brooders. After the tank cycled with the help of some ghost shrimp, I added my pair of Moliwes. They acclimated well but were very shy. After adding a few zebra danios as dither fish, my Moliwes became more active and began to explore their new home. They spend most of their day close to the bottom of the aquarium digging in the substrate looking for food. Regular water changes and filter maintenance will ensure good water quality.
Taeniatus will take a variety of food, but to help ensure vivid colors and good health try to feed them with a mix of frozen and dry foods. I feed my Moliwes Boyd’s Vita Diet, Prime Reef flakes, and several types of frozen foods including spirulina enriched brine shrimp. A variety of food will ensure that they receive a complete, nutritious diet which will reward you with healthy, happy fish. Carotenoid pigments in their food will help bring out the fishes red colors and spirulina and other algae will bring out blue.
One day I noticed that the entrance to my Moliwe’s cave was barricaded with substrate. The female managed to squeeze out the only hole remaining in the entrance, and the male was preoccupied with keeping the danios in the top half of the tank. After a few days I spotted fish fry within the cave. Much like their cousins the kribensis, taeniatus will breed fairly readily. The usually calm parents will become territorial as they guard over their offspring, making close attention to the well-being of the other fish within the aquarium necessary. Days later the fry began to leave the shelter of their cave behind. Led by their mother and father they began to explore the tank looking for food. The fry will eat prepared foods given it is the appropriate size. I crushed flake and pellet food into a fine powder that the fry readily ate once it reached the bottom of the tank. My first spawn did not last: I assume the danios picked them off one by one, so if you are trying to raise the fry, choose dither fish carefully.
Thanks Brandon, those are really great little fish, I hope you have inspired someone to give them a try!
Untill next blog,
Dave