According to scientific data, all over the world there are more than 3,000 species of cichlids that live on the territory of each continent. Most of them - almost 50% of the total number - inhabited the African continent. We will talk more about African cichlids in the article.
Description
African cichlids are freshwater fish with the most pronounced color. No group of marine life can boast such a variety of colors. Scientists have found that the largest percentage of these fish lives in the so-called Great African Lakes: Tanganyika and Malawi (Nyasa). By their nature, both lakes are ancient tectonic reservoirs in which a huge number of new forms, species of individuals develop.
Factors influencing such intense speciation of freshwater fish are relative isolation and special living conditions. The result is the formation of dozens of fish species.
Appearance
Externally, cichlids are very different from each other. More common species have an elongated, rather dense body. Also, the presence of two fins: dorsal and anal. By the way, in males they are the longest. Some representatives have a small fat growth on the head, for example Frontoza cichlids.
The bodies of the fish are painted in saturated colors. Thus, African cichlids identify each other at a great distance. In addition, representatives of this group, due to their bright color, loved by aquarists all over the world.
In addition to natural colors, modern breeders were able to bring out truly unique specimens found exclusively in aquariums.
Where do they live?
Most of the "Africans" can be found in the eastern part of the mainland. As mentioned earlier, the favorite places for fish breeding are fresh lakes: Malawi (Nyasa), Victoria, Tanganyika and many others included in the list of the so-called Great African Lakes. Some cichlids live in other places, so they are called endemic. In addition to marine, they are also found in nature river individuals.
According to scientific data, the ancestors of African cichlids are migratory marine fish, and this fact confirms the high tolerance of salt water.
Kinds
The names of the species fully correspond to the habitat of this species of fish:
- Malawian cichlids - “Malawians”;
- Tanganyika cichlids.
The Malawians
Aulonokara
Aulonocara - Aulonocaras, or African Akars - the inhabitants of Lake Malawi, are considered endemic. Prefer to swim on sandbanks.
External data: an elongated body, a large head with indentations characteristic of this type of cichlids (scientists suggest that this is possibly the sensory organ), along the back there is a well-developed fin. Young fish and Malawian females have a more restrained color: dark spots and stripes on a gray body. In males, during the growing season, the color of the scales changes to blue / blue. Besides, they have a beautiful metallic tint.
Fins are found with yellow or blue scales and are marked with noticeable bright spots. For such a variety of underwear "drawings" the inhabitants of English-speaking countries gave the fish their original name - "peacock cichlids." The size of the aquarium inhabitant is from 8 to 20 cm. Specialists recommend choosing tanks with a volume of at least 80 liters for maintenance.
The main diet of "peacocks" is food of animal origin. In open waters for finding food, the fish freezes over the sand. So she manages to most accurately capture the light movements of invertebrates underground. In this, sensitive pits on her body help her. Noticing the prey, they quickly rush after it.
Several types of African aulonocars are suitable for aquarium maintenance: Queen of Nyasa, Mayland, Purple.
With proper care, the life span of the aulonocar is about 8 years.
Pseudotrophy
This species with aulonokara combines habitat - Lake Malawi. The species prefers thicket, rocky places. Scientists attribute the pseudotrophies to the Mbuna group, from Greek translating as “living in stones”, which confirms their place of residence.
Domestic individuals reach a size of 10 to 13 cm. In nature, the blue-black color of the fish predominates, although completely different colors of cichlids are found in the aquarium environment.
From food, pseudotrophyus prefer algae growing on rocks. In order to scrape them off, the fish use their characteristic grater teeth.
This feature must be taken into account for home maintenance. Thus, constant feeding of animal feed often leads to indigestion.
As for the "underwater home", experts recommend giving preference aquariums with a volume of 100 liters per couple.
Malawian cichlids of this species have another feature - they incubate caviar in the oral cavity. So they protect their fry from death.
In the aquarium environment, the following Pseudotrophies are perfectly accustomed: Pendani (Sokolofa), Lombardo, Demasoni.
Tanganyiki Cichlids
Trophyus
As the name implies, the birthplace of fish is Lake. Tanganyika. The underwater world of trophies is very reminiscent of the residence of Malawian Mbuna.
According to scientific evidence, this the genus of cichlids consists of six species. The name trophos in Greek means "educate." And this is not an accident: A special way of carrying fry in the mouth distinguishes trophy from other representatives of the group.
They prefer to eat algae that grow on rocky rocks.
For its high decorative qualities, this type of cichlid is especially loved by aquarists.Especially popular are the varieties of Moore and Star.
Due to the aggressive nature for fish should choose a species aquarium with a volume of at least 300 liters. Tanganyika cichlids are capable of displaying aggression towards each other. To prevent this, populate a flock of 10-12 individuals in one tank. As for the temperature regime of water, the optimum mark is 24–26 degrees.
Yulidochromis
They are considered indigenous inhabitants of the lake. Tanganyika. By nature, they are quite peaceful. External characteristics: elongated body, pointed head shape. In addition, they are characterized by a lower mouth and a long, sharp dorsal fin. The whole body is covered with spots. Interestingly, the color and size of the spots vary depending on the location of the fish.
To date, breeders have been able to get many new forms of those very yulidochromis.
Tanganyiki Cichlids by nature - phlegmatic. They like to freeze for a while in one pose, thereby scaring the owners. However, everything is not so scary: these fish are simply afraid of the audience.
Proper care and maintenance in the aquarium will extend the life of the inhabitants up to 12 years.
Fans of ornamental fish prefer to start the following species: Julidochromis Marliera, Julidochromis Regani, Julidochromis Dickfeld.
Maintenance and care
Most representatives of African cichlids are large. Such fish should be bred in fairly spacious aquariums - at the rate of 200 liters per pair.
For a full existence water should be clean, high in oxygen. Therefore it will be more correct pre-take care of high-quality filtration, as well as aeration.
Coarse pebbles will serve as an excellent primer. In the open waters, “Africans” are used to digging the ground, during which small pebbles are swallowed. That is why the best option would be large breeds.
For registration specialists advised to use natural pebbles, which practically do not differ from natural rock biotopes.
Be sure to arrange as many shelters (grottoes) as possible, where the fish will hide from the "hostile" neighbors in the aquarium.
The homeland of cichlids is the warm waters of the tropical zone, therefore it is customary to consider them thermophilic. Owners recommended carefully monitor the temperature in the aquarium to prevent freezing of fish. The optimum mark is 24–28 degrees. Unlike South American cichlids, who prefer soft water, the hardness of the water affects the health status of African inhabitants. It is important to remember: stiffness indicators are calculated based on the specific species. So, for the Malawian: ph - 7.0–8.0, stiffness - 10–18 dGH; for Tanganyik cichlids: ph - 8.0–9.0, stiffness –10–25 dGH.
Besides, care for African cichlids requires regular water changes, ideally 30% of the total fluid in the aquarium.
It is not recommended to plant live plants - South African fish do not really take root with them. Anubias are suitable as an alternative, among which the hard-leaved greens, which do not require planting in the ground, are popular.
Feeding
How to feed aquarium cichlids depends on the species. So, sometimes there are predators eating congeners, worms, mollusks. But more often aquarists give birth to so-called vegetarians. These include the "Malawians" from the Mbuna group.
As daily nutrition, Tetra dry food is suitable. In the manufacturing process, only high-quality raw materials with all valuable trace elements are used. A special line of feed called Tetra cichlid Suitable for all types of African cichlids. On the shelves of pet stores food is presented in the form of flakes, chips, chopsticks, granules. Specifically for the Malawian individuals developed a separate feed - Tetra Malawi. It contains the necessary component for the proper nutrition of fish - spirulina algae.
African cichlids are vivid representatives of aquarium fish today. It’s easy to take care of them. The main thing is to observe the temperature regime and provide proper nutrition to multi-colored individuals. And then the inhabitants of the warm waters of Africa will live for many years.
For more information on African cichlids, see the next video.
