Salvini cichlazoma: description, care, breeding, compatibility

The bright, exotic, and extremely mobile salvini cichlazoma belongs to the cichlid family; it comes from the shores of natural freshwater reservoirs at the junction of South and North America. Despite its decorative appearance, the fish is an active hunter, usually peaceful, it is able to show obvious aggression when the question arises of protecting the territory. To contain cichloma, novice aquarists need to study the characteristics and habits of this animal.

The colorful perch, as is often called cichlid fish, has a noticeable appearance. The main tone of his body varies between light and deeper shades of yellow and bog-green, two blue-black lines lie from the eyes to the tail. The abdomen is red or orange. In addition, the body is covered with blue spots and dots.

Unfortunately, until the salvini becomes an adult, it is an unremarkable animal of gray color and, only entering its reproductive age, acquires its wonderful, colorful color.

The body size of the fish is from 12 to 18 cm, depending on whether the male is female or female, so the animals are quite suitable for aquarium keeping, although larger specimens sometimes grow up to 20 cm long in nature.However, in order to have a delightful beauty, you need to know about her and less pleasant details.

During the spawning period, which occurs every 30 days, and later (during the growth of the "children"), the head of the family begins to behave inappropriately, terrorizing other types of aquarium inhabitants, as well as related fish, in a word, all that fell under the "hot hand", including the mother of fry. Because of this, you will need to regularly plant other fish or keep cichlases in pairs. If you still plan to combine the predator with its neighbors, then you will need a more spacious dwelling - an aquarium with a doubled volume of water.

Even a pair of cichlases will require an impressive space of 180-200 liters, but if other representatives of the underwater fauna are settled next to it, the capacity should be at least 400 liters.

There are also a number of requirements.

• Since the animal is accustomed to a tropical climate, the temperature at which it feels comfortable is 25–27 degrees. On a scale of hardness indicators, that is, the content of magnesium and calcium salts in water, from 7–16 units. at a pH of water from 6 to 8 units
• The fish does not tolerate the polluted environment, it needs clean water with a sufficient oxygen level for active movement, therefore it is important to equip the aquarium with internal and external filters. It is also important to install an aeration system - a compressor or a pump with this function.
• For the near-bottom space, any soil can be used: fine and coarse sand, small pellets of mineral rocks, gravel, stone chips.
• The presence of vegetation for the animal is irrelevant, but necessary for biological balance and shading. Despite the fact that the main thing for fish is the space for movement, you can plant several bushes of plants in the corners or closer to the aquarium walls, so that the middle remains free. At times, salvani can hide in thickets, because it does not like bright light, and for spawning, steam digs holes in the ground in secluded shaded places.
• But the cichlid is not indifferent to the underwater "architecture": all kinds of snags, labyrinth structures with through passages.
• It is necessary to replace part of the water in order to keep it clean once every 7 days; it is important to completely wash the aquarium at least once every 2-3 months.

A cichlid is, first of all, a predator, and also a voracious one; therefore, a ration should be thought out in advance. A real delicacy for fish is live food, for example, small fish. But also cichlazoma will not refuse food sold in the frozen state: brine shrimp, bloodworms, daphnia, earthworms.

You can feed the animal with seafood, shrimp, which are thawed and ground before feeding. For a change, salvini should be fed with herbal supplements: vegetables such as spinach, zucchini, lettuce, and dandelion. They are rubbed, balls form from them.

But the main nutrition for fish should be a special balanced food for cichlids in the form of flakes, granules and chopsticks for especially large specimens, which include fish, meat and vegetable components.

With sufficient space of the aquarium, it is possible to settle other fish with which they have relative compatibility next to the salvani. But gentle and small inhabitants of the underwater world, including such popular neons, guppies and even scalars, which belong to the cichlase family, are not suitable for this.

Perhaps, the best options for living together are other varieties of cichlids, as well as such types of catfish as taracatum, ancytrus, corridor living in the bottom zone.

Cihlase can be called monogamous, they create couples and observe marital fidelity throughout their lives, once a month making clutches that number 500 eggs. To do this, choose a flat and smooth surface - a large sheet or stone.

Already 6-7 days after fertilization, fry are born. Cichlids are zealous parents, anxiously guarding every egg. You can understand that spawning will soon come, because the temperature of the water in the aquarium has increased by several degrees.

For spawning to go well, and the kids grow well, poor lighting, clean and oxygenated water, and the absence of pathogens in it are necessary. To feed the “children”, you can use the finely chopped tubule, larvae of brine shrimp, ciliates (“live dust”).

If you want to acquire salvini cichloma, inexperienced aquarists need to be well aware, what are the needs of this exotic fish with unpredictable behavior, and for a start, do not combine it with other representatives of the aquatic environment.

Read more about salvini cichlasoma in the video below.