Angostura Cichlid

Care

Getting its common name from its type locality, this fish was first discovered at Presa de las Angostura - Mexico's largest hydroelectric dam. Here it lives in flowing waters and adjacent lakes over rocks, silt and mud.

As with almost all Central American cichlids, this is a fish that needs hard water to thrive. There should be a soft sandy substrate and numerous hiding places/visual barriers created amongst the decor from large pieces of driftwood and rocks/slate. Most aquatic plants will be seen as food, so are best omitted from the aquascape, or else consider using plastic/silk varieties. Filtration should be very efficient (these fish are messy eaters) but water movement fairly gentle. This species is sensitive to the build-up of pollutants, so small frequent water changes are a must to help keep nitrogenous waste to a minimum. The Angostura cichlid is a fairly typical territorial cichlid - aggression levels are tied to aquarium size and if enough room is provided for fishes to avoid one another, disputes are generally resolved through display. The best results come from keeping these fish in a good-sized group from which they can select mates, expect males to grow faster than females and avoid selecting all the largest individuals in the batch when buying juveniles as you may end up with a bachelor group. Good tankmates include large armoured catfish, and robust barbs or characins that can tolerate harder water. 

Feeding

These fish are primarily vegetarian. Offer green flake, Spirulina based pellets/sticks, algae wafers etc, with the occasional addition of frozen or live foods. 

Breeding

Bi-parental substrate spawner. As spawning proceeds, the colouration of the female fish will intensify to a high-contrast pattern and they will choose and clean a suitable spawning site - usually a flat rock or a depression dug in the substrate. Several hundred eggs will be deposited/fertilised, and the female takes on primary brood care, whilst the male patrols the general perimeter. In order to give him a target for his aggression, a mirror attached to one of the end panels of the breeding tank will prevent him from viewing his mate as the only potential threat. The eggs should hatch within 3-4 days, and the fry should be free-swimming just a few days later. Offer them baby brineshrimp (Artemia nauplii) and crushed green flake, moving on to larger foodstuffs as they grow. Both male and female exhibit excellent parental care.