African Cichlids

Author : Efrain Silva

Appearance

This fish, to begin with, has so many color and pattern options that it is actually quite hard — believe it or not — to sit down and choose one, when looking through a catalog or when at the pet store. I’ve had a hard time, I know, but I particularly like the silver or blue options. These, for me, are nice, cool colors that look smooth when in a water tank, but everyone has their own unique take on this matter. This fish tends to be a size of anywhere from 6 to 8 inches, respectively.

Diet

Like any Cichlid, it can also take in those delicious, fresh, store - bought pellets and fish flakes. Yum, yum, good times! You can also choose to supplement its menu, from time to time, which is never a bad idea, with a few freeze - dried or frozen favorites. Which ones? Well, how about some amazing tubifex worms? You can also get them some brine shrimp. These last two options they will crave and not question!

You can also do algae wafers. They’re cheap and work easy. Veggies like cucumbers are also a valid option.

Origins

This fish comes from the Cichliformes order and the Cichlidae family, all in all, not to mention it hails from the Animalia kingdom. Its rightful class is the Actinopterygii class. Its most common known name is, in fact, the African Cichlid as stated. It doesn’t only originate in Africa, though, like its name would make you think, but it also has ancestry roots in Asia and Southern America alike ; it’s also found all over the world, by means of sales. How cool is that? You could almost say that it’s a multi - colored, multi - racial, and multi - national fish altogether!

Roommate Situation

This fish is aggressive, and that is a simple understatement —- do not throw open - water fish that love to swim about freely and peacefully, into the same tank with this guy. It will attack without mercy as it has always done so in its original foreign habitat. Instead, there are very few options for a solid tank mate, if you must get one at all. One such limited option would be the African Catfish, which happens to be a bottom - feeder type and is likely to not be messed with, because it’s big enough to defend itself and will do so.

Other Facts to Note

This fish is prone to many sorts of diseases and ailments, which can include but not be exclusive to the following : bloating, Tuberculosis, gill flukes, and Swim Bladder Disease. One of the worst of these are the gill flukes, which can cause the fish to have slimier gills than usual, and even, in extreme cases, trouble breathing. Your fish, on another note, may even experience extreme loss of appetite throughout the day, as well as severe scale lesions without any cause. This, my friend, would likewise be known as Hexamita. Watch your African Cichlid regularly to observe anything usual.