Auratus cichlid

Care at a glance

Overview

This is one of the more aggressive mbuna, so plan around it. Give it a 200 liter tank or larger, keep one male with several females, and load the tank with rock to break up sight lines. Hold the water at 24 to 28 C and pH 7.5 to 8.5. Feed a spirulina-based or vegetable pellet; they pick at algae and small prey in the lake but do poorly on a heavy protein diet.

In the wild

Auratus cichlids live in the rocky shallows of Lake Malawi in East Africa, close to shore where the water is clear and full of oxygen. They use the rock piles for cover and for staking out territory. Build their tank the same way, with stacked rock and plenty of crevices, and keep the water hard and alkaline like the lake.

Good to know

This is a mbuna cichlid in the family Cichlidae. Males reach about 11 cm; females stay a bit smaller. It is a maternal mouthbrooder, so the female holds the eggs and fry in her mouth until they can swim on their own. Wild populations are listed as Least Concern.

Did you know

Males and females look like two different fish. Females and juveniles are bright yellow with black and white stripes, while a dominant male flips to a dark brown or near-black body with pale gold stripes once he matures and claims territory.

Related species

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  Johanni cichlid

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• Chipokee cichlid

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• 

  Blue johanni cichlid

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• 

  Pearl of Likoma

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• 

  Aurora cichlid

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• 

  Afra cichlid

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