Boops featherfin

Ophthalmotilapia boops

Also known as Big-eye featherfin

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 75–81°F (24–27°C)
pH: 8.0–9.0
Adult size: 5.9 in (15 cm)
Minimum tank: 106 gal (400 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: Hard
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Lake Tanganyika, Tanzanian coast
Family: Cichlidae

Overview

The boops featherfin is a slender, elegant Tanganyikan cichlid for a large, mature tank. Keep it as a harem, one male with a group of females, and give it height and open water; males build and defend sand nests while the females hold above. It is peaceful toward other species, but males spar with each other, so keep a single male unless the tank is very large, and pair it with calm Tanganyikans. It feeds on plankton and fine foods, so offer small frozen items like cyclops and mysis along with quality flake and small pellets. A tank of around 400 liters or more, tall and long, suits a colony.

In the wild

Ophthalmotilapia boops lives along Tanganyika's Tanzanian coast where rock meets open sand, in clear, sunlit water. Recreate that with rock structure backing onto broad open sand where a male can build his nest, plus room to swim. The lake is very hard, alkaline, and warm, so hold 24 to 27 C and a pH of 8.0 to 9.0 with strong filtration and bright light.

Good to know

Ophthalmotilapia boops belongs to the cichlid family and reaches about 15 centimeters. Breeding males grow long trailing pelvic-fin filaments tipped with yellow, and the species is a maternal mouthbrooder of hard difficulty. The female snaps at those bright fin tips, mistaking them for eggs, which draws her close to the male so he can fertilize the clutch she already holds in her mouth.

Did you know

The name boops is Greek for ox-eyed, a term Homer used as a compliment for the goddess Hera. Here it is spent on a big-eyed plankton feeder from the rocky coast of Lake Tanganyika.

Tank mates

Boops featherfin is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the middle. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.