Convict Cichlid

Care at a glance

Overview

Convicts are aggressive, especially when breeding, so plan tankmates carefully or keep a pair on their own in around 95 liters or more. They use the middle and bottom and defend a territory hard. Keep them in the mid to high 20s C with a neutral to hard, slightly alkaline pH. They are easy eaters and take flake, pellet, and frozen foods without fuss.

In the wild

Convict cichlids come from warm streams and lakes across Central America, where they stick close to rocks and crevices they can defend. They are adaptable and tolerate a fairly wide range of conditions. Set up a tank with rocks, caves, and flat surfaces, since they will claim a territory and dig. Expect some rearranged gravel.

Good to know

This is a Central American cichlid in the Cichlidae family. It reaches about 15 cm and is named for the dark vertical bars running down a pale body. It breeds readily, and pairs form a strong bond and guard their eggs and fry closely, which is typical substrate-spawning cichlid behavior.

Did you know

They are one of the easiest cichlids to breed, sometimes too easy. Give a male and female a flat rock and they will often spawn on their own, then turn the whole tank into a no-go zone while they raise the fry.

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