Diadem acara
Aequidens diadema
Also known as Crown acara
FreshwaterFish
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 75–82°F
- 24–28°C
- pH
- 4.8–6.5
- Adult size
- 5.9 in
- 15 cm
- Minimum tank
- 66 gal
- 250 L
- Temperament
- Mostly peaceful
- Social behavior
- Solitary
- Tankmates
- With caution
- Swim level
- Middle
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Breeding
- Mouthbrooder · Medium
- Rarity
- Rare
- Family
- Cichlidae
- Origin
- Upper Negro and Orinoco blackwaters
Overview
The diadem acara is a calm, medium-sized cichlid for a dim, soft-water tank. It suits a keeper with some experience.
Did you know
The diadem acara's crown is no bright badge. The dark band works more like camouflage than ornament on a fish that lives among shadowy leaf litter.
Caring for the diadem acara
Give a single diadem acara or a bonded pair at least 66 gal (250 L). Furnish the tank with driftwood, leaf litter and a sandy floor, and leave open swimming room in the center. Keep the light dim to suit a forest-stream fish.
Keep the water soft and acidic, at 75 to 82°F (24 to 28°C) and a pH of 4.8 to 6.5. Botanicals give the water a gentle tannin stain. Feed an omnivore diet of quality pellets, frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp and the odd bit of vegetable matter.
It pairs off and holds a territory, so keep one fish or a pair rather than a crowd. It patrols the middle and lower water among the wood and leaves. It is mostly peaceful but turns protective around a spawn. Choose peaceful, soft-water community fish of medium size, and keep them clear of the pair's chosen corner at breeding time.
Unusually for its group, the diadem acara is a larvophile mouthbrooder. A pair spawns on a cleaned flat stone, then takes the hatched young into their mouths to carry and shelter them. That close, shared care keeps breeding at a moderate level of difficulty.
Good to know
The diadem acara, Aequidens diadema, belongs to the family Cichlidae. It is named for the dark diadem, a crown-like band on its head.
In the wild
The diadem acara lives in the blackwater forest streams of the upper Rio Negro and Orinoco tributaries. The water there is tea-stained, soft and acidic, and it flows over sand and drowned leaves.
Common questions
What size tank does a diadem acara need?
A diadem acara needs at least 66 gal (250 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What temperature and pH does a diadem acara need?
A diadem acara is comfortable at 75–82°F (24–28°C) with a pH of 4.8–6.5.
What does a diadem acara eat?
A diadem acara eats an omnivore diet of quality pellets, frozen bloodworm and brine shrimp. Add the odd bit of vegetable matter.
How big does a diadem acara get?
An adult diadem acara reaches about 5.9 in (15 cm).
How does a diadem acara breed?
A diadem acara pair spawns on a cleaned flat stone. The parents then carry the hatched young in their mouths to shelter them. Breeding this acara is moderately difficult.
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