Firemouth cichlid

Care at a glance

Overview

A pair does fine in a tank of 115 liters or more, but if you want them gregarious in a group of eight or more, you will need a much larger setup. They are mostly peaceful for a Central American cichlid and spend their time near the bottom, sifting sand and patrolling their patch. Keep the water at 23 to 28 C with a pH from 6.5 to 8, on a soft sandy floor with rocks and driftwood. Feed sinking pellets, frozen foods, and the occasional vegetable matter. They turn territorial when breeding and will eat much smaller fish or shrimp, so pick tankmates of similar size that can hold their own.

In the wild

Firemouth cichlids come from the warm lowland rivers, lagoons, and pools of the Atlantic slope of Central America, across Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. They are sand-sifters that work over soft bottoms looking for food, so give them a soft sandy substrate with smooth rocks and some driftwood to break up the layout. A tank of at least 115 liters suits a pair, with more space if you want a group. Keep the water between 23 and 28 C with a pH from 6.5 to 8, which covers the range they handle in the wild.

Good to know

This is a Central American cichlid in the family Cichlidae, reaching about 15 cm as an adult. It is a biparental substrate spawner that breeds readily, with both parents guarding the eggs and fry on a cleaned flat surface or in a pit. A healthy adult can live several years. Most fish in the trade are tank-bred.

Did you know

The name comes from the bright red throat and belly the males flash during display. When a male wants to warn off a rival or impress a female, he drops his lower jaw, flares his gill covers, and puffs out that red patch to look as large and threatening as he can. Most of the time it is bluff, and the two fish size each other up without ever making contact.

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