Flameback cichlid

Care at a glance

Overview

Males are territorial, especially when breeding, so give them a 160 liter tank or larger with broken sightlines among rocks. House one male with several females to spread out his attention. They are middle-dwelling fish that feed on small invertebrates and algae in the wild, and they take quality pellets plus live or frozen foods in a tank. Keep them with other Lake Victoria cichlids rather than mixing in lookalikes.

In the wild

Pundamilia nyererei lives along the rocky shorelines of Lake Victoria, usually in shallow water from about 1 to 4 meters down. The rocks give it territory and cover. To match that, build a tank with plenty of rockwork and caves, hard alkaline water, and a pH up in the 7 to 8.5 range. The rocky structure is what lets males set up and defend their patches.

Good to know

This is a haplochromine cichlid in the family Cichlidae, with males reaching around 9 cm. It is a maternal mouthbrooder, and breeding is on the harder side. The species is considered vulnerable, hit by habitat loss and the introduced Nile perch that reshaped Lake Victoria's fish community. It also comes in several geographic color forms across the lake.

Did you know

Females pick mates partly by the male's red coloration, and in clear water that choice keeps the species distinct from its close relatives. When the lake turned murky from pollution, females had trouble telling the colors apart, and different species started interbreeding. It is a textbook case of how water clarity can affect which fish stay separate.

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