Guyana festivum

Care at a glance

Overview

This is a peaceful but shy cichlid, the smallest of the flag cichlids, and it settles best when it feels secure. Keep it singly or as a pair rather than a crowd of its own kind, and pair it with calm, similar sized fish; boisterous tankmates leave it hiding and off its food, which is why some care is needed in stocking. It favors the middle of the tank and likes to hang near vertical cover such as plant stems and roots. A tank of around 250 liters gives a pair room among planting. Feed a varied diet of flake and pellet with frozen daphnia and brine shrimp, plus some vegetable matter; note that very small fish or shrimp may be taken.

In the wild

The Guyana festivum comes from the blackwater and clearwater rivers of the Guiana Shield, where soft, acidic, tannin stained water runs past submerged wood, roots, and plant stems. Recreate that with driftwood and tall planting for vertical cover, a dark substrate, and some leaf litter to tint the water. Keep it warm at 24–28 C and soft and acidic to neutral, around pH 5.5–7.2, with gentle, well filtered flow rather than strong current.

Good to know

Mesonauta guyanae is a member of the family Cichlidae reaching about 11 centimeters, an oval, laterally flattened cichlid with a pointed snout and a dark band running across the body. It is one of several closely related flag cichlids spread across South America. It is a substrate spawning, biparental cichlid that lays its eggs on a firm surface, often a broad leaf, and breeding is of moderate difficulty.

Did you know

For years this fish reached the hobby hidden in shipments of the common festivum, which it closely resembles, and it was only later recognized and named as a separate Guiana Shield species.

Common questions

Related species

• 

  Colombian festivum

  Mesonauta egregius

  Freshwater

  4.7 in (12 cm)66 gal (250 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
• Acora festivum

  Mesonauta acora

  Freshwater

  4.7 in (12 cm)66 gal (250 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
• Peruvian festivum

  Mesonauta mirificus

  Freshwater

  4.7 in (12 cm)66 gal (250 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Flag cichlid

  Mesonauta festivus

  Freshwater

  5.9 in (15 cm)37 gal (140 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Canara pearlspot

  Etroplus canarensis

  Freshwater

  4.3 in (11 cm)55 gal (210 L)72–90°F (22–32°C)
• Lividus hap

  Haplochromis lividus

  Freshwater

  4.3 in (11 cm)53 gal (200 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)