TankBud

Mdoka peacock

Aulonocara aquilonium

Also known as Northern aulonocara, Mdoka white top

FreshwaterFish

Mdoka peacock (Aulonocara aquilonium)

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–82°F
24–28°C
pH
7.6–8.6
Adult size
5.1 in
13 cm
Minimum tank
53 gal
200 L
Temperament
Aggressive
Social behavior
Social
Tankmates
With caution
Swim level
Middle
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Mouthbrooder · Medium
Rarity
Rare
Family
Cichlidae
Origin
Northern Lake Malawi, Mdoka region

Overview

The Mdoka peacock is a sand-hunting cichlid for a Malawi community tank. It works the lower and middle water above open sand, and it takes a little more care than a beginner fish.

Did you know

Peacocks such as the Mdoka peacock hunt by feel rather than sight. Hovering just over the sand, Aulonocara use rows of enlarged pores along the head and jaw to sense the tiny movements of buried invertebrates. They then strike down at prey they never actually see.

Caring for the Mdoka peacock

Keep Mdoka peacocks as one male with several females, so the male can display without hounding a single fish. A harem does well in 53 gal (200 L) or more. Give them a generous open sand floor to hunt over, backed by rockwork at the edges for shelter and spawning caves.

Keep the water hard, alkaline, clean and well filtered, at 75 to 82°F (24 to 28°C) and a pH of 7.6 to 8.6. Mdoka peacocks hunt small prey hidden in the substrate. Feed sinking foods and frozen invertebrates rather than a heavy protein diet.

They are more assertive than some peacocks, so give them firm but not oversized tank mates, chosen with care. Females mouthbrood the eggs, and breeding is of medium difficulty.

Good to know

The Mdoka peacock belongs to the family Cichlidae and is a northern peacock. Males light up steel blue below a chalk-white edge to the dorsal fin, which gave it the trade name Mdoka white top.

In the wild

Aulonocara aquilonium comes from the northwestern coast of Lake Malawi around Mdoka. It lives where sand meets rock, at roughly 12 to 25 meters down.

Common questions

What size tank does a Mdoka peacock need?

A Mdoka peacock needs at least 53 gal (200 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a Mdoka peacock need?

A Mdoka peacock is comfortable at 75–82°F (24–28°C) with a pH of 7.6–8.6.

What does a Mdoka peacock eat?

A Mdoka peacock hunts small prey hidden in the sand. Feed it sinking foods and frozen invertebrates rather than a heavy protein diet.

How big does a Mdoka peacock get?

An adult Mdoka peacock reaches about 5.1 in (13 cm).

How does a Mdoka peacock breed?

Mdoka peacock females mouthbrood the eggs. Breeding them is of medium difficulty.

Related species