Pale usisya aulonocara

Care at a glance

Overview

This is a substrate-sifting cichlid that spends its time near the bottom over open sand. Keep it in a large tank, around 240 liters or more, ideally one male with several females to spread out his attention. It's mostly peaceful for a cichlid but territorial when breeding. Water should be warm, mid 20s C, hard, and alkaline. Feed a quality cichlid pellet plus frozen foods, and skip heavy land-based foods to avoid bloat.

In the wild

This peacock cichlid comes from Lake Malawi in East Africa, living along the sandy zones near rocky reefs. The lake is warm, hard, and alkaline. To keep it well, you need a large tank with hard, alkaline water, a sand bottom for it to sift, and rockwork for shelter and territory lines. Match the pH to the lake, well up in the 8s.

Good to know

This is a peacock cichlid in the family Cichlidae, reaching about 14 cm, with males far more colorful than the plain females. Like other Malawi cichlids it's a maternal mouthbrooder. The female holds the eggs and fry in her mouth until they can fend for themselves. It feeds by sensing tiny prey hidden in the sand through pores on its lower jaw.

Did you know

The pores on its face form part of a sensory system that picks up the faint movements of insect larvae buried in the sand. The fish hovers, then darts down and takes a mouthful of substrate, sifting out the food and spitting the sand back out through its gills.

Related species

• 

  Eureka red peacock

  Aulonocara jacobfreibergi

  6.7 in (17 cm)63 gal (240 L)77–84°F (25–29°C)

• 

  Sunshine peacock cichlid

  Aulonocara baenschi

  4.3 in (11 cm)63 gal (240 L)77–84°F (25–29°C)

• 

  Grant's peacock

  Aulonocara stuartgranti

  5.1 in (13 cm)74 gal (280 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
• Sulfurhead peacock

  Aulonocara maylandi

  4.3 in (11 cm)66 gal (250 L)77–82°F (25–28°C)

• 

  Fenestratus hap

  Protomelas fenestratus

  5.5 in (14 cm)53 gal (200 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)

• 

  Angelfish

  Pterophyllum scalare

  5.9 in (15 cm)30 gal (115 L)75–86°F (24–30°C)