Yellow-cheek xenotilapia

Xenotilapia ochrogenys

Also known as Ochrogenys sand cichlid

FreshwaterFish

Care at a glance

Temperature: 75–81°F (24–27°C)
pH: 7.8–9.0
Adult size: 4.3 in (11 cm)
Minimum tank: 79 gal (300 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Bottom
Difficulty: Difficult
Breeding: Hard
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Lake Tanganyika
Family: Cichlidae

Overview

The yellow-cheek xenotilapia is a sand-dwelling Tanganyikan cichlid that must be kept as a group, ideally six or more, since lone fish and pairs do poorly and the species lives in shoals over open sand. It stays on the bottom, sifting fine sand for small invertebrates. It is peaceful and there is no limit on how many you can keep together, but it is delicate, so give it calm tankmates and avoid boisterous or aggressive fish. Feed small foods such as frozen cyclops, brine shrimp, and finely crushed pellets, and never overfeed, since this group bloats easily. A tank of around 300 liters or more with a wide, open sand bed suits a colony.

In the wild

This fish schools over shallow, sandy bays in Lake Tanganyika, one of the hardest and most alkaline lakes on Earth. The tank should give it a large, open floor of deep, fine sand with only a little rock at the edges, so the school has room to move and males room to display. Keep the water very hard and alkaline, warm at about 24 to 27 C with a high pH of roughly 7.8 to 9.0, and extremely clean. Stable water chemistry and low waste are essential for these sensitive sand cichlids.

Good to know

Xenotilapia ochrogenys is a cichlid reaching about 11 centimeters, sand-pale at rest but stippled with gold, violet, and black when a male displays. It is a maternal mouthbrooder: males display over the open sand while females carry the eggs and fry in the mouth. Breeding is hard, needing a settled group and very stable water. The genus is unusual for the range of parental-care styles it shows across its species.

Did you know

Its name promises a single yellow cheek, but a displaying male pays out far more than that, flushing gold, violet, and black across a body that sits almost invisible on bare sand the rest of the time.

Tank mates

Yellow-cheek xenotilapia is a peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the bottom. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.