Cichlids Care

Cichlids are fish of the family Cichlidae, which is an important and large family of perciform fish that includes more than thousands of species of freshwater fish. The large number of cichlid species are mainly categorized into three groups, African, Central, North American and South American cichlids.

Cichlids as Pets

With their diverse body shapes and stunning colors, cichlids are some of the most popular aquarium fish. The popular angelfish also belongs to the family of Cichlidae, along with, discus, convict cichlid and oscar fish. It is very important to replicate the conditions that prevail in their natural habitat for cichlids. This often begins with setting up an ideal aquarium with appropriate filtration system, maintaining the appropriate temperature and pH of water, and the conditions that are required for breeding.

Aquarium
The aquarium for keeping this fish should be large. Usually a 20 gallon tank can be used to set up an aquarium. The tank should be cleaned thoroughly by rinsing with water. But be sure to not use soap to clean the tank, as soap can prove detrimental to the health of this fish. Filtration is very important to keep the aquarium water clean. A sponge filter can be used, if the aquarium is not too large. Apart from sponge filters, several other types of filters are available, from which you can choose the one that would be best for your aquarium.

Along with filter, you will also need an air pump, gravel and a thermometer. If the water contains cloramine, then a chloramine remover would be required to protect your fish from chlorine. Now to create an environment similar to the natural habitat of cichlids, you can include rocks and plants in your aquarium. You can opt for either live or false plants, depending on whether the live plants can survive the high pH level of the aquarium water. Some species of cichlids live primarily in rocky environment and hence, they may prefer to live in an aquarium filled with rocks than plants. Therefore, the decision would depend to a great extent depend on the particular species of cichlids.

Water
You need to maintain the ideal temperature and pH of water. To maintain the ideal range of temperature in your aquarium, you can set up a heater along the back wall of the tank. Keep the temperature between 74 to 82 Fahrenheit. Also keep the aquarium away from sunny area to avoid fluctuations in the temperature. Keeping the aquarium in a sunny area can result in overheating that can kill the fish.

The pH level of water should be maintained between 7.5 to 8.5, as cichlids prefers alkaline water. If the pH is very low or the water is acidic, a substrate can be used to maintain the alkalinity of water. You can use common soda, limestone or crushed coral and gravel to make the water alkaline. Water in a closed environment like aquarium tends to get unclean quite rapidly. So, change the water once in a week. However, do not change more than 10% of the aquarium water at a time.

Feeding
Remember to go slow and avoid over feeding, especially for the first few days. It is preferable to add small amounts of food to the aquarium frequently, than adding a large amount at a time. It is very important to know about the right kind of foods for your cichlid species. Usually, you can use a variety of foods including, cichlids flakes and pellets. Many also opt for frozen and live foods as well.

Breeding
One should know that there are two types of breeders, open brooders and shelter brooders. The open brooders lay eggs in the open such as, on rocks or substrate. The shelter brooders can be either cavity brooders or mouth brooders. The cavity brooders spawn in cavity or caves, while the mouth brooders carry the eggs and the fry in their mouth till they can swim freely. The open brooders on the other hand, care for the young ones till they can swim and eat on their own.

The factors that are most important for successful breeding is the health of the fish, their diet and age. It is preferable to get several females for one male. Feeding more protein rich foods at the time of breeding can prove quite helpful. Providing sheltered place like rocks and plants can also be beneficial, especially for the mouth brooders. Maintain the ideal temperature and alkalinity of water to facilitate breeding, as well as hatching of the eggs. Usually, it has been observed that overfeeding can discourage breeding; so avoid it. For harvesting cichlids, you can allow the female to release the fry in a separate tank. This would help to protect the fry from other adult cichlids. The fry will grow quickly, if provided a healthy diet, along with good water conditions.

Usually, a large aquarium is preferred over a small one, mainly to reduce aggression among cichlids. In a small aquarium, this fish tend to get more aggressive. Aggression is observed to be more intense between two cichlids of the same size. Hence, it is advisable to keep cichlids of different sizes in an aquarium. Another way to control aggression in these fish is to lower the temperature, which would slow down the rate of metabolism and thus, lower their aggression. Even keeping a lower male population and isolating the breeding pairs can help in this regard.