The Salvini Cichlid – A Colorful Wizard

The Salvini cichlid (en: Cichlasoma salvini) is a colorful South America cichlid, known also as yellow belly cichlid or tricolor cichlid, due to its impressive colors. While juveniles have a less shiny grey color, adults are bright yellow with two lines of black and blue dots running through their body. They possess long turquoise fins and have red bellies, a coloration that gets more intense during the breeding period and is more pronounced in males. Moreover, females have a small black patch in the center of their dorsal fin and the cover of their gills and are generally smaller, making it fairly easy to distinguish between the sexes. Salvini cichlids reach a maximum size of 8 inches (20 cm) but they normally remain smaller in aquariums.

The species can live for about 13 years and can be encountered in rivers and lagoons of the northern South America, such as South Mexico, Guatemala and Belize. It usually prefers rivers with moderate to strong flow and commonly inhabits spots with dense tropical vegetation which provides shelter and plenty of hideouts, as the species intense coloration would make it difficult to escape from potential predators. As a result Salvini cichlids would live happily in 50 gallon tanks (150 L), filled with fine gravel or sand and decorated with a variety of rockwork, pots, roots and plants in order to provide hiding spots. Water should be kept at a temperature between 22-27 °C (72-81 °F), and water quality should include a pH between 7-8 and dh around 5-20.

Despite being a very shy fish, it is moderately aggressive and can be quite territorial especially during the breeding season. It can be kept in a community aquarium, as long as its neighbours are moderately aggressive species too. Examples of potential candidates are the red devil and the oscar. On the other hand, small species will quickly become a snack for the Salvini cichlid, as it is an omnivore, eating all possible kinds of food. It can be fed pellets and flakes, accompanied with a variety of frozen food such as earthworms or shrimp. Vegetables such as zucchini and peas would consist a good addition, since a wide variety of food sources will enhance the stunning coloration of this species.

Salvini cichlids are not mouth brooders, as is the case for the majority of cichlid species. The females usually spawn on a territory that is chosen by the male which is usually on a rocky spot or in a small cave, as the Salvini cichlid is sometimes a cave spawner in its natural habitat. After fertilization both individuals guard the eggs and males can get quite aggressive with any fish that will attempt to approach. Fries hatch in about five days and remain at the spawning site until they become free swimming, which happens a few days later. It is quite often for the female to dig pits in the sand and gravel in order to provide shelter to the young fries. Another common and entertaining behavior, known as “fanning”, includes a variety of movements with the tail in order to create mild currents above the eggs and provide them with oxygen.

The Salvini cichlids are among the most famous cichlids of South America, due to their stunning colouration and aggressive temperament, despite their small size. Although not recommended for the beginner, with proper care it can be a beautiful addition to a cichlid aquarium.

Jaguar Cichlid – Large and Territorial

The Jaguar Cichlid (scientific name: Parachromis managuensis) is a South American freshwater cichlid, and which has been introduced in the USA, Philippines and Singapore. It is a valuable species, traded not only for aquariums but also targeted in both recreational (game) and commercial fisheries and also produced in aquaculture.

As most cichlids, the species has an elongated body and can be distinguished by its large mouth, projecting lower jaw and distinct color pattern: a series of black spots on the side and two continuous and parallel black stripes from the eye to the opercle (i.e. gill bone). Its body color ranges from silver to golden-purple, its dorsal, anal and caudal fins have numerous black spots and its belly is usually white or yellowish. Males can reach an average length of 14 inches (35 cm) and females a length of 12 inches (30 cm) and can live up to 15 years.

This fish species can be found in a variety of habitats such as streams, lakes and ponds, including both hard and soft sediments, in depths that range between 3-10 m. It survives in both clear and turbid water, but seems to have a preference for muddy waters characterized by low oxygen levels. As its name suggests, it displays extremely aggressive behavior and is extremely territorial, especially during the reproductive period.

Keeping the Jaguar in an aquarium is an easy task. However, due to its territoriality, it is important to keep it separate from other species, or chose its tank-mates carefully. Especially during the reproductive season providing a separate tank to the breeding couple is crucial in order to maintain all the individuals intact.

The ideal tank to keep Jaguar Cichlids should have a minimum size of 180 gallons. Ideal conditions should also include a temperature range between 77-97 °F, pH between 7.0-8.7 and hardness between 6-18 °dH. The Jaguar Cichlid is a very capable predator feeding mainly on smaller fish and large invertebrates. As a result, it will appreciate live food but can also be trained to feed on pellets, which should be of high quality and suitable for large predators. It is also common to feed the Jaguar Cichlid fish meat, earthworms and krill.

Jaguar Cichlids reach sexual maturity at a size of 4 inches (10 cm). In order to enhance the likelihood of breeding, it is highly recommended to begin with several juveniles. Provided that there is at least a male and a female, by the time they become sexually mature a breeding couple will have been established. Breeding of this species is easy to achieve, however the aggressiveness of the male individuals might even target the females, thus during the breeding process it is crucial to provide a special structure that will allow the female to escape, e.g. a net or other material can be used to divide the tank into two parts, connected through an opening that is too small for the male to pass through.

The species breeding behaviour is quite similar to that of other cichlids, with the male preparing its territory and performing a series of movements to attract the female which subsequently releases a high number of oocytes (1000-2000) on the ground. The male fertilizes the oocytes and both parents guard the fertilized eggs until the juveniles are ready to feed on themselves, which takes roughly a week.

The parental care provided by the parents to the fries along with the astonishing colours, dominating behaviour and breeding procedure of the Jaguar Cichlids make this species a unique candidate for an aquarium, suitable for aquarium lovers of any level.