Salvini cichlazoma - care and maintenance in the aquarium

There are many adherents of aquarium fish for whom we have prepared today's material. Salvini cichlazoma seems an inconspicuous fish, but it is only at a young age. When an individual grows up, it takes on a bright shape, it is difficult to look away from such a beauty. This species is ideal for keeping in aquarium conditions, care does not require special knowledge and skills. Therefore, today we will consider all the main aspects affecting this species of fish.

Features and Origin

Otherwise, individuals of the present species are called yellow-bellied. They appeared in the United States back in 1911. From America, fish migrated to Germany, and a little later Mexican aquarists enjoyed them. The description of the species originates in 1862, since then the characteristics have changed, but not much.

Fish prefer to live in the Atlantic Ocean in the basins of lagoons and rivers. They swim throughout the territory, stop to relax in shady places near the jungle and forests. Thanks to living in a similar area, the color is always bright and does not lose its “juiciness”.

It is highly undesirable to contain salvini with smaller fish that have a peace-loving character. The point is not that they will be eaten. A tsikhlazoma will drive a neighbor into a corner and scare him to horror.

Description

1. This is not to say that the presented individuals are too large, but to inexperienced aquarists, the body length of 18 cm can seem impressive. This applies to males, females are smaller (about 14 cm.).
2. As a rule, the small dimensions of the females do not add dullness to the fish. On the contrary, they are colorful, neat and stand out from the crowd. The most rich colors in the abdomen and back, there are marked red. The males are a little dimmer, but still the colors are present.
3. Regardless of what kind of gender is involved, they are all pigmented in yellow (background). On the side there is a strip of dark color, above it in the back area there are marks in tone coinciding with the strip.
4. If it comes to males that live in the speech area of ​​Candelaria (Mexico), they are included in the beauty exceptions list. That is, in this case, the male sex is much more beautiful than the female. The abdominal area is pigmented with a red tint, bright, saturated.
5. It is difficult for an unprepared person to distinguish a female from a male. Beautiful ladies in the middle of the fin on the back have specks of black color with a blue trim. By themselves, they are bright, males are more dull, preferably blue. The males have a mark on the upper part of the lip, and there is also a line on the side.
6. The following can also be said about the differences between individuals of different sexes: males have pointed and elongated fins, and females have a dark mark (spot) on the gills.

Content

1. No special difficulties with the content. Usually, all problems arise because these fish do not get along with their neighbors. According to experienced aquarists, individuals can only live in pairs. They need about 200 liters. water. If the number of individuals increases, add another 40 liters to each fish. water.
2. As a soil, absolutely any option will do. But the ideal solution would be lining the bottom with granite chips or pebbles of the smallest size. It will be necessary to plant greens with powerful roots, so the soil layer should not be less than 8-10 cm.
3. Fish love to be in the shade, to be in silence, so take care of shelters. Stones, driftwood, special houses - everything will do.Since fish will attack plants, only specimens with a powerful root system need to be planted. Alternatively, consider echinodorus or cryptocorynes.
4. Important conditions of detention include temperature, which should not go beyond the bounds. Keep your pets at 24-26 degrees. Take care of the “correct” acidity - 7-8.5 pH.
5. Representatives of this breed group do not like light, so they always try to hide in the shade. This allows the fish to maintain color. Therefore, do not install powerful lamps so that the inhabitants do not hide from lighting. Enough indicator of 0.3 watts per 1 liter. water. Once every 7-10 days, 30% of the total volume of water is replaced.

Breeding

1. By the year of life, the species of fish in question becomes sexually mature. The cichlid subspecies is monogamous, which is why the pair is created at the age of six months. The female can spawn in the general aquarium or in a special spawning. The latter option is most preferred.
2. The problem is that during spawning, the presented fish become quite aggressive. Because of this, cichlids begin to drive away all the inhabitants of the aquarium from the nest where the eggs are. Therefore, in order to prevent this, parents should be transplanted into another aquarium in advance.
3. Separately, it is worth mentioning the fact why spawning should occur in a separate tank - this is that fish get enormous stress if they lose offspring. Because of this, the male becomes very wild and can kill his female during a skirmish. After that, the male himself dies, due to the awareness of loneliness.
4. Keep in mind that an aquarium for spawning must be at least 100 liters in volume. Without fail, various shelters should be at the bottom of the tank. Therefore, take care of this in advance. Sometimes the male can independently create a nest in an open area. You need to cover it on top with some arch or snag. Algae or Javanese moss will do.
5. If you don’t cover the nest or you cannot do this for any reason, spawning is often delayed for a long time. To stimulate spawning, experts recommend raising the temperature of the water in the aquarium by several degrees. Do everything necessary so that the offspring appear as quickly as possible.
6. Cichlazomas throw eggs on the surface of driftwood or stone. An interesting fact, the number of eggs for 1 spawning can reach up to 500 units. Moreover, the incubation period lasts only 2-3 days. After the allotted time, fry of a rather large size are born.
7. After a few more days, young fish can already independently eat and swim without difficulty. Fry will look for food in the thickets of algae. Often they feed on the remnants of the uneaten feed left by their parents. Young growth is recommended to be fed with a special starting feed.
8. Often fry are given nauplin of brine shrimp. In addition, young growth is recommended to be additionally fed with a tubule, which should be finely chopped in advance. Such food should be introduced into the diet after the fry are over 1 week old.
9. In an aquarium where young animals are kept, the temperature regime must be strictly observed. The water temperature should not fall below 26 degrees. She should stick around that point. If the temperature drops below, in most cases, the fry die.
10. Parents continue to care for the young for a rather long time. In order not to worry about it again, you shouldn’t rush to transplant adult fish into a common aquarium. Let them stay with the fry for some time. Parents should be transplanted only if one of them begins to show aggression towards young animals.

Salvini cichlazoma means a fish that protects its territory and does not want to share it with its neighbors.Therefore, in violation of personal space, an adult may well be aggressive. Carefully select the neighborhood.

Video: Cichlasoma salvini