Eight-striped cychlasma - care and maintenance in an aquarium

Otherwise, the eight-striped cichlase is called a bee because of its peculiar color. The fish belongs to the large, in length can reach 25 cm. The body is compact and not high. Juveniles up to a year are homely, but when they mature, they become very colorful. Males are more beautiful than females, they are brighter and more prominent. Due to the fact that cross-breeding with tsikhlaz multi-faceted, there are many colors. Every fish lover will find an option for himself.

Description

Until 1903, it was not reliably known what the eight-band cychlasms actually are. Later they were described as a separate species.

As for habitats, fish prefer to stay in Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Central and North America. They live in lakes, reservoirs, ponds, standing sources or weakly flowing streams. They swim, like all similar species, at the bottom of filigree sources with a large number of kryag.Prefer muddy or sandy places to pebbles.

Food is varied due to the large size of individuals. Eat tsikhlazomy small fish, worms and larvae.

When an individual reaches puberty, its external data is revealed in full. Males are famous for their elongated and sharp fins, on which there is a red border. Female with black stripes and blue specks and attract attention.

Young animals can not boast an impressive color. Such individuals are much dimmer, greyish with a slight sheen. When a fish is in a stressful situation, its stripes fade, the black tone is replaced by gray, the scales do not shine.

If you are interested in differences by gender, then you should know the following. Males are endowed with posterior and dorsal fins with pointed and elongated characteristics. The edging is red, the size of the individual is large, the female is smaller.Males are bright, catchy, stand out from the crowd. The female sex differs from the male in that there are fewer blotches on the body, and there are dark spots on the gills.

Content

1. All cichlids, living preferably in the American regions, do not require certain skills to their content. The main thing to consider is the absence of nitrogenous substances in the water. We are talking about nitrates, ammonia, ammonium. The amount of nitrates that do not lead to the deterioration of the health of individuals should not exceed 40 mg / l. To achieve this value, it is necessary to install a water filter, taking into account the size of the aquarium, and once a week to change one third of the liquid new. Since the tap water itself is harmful and chlorinated, it is better to use filtered or bottled liquid.
2. If you take into account the opinion of experts, young animals can exist in a more polluted environment, but then the life expectancy will be reduced. For tsihlazom not only water quality is important, but also the volume of the aquarium. In a small aquarium, the fish will quickly die. They will also die under constant stress, frequent spawning, poor nutrition.
3. It is necessary to ensure the correct temperature, it should be 22-30 degrees. When the temperature drops to the level of 24 degrees, individuals will be pressed against the water heater, because they are cold. Experienced aquarists recommend adhering to the indicators of 27 degrees, then tsikhlazomy become active. The pH balance of water should not exceed the boundaries of 7-8.5 units.
4. For a pair of tsihlazom need a spacious aquarium with a volume of 250 liters. In such conditions, the fish will not tolerate the neighborhood, except that catfish will be among the cohabitants. Also, striped tsikhlazomy become aggressive when spawning, can kill the fellows to death, despite the fact that they exceed their size. Be careful, such individuals are better kept separately for safety.
5. If you keep the fish in an insufficiently spacious aquarium, you should not be surprised at the skirmishes among the inhabitants. In addition, quarrels often occur between opposite sexes. Often it is the females provoke conflicts. At the same time, they are not even afraid that they are smaller in weight class. It happens that the males do not take it seriously. In this case, more mobile females set the most real bang.If the male is angry and there is a real duel, the opponent will not hold back. If you notice similar behavior, transfer the female to another aquarium, otherwise she will die in a skirmish.
6. If you keep individuals in an aquarium with a volume of less than 300 l. Fish of the opposite sex should be regularly isolated from each other. The normal mode of keeping individuals is the period from 3 to 6 months. After this, it is recommended to interrupt the joint stay of fish for 1-2 months. If the aquarium is large enough, then there is no need to separate the individuals. In the event of a quarrel, the female can swim without problems to the other end of the tank. In this case, the male will not pursue her. Also isolating a pair can be useful in another case. The bottom line is that in this way you can reduce the frequency of spawning. Frequent spawning has a negative effect on the health of the female.
7. Alternatively, the cychlasm may contain a harem. There will be several females per male. Such content will benefit all. The male will be able to care for the females in turn without any problems. If you grow males together, then when they grow up, as a rule, they will not show aggression towards each other.In rare cases, skirmishes may occur. In most cases, it all depends on the nature of the individuals.
8. It is necessary to take into account the fact that in larger aquariums tsikhlazomy behave quite peacefully. As for small tanks, individuals often show aggression in them. Therefore, in large aquariums can contain cichlids of various kinds. Breeders, on the contrary, say that the content of different species adversely affects the general condition of eight-striped cichlosis. The exception happens only in the case when all youngsters grow together. It is not recommended to contain representatives of the species with small fish. Otherwise, sooner or later, small individuals will be eaten.
9. As for aquarium plants, they are not eaten by cichlasomes. The only thing that should be noted is that fish sometimes uproot the vegetation. Tsikhlazoma simply may not like where algae grow. It is recommended to plant hard-leaved plants in separate containers. Also in the aquarium should be a variety of shelters.

There is nothing complicated in the content of the presented subspecies of aquatic inhabitants.Cichlazomas do not require special conditions for keeping; it is enough to provide them with high-quality filtered water with an optimal pH balance and temperature conditions at which the fish will not freeze. It is worth paying attention to the neighborhood, because tsikhlazomy aggressive to strangers.

Video: eight-band cychlasome