We
have a feeling that there is a trend back to the Central American
cichlids, the big ones. Of course there are always fashions in the
hobby. And of cozrse each generation of aquarists has to discover the
magnificent diversity of aquarium fish on their own. Maybe this is the
case currently in large Central Americans.
Many
species that were formerly placed in the catch-all genus Cichlasoma are
now in new genera. Not so Cichlasoma urophthalmus. Despite the well
known fact that it is for sure unjustified placed in Cichlasoma it makes
no sense to transfer it to any other genus. So it is left in Cichlasoma
for pragmatical reasons.
The
fish attains a maximum length of 25-30 cm. It originates from Mexico,
where it is used a a foodfish as well. Keeping and breeding the species
in aquaria is problem free, but one must keep in mind that these fish
need real great aquaria. In tanks that are not large enough this cichlid
will kill any tankmate, may it belong to the same species or not.
The
water in almost all habitats of the fish is hard and have a pH over 8,
some populations appear even in brackish or marine environments.
For
our customers: the animals have code 667002 (4-6 cm) and 667005 (8-12
cm) on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the
wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
