Cichlazoma labiatum or big-lipped fish is a large and aggressive fish. "Red Devil Habitat in Nature

Endemic to two lakes Nicaragua and Managua, located in the territory of modern Nicaragua in Central America. Both lakes are of tectonic origin, connected by the Tipitapa River. Cichlazoma labiatum prefers to stay along rocky shores, where she swims among the crevices.
The note- lake Nicaragua's largest freshwater lake Latin America and the only one in the world where sharks are found.

Brief information:

• Aquarium volume - from 350 l.
• Temperature - 21–26°C
• pH value - 6.0–8.0
• Water hardness - from soft to hard (5–26 dGH)
• Substrate type - rocky
• Lighting - moderate
• Brackish water - no
• Water movement - weak to moderate
• The size of the fish is 30–35 cm.
• Food - any
• Temperament - aggressive
• Keeping alone in a species aquarium

Description

Adults reach a length of up to 35 cm. More powerful males have a characteristic occipital hump that distinguishes them from females, as well as elongated and pointed dorsal and anal fins. Color varies from white-yellow to deep orange.

Nutrition

They are not at all picky about their diet; they eat everything that can fit in their mouth, including smaller fish. IN home aquarium The basis of the diet should be frozen, fresh or live foods, for example, earthworms, pieces of snails and other shellfish, shrimp, as well as herbal supplements such as peas, spinach, etc. An excellent alternative would be specialized food for large Central American cichlids, produced by some manufacturers.

Maintenance and care, arrangement of aquariums

One adult fish will require an aquarium of 350 liters. The decoration mainly uses fragments of rocks, large stones, and gravel substrate. There is no need for live plants; artificial ones can be used if desired. All interior decor must be securely fastened, and equipment, if possible, hidden so that big fish couldn't damage anything. The aquarium is equipped with a reliable lid. Despite its size, the Red Devil is able to jump out of it.
Water parameters have wide acceptable ranges of pH and dGH values, so there are no problems with water treatment. Difficulties are associated only with maintaining High Quality water. Filtration and aeration systems are installed based on the need to recycle large masses organic waste and fish needs for high levels of dissolved oxygen. It is mandatory to replace part of the water (20–25% of the volume) with fresh water weekly.

Behavior and Compatibility

One of the most aggressive representatives of cichlids, it attacks not only other fish, but also representatives of its own species. Skirmishes usually lead to the death of the weaker individual. Joint keeping is possible only in large aquariums of 1000 liters or more. As neighbors, you should select larger fish that will not be easily intimidated, and/or reliably protected from among the large catfish. For an amateur, we can only recommend a species aquarium.

Breeding/reproduction

The process of breeding the Red Devil is quite simple. When will it come mating season the fish will do everything themselves, without the need to create any special conditions or advance introduction special diet.
The main difficulty is that the fish are not compatible with each other and in a home aquarium it is extremely difficult to get a pair ready for reproduction. Cichlasoma labiatum is often kept alone due to its large size and aggressive behavior, and if a male is placed in the same tank with a female, she will soon be killed.
There are several ways to obtain offspring in an artificial environment, but none of them gives a 100% guarantee.
First. A male and a female from different aquariums are placed in one and separated by a transparent perforated wall. There is a small chance that after a few weeks the male will get used to it and reduce the degree of aggression, and in the future they will be able to form a temporary pair.
Second. Initially, about 6 young individuals are acquired, which will grow in place. As you grow older naturally One pair can form, which will regularly produce offspring in the future. The chances of forming a pair increase in proportion to the increase in the number of young fish growing together, but this is not the case in amateur aquarium keeping.
As a result, this type It is better to buy from professional breeders than to breed it yourself.

Fish diseases

The main cause of most diseases is unsuitable living conditions and poor quality food. If the first symptoms are detected, you should check the water parameters and the presence of high concentrations of hazardous substances (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, etc.), if necessary, bring the indicators back to normal, and only then begin treatment. Read more about symptoms and treatment methods in the section "

Cichlazoma labiatum(Amphilophus labiatus) – aquarium fish familiescichlids or cichlids (Cichlidae) .
Latin name : Amphilophus labiatus
Other names: Cichlasoma labiatus, Herichthys labiatus, Cichlasoma labiatum, Cichlasoma dorsatum, Cichlasoma erythraeum, Heros lobochilus, Heros erythraeus, Amphilophus froebelii, Amphilophus erythraeus, Red Devil, Roter Lippenbuntbarsch, Large Lipped Cichlid, Grosslippen Buntbarsch, Dicklippiger Buntbarsch

Area

In nature, Cichlazoma labiatum lives in lakes located in Nicaragua and Managua in Central America.

Appearance and gender differences

Lipped cichlazomas have a wide variety of colors: brown-gray with spots of dark tones (or without them), various variations of red or yellow shades from pale golden and pinkish to fiery red. There are clear anatomical differences between females and males. The forehead of males is more convex, the ends of the dorsal and anal fins are elongated, and the body is slightly larger than that of the female. IN natural environment fish habitats grow up to 25 cm, and in aquariums - no more than 20 cm.

Conditions of detention

Cichlazoma labiatum has aggressive disposition. For fish of this species, it is very important to have a personal territory. Therefore, a large aquarium with a capacity of 200 liters or more is suitable for keeping one pair. If you have a more spacious aquarium, large-lipped cichlids will be able to get along well with other large-sized cichlids. When setting up an aquarium, you should take into account that the big-lipped cichlasoma quite actively spoils live aquarium plants, undermining their root system, so it is better to use artificial aquarium plants. In addition to the soil consisting of pebbles, stones, caves and other shelters are placed at the bottom of the aquarium. Water parameters: hardness – 15–25 °, pH – 6.0–8.0. Although for fish of this species temperature Range should be between 20–30 °C, but they feel most comfortable at a temperature of 24–26 °C. It is important to ensure high-quality aeration and filtration, as well as weekly water changes in the aquarium.

In its natural habitat, the lipped cichlasoma feeds mainly on crustaceans, small fish, insects and their larvae. In an aquarium, care should be taken to provide a varied nutritious diet consisting of live and frozen food, food of plant origin, granules, minced meat and shrimp. The intensity of the color of red individuals largely depends on the presence of astaxandin in the food, the source of which in an aquarium can be sweet varieties of paprika along with brine shrimp or special foods “Astacolor” and “ Red Parrot».

Breeding

Cichlazoma lipped reaches sexual maturity at the age of 9–12 months. Replacing a quarter of the water and increasing the temperature in the aquarium stimulate fish spawning. Water parameters in the spawning tank: temperature – 26–28 °C, hardness – 10–30 °, pH – 7.0–8.0. The female lays eggs (hundreds and sometimes thousands of eggs) onto the surface of a stone or shard previously prepared by the male. The fertility of a female largely depends on her age, size and conditions of detention. Producers take care of their offspring. Incubation period lasts 3–5 days, and then, after 4–6 days, the fry begin to swim. The starting food is nauplii of Artemia, Diaptomus or Cyclops. In an aquarium, when crossing long-lipped cichlases with citron cichlases, the fish can easily produce hybrid offspring.

Family: cichlids (Cichlidae)

External description: Cichlazoma labiatum can have quite a variety of colors and certain differences in appearance. There are all kinds of variations in color, the appearance of the fish can also vary somewhat, especially with regard to the pattern and the main color. The differences between females and males must be looked at in each variation specifically

Natural habitat: the fish is endemic to lakes Nicaragua and Managua in Nicaragua (these lakes are connected to each other by the Tipitapa River)

Dimensions: the maximum size of the fish is 35 cm, but this is very rare even in nature

Habitat layer: in an aquarium, the fish feels very confident on all layers

Behavior: cichlazoma labiatum fish has a fairly diverse character, but in general it is not particularly aggressive in nature (if you keep it in a large aquarium, if there is not enough space, the aggressiveness of the character can manifest itself in all its “glory”), at the same time, when defending its territory, it will not retreat from "face" of the enemy. Consider what eats in nature small fish, but in captivity, with fairly good feeding, attacks on other fish are rare, unless they are very small. Keep singly or in pairs

Arrangement of the aquarium: The minimum volume of an aquarium for one fish is 250 liters, for a pair - at least 300. It is best to use various driftwood, stones and other elements as decoration

Water parameters: temperature 21-27ºC, pH 6.0-8.0

Nutrition: They eat everything they can eat, the fish will try any new item, which is called “by the tooth.” It is recommended to add earthworms, shrimp and other foods containing carotene to the diet. Feeding beef heart and chicken is not recommended. Be sure to add plant foods to your diet

Breeding: breeding is possible, the most difficult thing is to get a pair, do not think that it is very simple, in fact, forming a pair with these cichlids is quite difficult. The aquarium must contain a large number of driftwood and large stones, you must understand that if suddenly there are other fish in the aquarium, be sure to remove them, the male will try to kill them, or he will die himself. During spawning there is another danger, if the female is not ready at the same time as the male, he can kill her, it is best to take care of a separator in the aquarium, so that in case something goes wrong, you can separate the male. Otherwise, no special intervention on your part is required; if everything is normal, spawning will definitely occur. As soon as the eggs are laid, try not to forget and not to put your fingers in the water, you can instantly be left without them, the fish become incredibly aggressive during this period, the clutch is protected very strongly. The fry grow very quickly, initially they take on Artemia nauplii, it is important not to miss the moment and separate the fry from the males when they become larger.

You will never get bored looking at an aquarium if you place a “red devil” there – that’s what aquarists call this cichlid. Lipped cichlazoma, by the way, is not necessarily red, but the name stuck. Apparently due to its dangerous "explosive" nature. This little devil comes from Central America can grow up to 30 cm in length. Its elongated, almost flat body ends with a tail in the shape of an open fan. The dorsal fin of cichlazoma is always aggressively pointed, the lips are full, and the forehead is bizarrely flat. The reservoirs of Nicaragua and Costa Rica are typical habitats for the little devil. Palette The body color of the big-lipped individual varies from orange or lemon - yellow color to gray or dark brown, and sometimes there are bloody red “devils” that justify their nickname. There are also white ones. Interestingly, in crater lakes, each color variation strictly adheres to its habitat. For example, brown-gray individuals inhabit the coastal zone, rich in vegetation and food, while orange and red ones have chosen shaded depths of more than six meters. This, of course, is not the case in home aquariums. Another interesting thing is that as your cichlid ages, it may change color. In the aquarium The first thing to consider is do not put this lady together with small fish, she will not leave them alive. Make sure that the water is “tropically” warm (21 - 26° C), the pH ranges from 6.0 to 8.0, and the water hardness is from 9 to 11. The aquarium for a pair of cichlids should be about 200 liters in volume. Leave a lot of free space, because the “red little devil” is extremely active and restless. Create shelters for him in the form of castles, grottoes or caves... The soil in an aquarium with devils is not recommended at all because of their love to “undermine” it under heavy objects that can fall on them. If you decide to use soil, it is better to add very little of it. This fidget will gladly feast on any ornamental plants, so think about whether to start them or not. Feeding Cichlazomas are natural predators. But that doesn't mean that plant food they don't need it. Be sure to feed your fidgets with finely chopped lettuce, boiled peas and other green plants. The ideal diet for your cichlids is special predator pellets and earthworms, insects and even live fish as a supplement. Breeding When your pets reach one year old, they are considered “mature” and are ready to have offspring. Encourage future parents to take action: replace a quarter of the water and increase its temperature by 4-6 degrees. Prepare in advance a flat stone or saucer, which will soon become a haven for more than a thousand yellowish eggs. After 3-4 days, small larvae will appear. And in another 5 days the fry will set off on their first independent voyage. Do not forget about the water temperature: all this time it should be from 24 to 29 degrees. Feed your babies brine shrimp, cyclops or diaptomus nauplii. Parents will tirelessly take care of eggs, larvae and fry, fan their offspring with fins, creating water movement. During this period, they will become especially aggressive and are ready to tear to pieces anyone who sets their sights on the “kids.” And the babies themselves will be sandy-gray for the first six months of life, and only then will they “bloom” and take on a natural, rich color. In fact, keeping long-lipped cichlids is much easier than many of their other “relatives” - cichlids. Spacious aquarium, frequent water changes, its good quality and a balanced, varied diet is the key to success in their maintenance. Therefore, if you like the exotic appearance and explosive character of the little devil, feel free to bring cichlids into your home and rest assured: you won’t be bored with them.

Cichlazoma labiatum is another very major representative American cichlids, which are difficult to recommend for keeping behind glass in a room aquarium. But for populating large spaces in offices and enterprise lobbies, it is quite suitable. Its appearance and dimensions will help create the image of your organization.

Synonyms, names in other languages: Herichthys labiatus, Amphilophus labiatum, Cichlasoma dorsatum, Red Devil, Large Lipped Cichlid

Habitat: Inhabits deep lakes of volcanic origin in Central America.

Description: Basic distinctive feature are large lips, which, when viewed in profile, resemble a pair of cockscombs, which in Latin sounds like labiatus (double comb). By appearance, especially on early stages development, they are easily confused with citron cichlasoma. Because of this, a large number of uncontrolled hybridizations of these two species occur. Because of this, some authors argue that it is almost impossible to meet purebred Amphilophus labiatum behind the glass of aquariums in Eurasia. Cichlases differ from lemon cichlases in color. But this sign is quite variable, so it cannot be used as a guide. A more reliable sign is the shape of the head. U Herichthys labiatus the snout is more elongated and resembles the muzzle of a fox. It ends with large lips, as if inflated with air or silicone 🙂. Citrons have a less elongated head, and their lips have more modest dimensions. Cichlasoma dorsatum was first described by Gunther around 1864.

In the lap of nature it reaches 30 - 35 centimeters in length. Behind the glass of the aquarium it is usually half the length.

Color ranges from dirty yellow to bright orange. Life expectancy at good conditions maintenance for about 15 years.

Cichlasoma dorsatum is strongly territorial, especially during spawning. Predator. They become sexually mature when they reach approximately 9–15 months of age. The number of eggs for each clutch is very variable, depending on the maturity, as well as the length of the female. Can number in the hundreds or thousands.

Differences between the sexes: Females are about one and a half to two times smaller than males. Male organisms have longer ends of the dorsal and anal fins. Also, their head is decorated with a fatty growth, which has the largest dimensions in the dominant male. Females of the lipped cichlazoma mature later than males. This must be taken into account when trying to create a pair ready for spawning. A mature male, not having achieved reciprocity from an immature girlfriend, can beat her to death.

aggressive. Aggression can be somewhat reduced by raising them together with other individuals from juvenile age, as well as by using a larger aquarium.

The capacity of the vessel is not very suitable for a city apartment. After all, one individual requires about 200 liters of water. And when keeping one pair, a vessel with a capacity of at least three hundred liters is required.

The soil should be selected in dark tones that correspond to the soil of the lakes in the natural habitat of Cichlasoma dorsatum. Dark color soil helps, to a certain extent, to calm Herichthys labiatus, somewhat extinguishing their aggressiveness.

As a primer you should use coarse or medium gravel in dark shades. It is necessary to delimit the bottom by placing several large stones vertically approximately every forty centimeters. These stones will play the role of a visual boundary between the territories of individual individuals or formed pairs. It is also necessary to build caves, grottoes, and canyons from large stones. They will serve as a reliable refuge for weaker neighbors or a female not ready for spawning. It would be desirable to decorate the bottom with driftwood, which will make it resemble the bottom of natural reservoirs in which the long-lipped cichlazoma lives.

Plants cichlasma labiatum loves. Dense thickets will help hide a girlfriend or other fish who prefers to avoid a showdown with Amphilophus labiatum. But like all cichlids, Amphilophus labiatum digs the soil, so it can dig up green bushes. Nevertheless, it is worth at least trying to decorate their home with plants that have a strong root system and hard leaves. May also be useful for

registration underwater world fast growing species.

Cichlazoma labiatum has the same requirements for water parameters as other members of the family. Hardness can range from 5 to 30°dH, with an optimum of 15 to 25°dH. pH from 7.2 to 8. Can withstand large short-term temperature fluctuations from 1 to 50°C. However, this is not worth experimenting with. The preferred temperature for keeping is the same as for most other cichlids from 24 to 26°C.

Lighting doesn't matter to fish. Therefore, you can select it according to your taste, as well as in accordance with the needs of the plants with which you tried to decorate this underwater world.

An aquarium with Cichlazoma labiatum fish must be equipped with powerful aeration and filtration systems. It is advisable that the filter system be external in order to free up the internal volume of the container, which is already critical for fish of this size. Even if you have a good water filtration and aeration system, you must remember to replace one quarter of its volume weekly.

As already mentioned above, long-lipped cichlazomas are territorial aggressive predators. Therefore, it is advisable to think again and again before adding any beautiful, but small fish to them. The smaller, slower, and more peaceful this fish is, the deeper and longer the thoughts should be. Small fish should not be added to these giants at all. Anything that fits into their mouth will be eaten. If you really want to diversify species composition home lake, then you need to turn your attention to other large American cichlases. In this case, it is advisable to grow them together from juvenile age. It is necessary to provide for a territorial division of the bottom, as well as a sufficient number of man-made shelters and thickets of grass, as described above.

Labiatums should not be kept with citron cichlasoma due to their ability to freely interbreed.

There are no problems with food. They will eat everything or almost everything you offer them.

Almost all varieties of live, frozen or dry food. Only liver and chicken meat should be avoided. You can feed bloodworms with earthworms, small crustaceans and mollusks. It is advisable to chop large pieces of food, such as earthworms, into small pieces. It is necessary to remember about plant nutrition. Especially plants or fruits that contain large amounts of carotenoids and procarotenoids. For example, it was noted that in order to maintain a bright orange color, it is necessary to add paprika to food ( Bell pepper) together with crustaceans - Artemia. Dry food mixtures containing carotenoids also have a positive effect on the color of Cichlasoma dorsatum. Just try to avoid using cheap knockoffs. It is better to use special foods such as “Red Parrot”, “Astacolor”.

Breeding has its own characteristics. So, for example, it is necessary to remember that female individuals of the big-lipped cichlazoma had the carelessness in the process of evolution to acquire the ability to mature later than males. This could end badly for them. However, some authors point out that it is precisely the immature girlfriend who can give an inappropriately cruel rebuff to the unlucky loving lover. Be that as it may, if the physiological development of the female lags, one of the intended producers may suffer greatly when trying to find out how the object of his desires relates to him. Also bad idea plant adult Cichlasoma dorsatum in one container, which have never seen each other before. In this situation, the likelihood of a fight is even higher.

Most best option- this is keeping producers in one container separated by a transparent partition until signs of mutual favor appear. After this, you can try to remove the partition. Don't forget to watch the events taking place. It is possible that the partition will have to be put in place for some time.

After a pair has formed, you can try to stimulate spawning. To do this, you should replace one quarter of the volume of water with fresh, settled water and gradually raise its temperature by 2 - 4 degrees Celsius. Amphilophus labiatum will choose some secluded place, and then, having cleared any flat stone there of algae and dirt, they will lay eggs on it from several hundred to several thousand. This is determined by the size and maturity of the female. Incubation lasts about 3 days, after another 4 - 6 days the larvae become fry, take a horizontal position and begin to feed near their native stone under the supervision of caring parents.

In nature, cichlazoma labiatum feeds its offspring with a special skin secretion, which begins to be produced by the time the offspring appear. In artificial conditions, you can help your pets by feeding their offspring with artemia or its nauplii. For about two weeks, the fry can hide in their father’s mouth at the slightest danger. During spawning, fish should not be disturbed. For your own safety, you should not dip your toes in the water. It is especially important to ensure that children do not do this. Pisces are aggressive and can quite seriously injure the impudent person they see in your finger.

Another tip is reflection. Before provoking spawning, think about where you will put the fry later. If you are a simple amateur, then problems may arise. However, a fish farm may also have problems getting rid of juvenile cichlid cichlids. After all, because of huge size not every fan will be able to keep even one such fish. So the demand for them is not that great. In general, it is difficult to recommend lipsticks for an indoor lake. After all, this body of water must take up a lot of space. However, as the well-being of the population grows, rooms of sizes appear that allow you to ride a scooter, and there is also room for a container of this volume. But this is still exclusive. Therefore, in my opinion, an aquarium with cichlizoma labiatum fish is more suitable for interior design of any spacious office or enterprise lobby. Their big size And unusual look can contribute to creating the image of the organization.

Here's an aquarium fish - lipped cichlasoma. I think that despite my big sizes it will still find its adherents among our nature lovers.