Venustus Cichlid

General information

These fish can reach  10 inches in captivity and in nature can reach 12 inches. The male has a blue face with yellow markings across the head and dorsal fin and has a yellow body. The female is silver with dark blotches, hence the common name “Giraffe Cichlid”. To keep this species in captivity, the aquarium should have a water pH between 7.6 and 8.8 and water temperature between 75ºF and 82ºF. The tank should have a sandy substrate, rocks and large open areas for swimming. Nimbochromis venustus is a predator in nature, it ambushes its prey by playing dead on the substrate and when smaller fish get close to the corpse thinking it is harmless, it eats them. Since this species is a predator it shouldn’t be kept in a community aquarium with smaller fish but it can be kept with other Cichlids, however, it is recommended to be kept in species specific tank. These fish should be kept in groups of several females to just one male, having more than one male will lead to violence until there is only one male left.

This species is carnivorous. In an aquarium it can be fed with prawns, krill, mysis and other live or frozen foods as well as dried foods. Vegetable matter should also be fed to these fish to keep a balanced diet.

Males have a blue head with yellow markings and a yellow body while females are silver with dark blotches all over the body, similar to a giraffe’s pattern.

The male starts by choosing a spawning site while displaying intense coloration to get a female’s attention. When a female is interested she will lay her eggs in the spawning site, the male will fertilize them and she will pick them up with her mouth. She will keep them in her mouth for 3 weeks. Once the fry are released they can be fed with brine shrimp.

These fish are susceptible to Malawi Bloat if overfed and if not provided with a balanced diet.

This species can be found in Lake Malawi, Africa.

Nimbochromis venustus likes to dig so it might get hurt if a rough substrate is used instead of a sandy substrate.