Electric Blue Johannii

Distribution:
   The Electric Blue Johannii or Bluegray Mbuna was described by Eccles in 1973 and is found in Lake Malawi, Africa. They inhabit areas around Masinje Rocks and Cape Ngombo. They, like other Melanochromis, are commonly found over small and medium sized rocks feeding on zooplankton, epibenthic invertebrates, and Aufwuchs. Aufwuchs refers to tough stringy algae that is attached to rocks. “Loose” Aufwuchs can contain insect larvae, nymphs, crustaceans, snails, mites and zooplankton.

Status:
   This species is listed on the IUCN Red List with the status of 'VU', meaning 'Vulnerable'.

Description:
   The Electric Blue Johannii or Bluegray Mbuna can live to around 12 years. They have a body that is torpedo shaped with coloration that is completely different between male and female. The males are a lighter blue with a dark blue to black horizontal band that runs across the back, and often broken up with spots of light blue. There is also a medium shade of blue that runs through the middle of the body horizontally. This mid band periodically seems to “leak” into the area above and below, almost causing a checkered pattern. There is a dark blue to black edging on all the fins which is “tipped” in a light blue. The male also has egg spot patterning on his anal fin. Due to similarity in coloration, males can be mistaken for their close relative, the Maingano Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos. The female and juveniles are a golden-orange coloring with the female having an indistinct dark horizontal band that runs the length of the body, starting in an area behind the eyes.
   All cichlids share a common feature that some saltwater fish such as wrasses and parrotfish have and that is a well-developed pharyngeal set of teeth that are in the throat, along with their regular teeth. Cichlids have spiny rays in the back parts of the anal, dorsal, pectoral, and pelvic fins to help discourage predators. The front part of these fins are soft and perfect for precise positions and effortless movements in the water as opposed to fast swimming.
   Cichlids have one nostril on each side while other fish have 2 sets. To sense “smells” in the water, they suck water in and expel the water right back out after being “sampled” for a short or longer time, depending on how much the cichlid needs to “smell” the water. This feature is shared by saltwater damselfish and cichlids are thought to be closely related.

Size - Weight:
   The Electric Blue Johannii grows to a length of just under 4” (10 cm) in the aquarium, and in the wild only grow to just under 3” (7.5).

Care and feeding:
   The Electric Blue Johannii is an omnivore that will accept frozen or live brine shrimp, mysis, high quality flake, pellets, spirulina, and other preparations for omnivore cichlids. It is always better to feed them small amounts several times a day instead of one large feeding. This keeps the water quality higher for a longer period of time. Of course, all fish benefit from added vitamins and supplements to their foods.
   A tank with a minimum of 36” (91 cm) in length is suggested, though a larger tank would be required if mixing these cichlids. They do fine in either freshwater or brackish freshwater but need good water movement along with very strong and efficient filtration. Provide lots of passageways and caves formed with piles of rocks. They like to dig so make sure the rocks sit on the bottom of the aquarium not on the substrate.
   Malawi Cichlids will deteriorate under poor water conditions. As these are messy fish, do water changes of 20 to 50% a week depending on bio load. Malawi bloat is a typical disease especially if their mostly herbivorous dietary needs are not met with quality foods. They can contract other diseases that ail all freshwater fish.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:
   These fish will swim in all areas of the aquarium.

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   The streams that flow into Lake Malawi have a high mineral content. This along with evaporation has resulted in alkaline water that is highly mineralized. Lake Malawi is known for its clarity and stability as far as PH and other water chemistries. It is easy to see why it is important to watch tank parameters with all Lake Malawi fish. A higher PH means that ammonia is more lethal, so water changes are a must for these fishes. A very slow acclimation to different PH levels can sometimes be achieved.
   Hardness: 6 - 10° dH
   Ph: 7.7 - 8.6
   Temp: 73 - 82° F (23 -28° C).

Social Behaviors:
   The Electric Blue Johannii is not considered to be a community fish. They do best in a species specific tank. They are best kept in groups of one male and several females. If overstocking is used as a form of aggression reduction, care should be taken to do several partial water changes a week. They are also aggressive toward similar looking males of a different species.
   They are a little mellower than other Melanochromis species. and can be kept with other less aggressive cichlids from Malawi that are not similar in coloring/shape. Tank mates can include cichlids such as the Cobalt Zebra, Red Empress, African Butterfly Peacock Aulonocara jacobfreibergi, Electric Yellow Labidochromis caeruleus, Kenyi, and the Lemon Cichlid Neolamprologus leleupi: also the Cuckoo catfish Synodotis multipunctatus. Do not put with other Melanochromis as they will attack and/or interbreed, which is not suggested.

Sexual Differences:
   The male is light blue with dark blue to black horizontal bands. The female is golden-orange in color.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   The Electric Blue Johannii or Bluegray Mbuna has been bred in captivity. This cichlid, like other Mbunas, spawn in the male’s territory. When spawning the male changes his color, it becomes an intense exaggeration of his original coloring that almost looks like a double exposed picture.
   The females lay 10 to 60 eggs and then immediately take them into their mouths before they are fertilized. The male flares out his anal fin, which has “egg spot patterning” so the female mistaken the eggs spots on the male’s anal fin as her own eggs and tries to take them in her mouth as well. In doing so, she then stimulates the male to discharge sperm (milt cloud) and inhales of cloud of “milt” which then fertilize the eggs in her mouth. In 14 to 21 days at about 82° F, the eggs are developed.
   The released fry can eat finely powdered dry foods and brine shrimp nauplii. The female will guard her young for a few days, even taking them into her mouth if there is a perceived threat. As long as you have plenty of hiding places, the young will have an easier time surviving until they are too big to eat. Electric Blue Johannii young start to show their colors within a few weeks and are ready to breed at 1.5”. See the description of how cichlids breed in Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Buy Electric Blue Johannii From LiveAquaria.com

Availability:
   Electric Blue Johanni or Bluegray Mbuna are sometimes found online for around $5.00 to $35.00 USD. Prices vary depending on whether they are male, female, or juvenile. They are sometimes found in fish stores, and they may be special ordered if you are willing to wait for them if they are out of season.
   When acquiring this fish, with all the different hybrids that have formed in captivity, there is no way to tell exactly what you are getting unless it is from a reputable dealer.

Author: Carrie McBirney