Animal-World > Freshwater Fish > Large Cichlids - American > Uaru Cichlid

   Though most impressive when spawning, the Uaru Cichlid is also quite attractive in its camouflage colors as a juvenile!

   A moderately large fish, the Uaru Cichlid will reach about 10" in the aquarium. They are an intelligent cichlid that makes a great pet. With their typical cichlid nature they come to know and respond to their owner. Once established they are easy to feed and raise as long as the water is kept very clean.

   Though they are not consider a community fish, they can be kept with other easy going Central and South American cichlids. They are a schooling species and should not be kept singly, but rather in groupings of two or more so they develop a good social and easy going personality. As long as there is plenty of room, a grouping can work in well in aquariums over 100 gallons.

   The Uaru Cichlid can be moderate to difficult to care for as they do need a larger tank with good water quality. Softer water is preferred along with moderate or subdued lighting. Provide a gravel substrate and a decor of rockwork with plenty of caves and hiding places. They enjoy densely planted aquariums and including some floating plants can help to diffuse the lighting. Just a little dedication will reap pleasurable results from this fish. Water changes need to be performed frequently to keep the nitrate levels low. If water quality is ignored, as with all cichlids, disease and death can occur.

For more Information on keeping this fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Dream Aquarium Build your own aquarium The Coolest and Funnest Screensaver in the World.

Distribution:
   The Uaru Cichlid was described by Heckel in 1840. They are found in South America, in the Amazon River basin along the Amazon-Solimoes River drainage. The range in this area runs from the Japura River to the Tapajos River. It is found also in the middle and lower Negro River basin. They enjoy clear steams of soft water, where they feed on worms, crustaceans, insects, detritus, fruit and plant matter.
   The natives use this fish for food as they are abundant in the Amazon River basin.

Status:
   This species is not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:
   The Uaru Cichlid is deep bodied with an oval disk shape. The body is a silver gray color with a large sideways tear drop shape (point of tear drop is at the tail) in dark brown to olive in the middle of their body. There is also a splotch at the base of the tail and they have orange eyes. The young look a little like leaf fish with a goldfish yellow color that is dotted with white through out. A darker shading near their belly area will develop into the “sideways” teardrop shape seen in the adults.
   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 Uaru Cichlid grows to a length of 12” (30 cm) in the wild. They are generally smaller in aquaria, reaching about 10” (25 cm).

Care and feeding:
   The Uaru Cichlid is an omnivore that eats worms, crustaceans, insects, detritus, fruit and plant matter in their natural environment. In the aquarium they can be fed frozen blood worms, live black worms, live earth worms, frozen brine shrimp, and blanched lettuce and peas. If you feed them leafy greens, they will be less likely to eat the plants of a planted aquarium. Feed 2 small amounts of food a day instead of a large quantity once a day. This will keep the water quality higher over a longer time. A one day a week fast is also beneficial. All fish benefit from vitamins and supplements added to their foods.
   These fish need a lot of room, a minimum of 70 gallons with 100 gallons or more being preferable for keeping them in groups. They are found in the same water as discus, so similar care is warranted. They prefer slow to moderate moving water along with good efficient filtration. Softer water is preferred along with a more moderate or subdued lighting. Provide a good depth of gravel for the substrate and a decor of rockwork with plenty of caves and hiding places. They do enjoy densely planted aquariums and including some floating plants can help to diffuse the lighting. Plants like anacharis and duckweed help to keep the water clean and are also a great food source for them. They will refuse to eat Java fern and Java moss, so including these plants as well will insure that all of your aquascaping won't be “mowed”. Arrange the aquascaping so that it creates natural divisions, this will provide areas for them to “defend”.
   Do water changes of 25%-50% weekly, more or less depending on stocking numbers, and keep track of nitrates. Also, oxygen levels must be maintained for best color and health. They are subject to infections as well as other diseases that ail all freshwater fish. One common problem is Ich. It can be treated with the elevation of the tank temperature to 86° F (30° C) for a few days since they can tolerate higher temperatures. They are prone to the same diseases as discus. Head and Lateral Line Erosion (HLLE), which use to be called "hole-in-the-head" disease is common with poor water conditions. This looks like cavities or pits on the head and face. It is believed this may be a nutritional deficiency of one or more of: Vitamin C, Vitamin D, calcium, and phosphorus. It is thought to be caused by a poor diet or lack of variety, lack of partial water changes, or over filtration with chemical media such as activated carbon.

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

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   Hardness: 5 - 12° dH
   Ph: 5.0 - 7.5
   Temp: 79 - 82° F (26 - 28° C)

Social Behaviors:
   The Uaru Cichlid is a not community fish. South American cichlids tend to be less aggressive than their African cousins, but space is very important. They can be kept with Discus, the Blue Acara and other Aequidens species, the Pearl Cichlid and other eartheaters, Angelfish, and other easy going Central and South American cichlids.
  They are a schooling species and should not be kept singly, but rather in groupings of two or more so they develop a good social and easy going personality. As long as there is plenty of room, a grouping can work well in aquariums over 100 gallons.

Sexual Differences:
   Hard to tell the difference, but at full grown size the male has a more pointed genital papillae and may be larger.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   The Uaru Cichlid are open breeders, egg layers, and are one of the more difficult species to breed. Treat them like you would Discus giving them a large amount of room in their own tank and provide large round rocks and flat slate to give them a choice of several places to spawn. Though the female prefers darker areas, leaving the lights on will keep the pair from spooking and eating their spawn. Leave other fish in with them until after they have spawned two or three times. This will help them to not become so stressed, and become continuous clutch eaters. You may put a mesh net held on by suction cups over the clutch to prevent them from being eaten by other fish. Remove any plecostomus or they will eat the clutch.
   The female will lay between 100 to 400 eggs and both parents guard the clutch. The eggs will hatch in about 4 days and the fry are fast growers, reaching 2” in a few months. The fry feed off the slime on the parent’s body, so removing them is not the best idea unless you are skilled at raising the young. Feed the fry newly hatched live baby brine shrimp about a week or two after they are hatched. The babies are dark and turn a yellow/gold color with white speckles. By 2” they are taking on their adult coloring. See more about cichlid breeding in: Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Buy Uaru Cichlid From LiveAquaria.com

Availability:
   The Uaru Cichlid is occasionally available online, but only rarely found in fish stores. Though they can be special ordered if you are willing to wait. Make sure you examine them for spinal defects before purchase. They range in price and have been available from between $12.00 - $30.00 USD.

Author: Carrie McBirney
Additional Information: Clarice Brough, CFS

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