Photo: Lerdsuwa, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fairy cichlid
Aulonocara jacobfreibergi
17 cm
Adult size
550 L
Minimum volume
4
Minimum group
12 years
Lifespan
Water parameters
Understand these values- Genus
- Aulonocara
- Diet
- carnivore
- Social life
- small group
In the wild
Overview
One of the first Aulonocara to reach the hobby, sometimes called the “Freiberg's peacock” and long sold under the name Trematocranus. Several aquarium forms exist (“eureka”, albino…).
- Scientific name
- Aulonocara jacobfreibergi (Johnson, 1974)
- Classification
- Cichliformes › Cichlidae
- IUCN Red List
- Least concern (LC)
Natural habitat
Endemic to southern Lake Malawi (Cape Maclear, Domwe islands, Monkey Bay…)
Observations (GBIF) and localities Native countries Rivers and lakes
It lives in the lake's intermediate zones, where rocky shores give way to sand scattered with rocks; the males defend small caves, whereas most Aulonocara feed above the sand.
Behaviour
Less peaceful than its cousins, the male goes after fish of similar colours. Keep it with calm Haplochromis and quiet mbuna such as Labidochromis caeruleus, but not with other Aulonocara (hybrids). It searches the sand for invertebrates, which it detects through the sensory pores on its head.
Sources:FishBase Seriously Fish GBIF · Base map: Natural Earth