July - Hill Country Cichlid Club

Index
Editorial 2
BAP report 3
Snorkel 101 4
Xystichromis sp. “blue fire fin 9
Listing of restricted Fish species 12
Upcoming Events 14
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis 16
CARES report 19
Cover Benitochromis nigrodorsalis by
Diane Tennison.
I once burnt a pile of brush I had sitting
on the side lawn. Just when the flames
started to spread, a little gecko came
running from under an old branch. I
think it escaped unscathed. Living
through this summer, I know what that
gecko must have felt like! Scorching
heat, no rain, I have no idea how the fish
in my ponds have survived. I guess I
have a new appreciation for the
toughness of cichlids. I really hope we
get a break very soon.
One way we have found to beat the heat
is to don on the snorkel and flippers, and
hit the local waterways. JB entertains us
with a synopsis of our aquatic
adventures.
The ACA is just around the corner. Our
own Evan Bowers will be speaking on
Apistogramma. Knock ‘em dead Evan!
There is an HCCC Auction in August so
keep your calendar clear. September is
FOTAS in Houston where Dave and I
are honored to both be speaking. The
week after FOTAS is the HCCC
quarterly meeting at Ryan’s Steak House
in New Braunfels. Our special guest
speaker will be HCCC member Anton
Lamboj! Anton is one of the most
entertaining speakers out there and we
are very fortunate to have had him visit
for the last three years. In October the
TCA will be hosting a fall show and
workshop. That brings us to the end of
the year HCCC Christmas Party.
Special speaker will be well known West
African cichlid enthusiast Ted Judy who
will talk on his recent trip to Cameroon.
All in all, there’s going to be a lot going
on in the Texas cichlid scene.
For those of you who are ACA
members, our own Barbara Wooton had
a nice bit written about her and her work
with CARES and the AquaHavens
School project in the Buntbarsche
Bulletin. Way to go Barbara! You
make us all proud.
Just a reminder that I can always use
content for the Lateral Line. Get up off
your butts, go sit in front of your
computer and get those fingers talking.
We are very fortunate to have a great
working relationship with many local
retailers. Show your support by giving
them your business. It’s a win-win for
us all.
See you all next issue.
- Greg
What’s this cichlid?
Post your best guess in the
Website/Newsletter section of the forum.

a proud supporter of the HCCC
15% off total purchase
excluding specials, package deals, and sale items
12315 Wetmore Rd.
San Antonio, TX 78247
(210)653-8880
www.petfrontier.com
BAP Report
- Dan Schacht
Over the last month, the BAP program
has seen the addition of some new
species and significant participation
from new members. A special
congratulation goes out to Takeru Garcia
and Jim (Pet Frontier) for the first time
participations in the BAP program! As
the BAP year progresses, the point
contest gets more heated. There are now
four members with more than 200 points
this year and the competition is just
getting better and better.
As a reminder, extra points are given for
fry and article donations when submitted
in conjunction. Of the 106 donations
this year, there are only 23 articles that
have been written. Articles can be the
deciding factor on whether or not you
win the Breeder of the Year award!
Thanks everyone for your participation
and keep up the great work!
Dan Schacht
7/16/09
To increase the amount of points for
your BAP submissions, you can
complete multiple of the following
items.
1 - Present a written account to be
published in the HCCC newsletter.
2 - Donate at least six fry (three fry in
small brooding species) to the HCCC for
auction.
3 - Donate the breeders to the HCCC for
auction.
This is a must have for all native fish
enthusiasts. “Fresh Water Fishes of
Texas” by Chad Thomas.

Snorkel 101
- JB Edmundson
In early February 2009, our very own
Greg Steeves posted some pictures he
took while snorkeling in Landa Park. I
knew right away I wanted to go on a
snorkeling trip with him. I had done
some snorkeling in Lake Ontario while
stationed in the Army at Ft. Drum
(upstate NY). So I contacted Greg and
asked when he’d be going again and if I
could tag along. You guys know Greg,
within a week we were getting our gear
on at Landa Park about to take a dip. I’d
guess the first time we went, the outside
temperature was probably mid- 70’s
which is pretty constant with a south
Texas winter. I put my foot in the water
and that almost ended the trip for me.
Greg was already face down in the water
taking photos. I couldn’t chicken out; if
he could do it so could I. So I sat down
on a rock ledge and slid in, why lie, it
was freezing!!
Large expanses of Jungle val
(Vallisneria Americana) is home to
uncountable livebearers, shrimp and
other creatures.
and very clean. You have to manage
over some tall plants and grasses but the
majority of the lake is open and rather
deep. On the first trip we snorkeled
about 45 minutes and only covered about
1/100 th of the lake. We saw crayfish,
turtles, sailfin mollies, Shiners, Texas
Cichlids, BIG Monster Bass and an
occasional Pleco.
Some of the beautiful aquatic scenery
beneath the surface in Landa Lake.
However just like Greg said in a matter
of seconds you’d get use to it and that
part was true. My first observation of
the water was from the banks
overlooking the lake, it looked very dirty
but once you get into it, it is crystal clear
A large pleco Hypostomus plecostomus
at the mouth of a cave in Landa Lake.
When we were finished snorkeling we
walked back to our cars. We passed a
small “man-made” wading pool and
Greg and I noticed some very nice Texas
Cichlids in full breeding dress. Unable to
resist we hopped into the small pool and
did a quick snorkel there in water 1-2

feet deep at the most.(For those that
haven’t been to Landa Park they have
made a channel in the spring that feeds
the lake and in a flat area they dammed
it and it’s made a small wading pool.) In
the middle of February the cichlids were
guarding nests, full of free swimming
fry! That was the highlight of my first
trip! Once we were changed into dry
clothes we planned our next trip!!
pool and after finishing snorkeling in the
lake we went to investigate the cichlid
population there. Like last time there
were plenty of Texas Cichlids guarding
nests. As we walked we planned to do
another trip as soon as I got back from
Disney World.
Herichthys cyanoguttatus guarding a pit
full of fry.
Herichthys cyanoguttatus in Landa Park,
New Braunfels, TX.
My family had a Disney World trip the
first week in March so we had to plan
around that for the second snorkel trip.
Rather than wait till I got back from
Disney we decided to hit the lake a few
days before we left for Florida. This trip
was probably the longest snorkel we’ve
ever done. I am guessing we were in the
water over 2 hours. We saw pretty much
the same fish as before with the addition
of a massive school of some kind of
Tilapia. The highlight of this trip was
Greg and I found a rock cave in the
bottom of the lake with a 2-3 foot Pleco
partially inside the cave. Greg dove
down to get a good look at it and it
startled the fish and it took off. The cool
thing was there were hundreds if not a
thousand tiny Pleco fry swarming
around in the entrance of the cave and it
looked like a small cloud in the water.
We couldn’t resist a visit to the wading
The third snorkel trip was in mid-to late
March and it was a shorter dive in the
“main” lake. Shortly after getting in the
water I was attacked by a giant anaconda
sized snake. (The size of the snake has
actually grown from about 1-2 feet to at
least 20 feet in just 4 months through the
various telling of the story). Believe me
when I saw the snake I managed to make
it to the bank in Olympic record time!!
When Greg came over and I told him
“WE” decided to go over to the wading
pool, instead of the main lake. We
weren’t scared, just so you know, but we
didn’t want to cause the snake any more
stress. In the wading pool we were able
to borrow a few “wild caught” Texas
Cichlid fry with small hand held fish
nets for scientific reasons. Due to
Greg’s travels and my work schedule we
didn’t get to snorkel for the next month.
The fourth snorkel trip was at the yearly
HCCC picnic. Luckily, to offer some
proof of the snake story in the last

snorkel trip, while everyone was
socializing a nice snake was seen by
several members and photos were taken.
This was the same type of snake I saw
before and it was determined to be a
“water snake” and totally harmless… but
I must add when swimming in the water
with them they are “VERY
DANGEROUS” snakes!! After a nice
meal the guys (JB, DanJay, Dave
Hansen, Greg Steeves and Nick A.)
decided to hit the water and take a dip in
the main lake. Not even 5 minutes into
the swim the park rangers made us exit
the lake and told us we couldn’t swim in
the lake for environmental reasons.
Rather than cause a big scene we drove
over to the Comel River and took a little
snorkel there. It turned out to be a really
good spot with some interesting fish but
the view wasn’t crystal clear due to the
current and tubers everywhere. We
decided to make a “Snork Club” and do
more snorkeling in the future.
A non venomous diamond back water
snake can be startling when encountered
in the water!
The 5 th snorkel trip in San Marcos I was
unable to attend. However I hear it was
a real blast. The guys went high tech on
this trip and even “Chummed” for fish!
Thanks in part to Rare Dave!
The 6 th trip was Greg and I again. This
was a really good trip down the Comel
River again. We found lots and lots of
cool fish and Greg was able to get
several photos to include the famous one
of me that is somewhat out of focus but
no one was looking at me anyway!!
This was a good 2 hour trip and we had a
blast. We were able to get a few more
Texas Cichlid fry on this dive as well as
some nice plants.
I really hope the club embraces the
snorkeling opportunities in our local
area. Don’t go to a lake or river and say
it looks nice or look at the ducks and
minnows. Get in the water and see that
there is a whole “nother” world under
the surface. The best part about all the
snorkeling trips we have been on is that
the total cost when combined is $0!!
Once you have the basic equipment of a
mask, snorkel and flippers (total cost
$20-30) the rest is free and the aquatic
life is priceless. Greg and I meet for
lunch and then we’re off to the water.
Keep an eye out in the “Snork Club”
section for an upcoming trip and think
about joining us!!

Fish Wars, the Hybrid Menace!
Welcome to Cincinnati
and the 2009 American Cichlid Association Convention
July 30 - August 2
The Greater Cincinnati Aquarium
Society (GCAS) is very proud and
extremely excited to once again host the
convention. The American Cichlid
Association conventions over the last
few years have undeniably set the bar
high; but, GCAS has a great group of
people who will be working tirelessly to
make the 2009 ACA convention one of
the most informative, educational,
entertaining, and just plain fun
conventions you’ve ever attended!
The 4 days of the convention will be
packed with exciting guest speakers
including Ad Konings, Spencer Jack,
and Michi Tobler; and workshops on
“Catfish” hosted by Stephan Tanner and
“Photography” by Gary Lange.
We will have day trips to the Cincinnati
Zoo and Newport Aquarium/Krohn
Conservatory; or explore on your own to
area fish stores, shopping malls (we now
have IKEA here!), Kings Island
amusement park, local restaurants,
sightseeing downtown Cincinnati, or
spend the day at CoCo Key indoor water
park on the hotel grounds!
Don’t forget about the ACA juried Fish
Show for all fish members of the family
Cichlidae and the colossal fish auction
on Sunday!!
Oh, and the Fabulous Babes will be here
with their wonderful silent auction of all
things “fish” and their, ahem, oral
auction!!
Whew… and that’s just part of what we
have in store for you! Come to
Cincinnati, bring the family, and enjoy a
wonderful 2009 ACA convention!!
- The 2009 ACA Convention Committee

The HCCC would like to announce the grand opening new location
of Amazonia Aquariums. Caroline Estes, owner, has been a long
time supporter of the HCCC. As one of the founding members of
Babes in the Cichlid Hobby (B.I.T.C.H), Caroline’s commitment
to cichlid conservation has been an inspiration to our club,
influencing direction. On this occasion we extend to Caroline and
her staff the very best of wishes and look forward to a wonderful
continued relationship for many years to come!
AMAZONIA INTERNATIONAL
Amazonia Aquariums is a full service aquarium specialty store located at 4701 IH 35N in
Austin, TX. From fish bowls to exotic custom-built showpieces, we have the perfect
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Phone 512.451.0958
Hours
Mon - Thurs: 11:00 am - 7:00 pm
Fri: 11:00 am - 10:00 pm
Sat: 10:00 am - 7:00 pm
Sun: 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Amazonia International
a proud supporter of the HCCC
Member discounts:
20% off Fish & Live Plants
10% off Tanks, Stands, Eheims & Eclipses
25% off Filters & Powerheads

Xystichromis sp. “blue fire fin”
- Greg Steeves
In 1999 I was fortunate to be invited to
the New England Aquarium to tour the
brand new ‘Nyanja!’ exhibit. This was
the first public display depicting the
aquatic life of Lake Victoria and
announcement of the perils taking place
there. This was part of the vision Dr.
Les Kaufman had rendered. A
wonderful friend from Rhode Island,
Ron Anderson, had organized this
adventure for our small network of
cichlid enthusiasts. It was during this
trip that I first came into contact with a
fish generically called Haplochromis sp.
“blue fire fin”. Brad Harrison, a Lake
Victoria cichlid friend, had brought me a
number of furu that included a colony of
these.
introduction into the hobby on or before
1996. At this time there were many
beautiful cichlid coming from the Lake
Victoria region of Africa. Most all the
importation came through Laif
Demason’s Old World Exotic Fish Inc.
This was a very exciting time for the
haplochromine hobbyist as every
shipment brought never before seen
cichlids into the hobby. Looking back at
the number of different fish exploding
on the scene, we really weren’t aware of
just how rare these creatures were. I
myself lost a colony of Haplochromis
sp. 'purple yellow” that, to this day, I
have been unable to replace. I only wish
that I had the knowledge and attitude
towards species preservation that I do
now.
A male Xystichromis sp. “blue fire fin”
in the aquarium.
Once settles in my tank days later, the
males transformed from silver fish with
horizontal barring to a much darker fish
with crimson red fins. It was easy to see
where the fish got it descriptive field
name. Despite my best efforts, I was
never able to ascertain where these fish
had originated. I do recall hearing about
these cichlid years before I had the
opportunity to see it live so I would put
A young male Xystichromis sp. “blue
fire fin” beginning to display adult
coloration.
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Back in 1999, I was very impressed with
the beautiful coloration of my colony of

Haplochromis sp. “blue fire fin”. This is
a small cichlid with both sexes reaching
a maxium length of 11cm. The males
sported a blue-grey head. A horizontal
thick bar ran midlaterally along the
flank. The top portion of the body,
above the lateral bar, a dark red, almost
black color dominated. Below this line
the belly section was a mustard-yellow.
The cranial slope is straight. In regards
of coloration distribution, body shape
and markings, Haplochrmis sp. “blue
fire fin” closely resembles Xystichromis
sp. “flameback” from the Kisumu,
Kenya area of Lake Victoria. From
hence forth because of the generalized
cues of Xystichromis, I will include the
undescribed species “blue fire fin” in
this grouping. Last year I was able to
once again obtain a small group of
Xystichromis sp. “blue fire fin” at the
2008 ACA convention in Atlanta.
An adult female Xystichromis sp. “blue
fire fin”.
As far as aquatic husbandry is
concerned, one would be hard pressed to
find a less demanding fish. I have a
group of nine fish housed in a 210 liter
tank with an equally sized colony of
Pundamilia nyererei from Igombe
Island. Aquarium décor consist of a
sand bottom, large ‘texas holey rock’
piled against the rear portion of the tank
and numerous Anubias species scattered
among the rockwork. The aquarium is
filtered with a large power filter. There
is no heater on this tank and these furu
have prospered in temperatures ranging
from 18C to 33C. I try to be diligent
with my large water changes when the
temperature is high.
For the most part, both P. nyererei and X
sp. “blue fire fin” coexist without
aggression problems. Both species
prefer to keep any aggression confine to
their own. The only time territory is
claimed with vigor is with the onset of
spawning. The male defends the area at
the base of a rock using this as a center
in which to entice a ripe female to
spawn. Eventually she will succumb to
his advances and spawning occurs in the
typical haplochromine manner. Spawns
so far have been very small. The first
brood was seven fry however in
subsequent attempts; the number of eggs
has climbed to 15. I don’t know if the
small spawn size is normal or if the
frequent interruption the male perceives
is the cause of small brood sizes.
As with most of the fish in my
collection, the staple food source is a
blend of my own flakes consisting of
brine shrimp, earthworm, spirulina and
basic tropical flake. The fry have done
well on a diet of this same flake mixture
crushed into a fine powder.
There is a good chance we will never
know exactly the collection locale of
Xystichromis sp. “blue fire fin” but this
lack of pedigree should not hinder one
from keeping this beautiful little fish.
Although it has never had the popularity
of other species from Lake Victoria, this
is a beauty in its own right that deserves
a prominent place in out cichlid
collections.

Presented by
F.O.T.A.S. LVIII
September 11 th -13 th
The Omni Hotel
13210 Katy Freeway
Houston, Texas 77079
281-558-8338
All Species Show, Awards Banquet, Giant all-day fish auction.
Speaker Lineup
Spencer Jack-Charles Hawks-Greg Steeves-Dave Hansen
For more information visit http://www.houstonaquariumsociety.org/
Leslie’s Pool Supply
a proud supporter of the HCCC
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Test kits and Pond Supplies
AquaTek Tropical Fish
a proud supporter of the HCCC
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Listing of restricted Fish species in
Texas
Lampreys, Family Petromyzontidae
All species except Ichthyomyzon
castaneus and I. gagei
Freshwater Stingrays, Family
Potamotrygonidae
All species
Arapaima, Family Osteoglossidae
Arapaima gigas
South American Pike Characoids,
Family Characidae
All species of genus
Acestrorhyncus
African Tiger Fishes, Family, Subfamily
Alestiidae: Hydrocyninae
All species of genus Hydrocynus
Piranhas and Pirambebas, Family
Serrasalmideae, Subfamily
Serrasalminae
All species except pacus of the
genus Piaractus
Payara and other wolf or vampire tetras,
Family Characidae, Subfamily
Rhaphiodontinae
All species of genera Hydrolycus
and Rhaphiodon, including
Cynodon
Dourados, Family Characidae,
Subfamily Bryconinae
All species of genus Salminus
South American Tiger Fishes, Family
Erythrinidae
All species
South American Pike Characoids,
Family Ctenolucidae
All species of genera Ctenolucius
and Boulengerella, including
Luciocharax and Hydrocinus
African Pike Characoids, Families
Hepsetidae and Ichthyboridae
All species
Electric Eels, Family Electrophoridae
Electrophorus electricus
Carps and Minnows, Family Cyprinidae
All species and hybrids of
species of genera:
Aspius, Pseudoaspius,
Aspiolucius (Asps);
Abramis, Blicca, Megalobrama,
Parabramis (Old World
Breams);
Hypophthalmichthys or
Aristichthys (Bighead Carp);
Mylopharyngodon (Black Carp);
Ctenopharyngodon (Grass Carp);
Cirrhinus (Mud Carp);
Thynnichthys (Sandkhol Carp);
Hypophthalmichthys (Silver
Carp);
Catla (Catla);
Leuciscus (Old World Chubs,
Ide, Orfe, Daces);

Tor, including the species Barbus
hexiglonolepsis (Giant Barbs and
Mahseers);
Rutilus (Roaches);
Scardinius (Rudds);
Elopichthys (Yellowcheek);
Catlocarpio (Giant Siamese
Carp);
All species of the genus Labeo
(Labeos) except Labeo
chrysophekadion (Black
SharkMinnow)
Walking Catfishes, Family Clariidae
All species
Electric Catfishes, Family
Malapteruridae
All species
South American Parasitic Candiru
Catfishes, Subfamilies Stegophilinae and
Vandelliinae
All species
Pike Killifish, Family Poeciliidae
Belonesox belizanus
Marine Stonefishes, Family
Synanceiidae
All species
Tilapia, Family Cichlidae
All species of genera Tilapia,
Oreochromis and Saratherodon
Asian Pikeheads, Family
Luciocephalidae
All species
Snakeheads, Family Channidae
All species
Old World Pike-Perches, Family
Percidae
All species of the genus Sander
except Sander vitreum
Nile Perch, Family Centropomidae (also
called Latidae)
All species of genera Lates and
Luciolates
Seatrouts and Corvinas, Family
Sciaenidae
All species of genus Cynoscion
except Cynoscion nebulosus, C.
nothus, and C. arenarius
Whale Catfishes, Family Cetopsidae
All species
Ruffe, Family Percidae
All species of genus
Gymnocephalus
Air sac Catfishes, Family
Heteropneustidae
All species
Swamp Eels, Rice Eels or One-Gilled
Eel, Family Synbranchidae
All species
Freshwater Eels, Family Anguilliidae
All species except Anguilla
rostrata
Round Gobies, Family Gobiidae
All species of genus Neogobius,
including N. melanostoma
Temperate Basses, Family Moronidae
All species except for Morone
saxatilis, M. chrysops and M.
mississippiensis and hybrids
between these three species
Temperate Perches, Family
Percichthyidae
All species, including species of
the genus Siniperca (Chinese
perches)
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,
4200 Smith School Road, Austin, TX
78744
http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us

The Hobby Palace
a proud supporter of the HCCC
10% off selected items
5305 Bolm Road #3
Austin, TX
(512) 389-3833
Upcoming Events
Hill Country Cichlid Club Bowling
Day
Hill Country Cichlid Club Bowling Day
26 July 2009 12:00pm to 3:00pm
Brunswick at 4330 Thousand Oaks Blvd.
3 Hours of bowling for 11.99 includes
shoe rental.
Family and friends welcome!!
Please RSVP DanJay33 via PM
ACA 2009 Annual Convention July
30th-Aug 2, 2009.
Cincinnati, Ohio
http://www.20009aca.com
Hill Country Cichlid Club Box
Exchange Meeting and Auction. Aug
9th, 2009.
PCCA box exchange auction.
Dave’s Rare Aquarium Fish.
San Antonio, Texas.
Texas Cichlid Association Annual End
Of Summer Pool Party. Aug 15th 2009.
Hosted by Mike and Diane Stewart,
1025
Granite Lane, DeSoto, Texas, beginning
at around 3:00. Call (972) 223-3735 for
directions.
Hill Country Cichlid Club Auction
Springhill Suites
3636 Northwest Loop 410
San Antonio, TX 78201
August 23rd
Doors open at 10:00am
Auction begins promptly at noon.
F.O.T.A.S 2009 September 11th-13th
The Federation of Texas Aquarium
Society’s annual show will be hosted by
The Houston Aquarium Society.
The Omni Hotel
13210 Katy Freeway
Houston, Texas 77079
281-558-8338
Hill Country Cichlid Club Quarterly
Meeting Sept 19, 2009.
Ryan’s Steakhouse New Braunfels TX.
6:00pm
Special guest speaker, HCCC member
Anton Lamboj
Texas Cichlid Association Fall
Workshop, Show and Auction.
October 2009.
Details to follow.
Gabe's Fish and Exotic Pets
a proud supporter of the HCCC
15% off Livestock
and most supplies
5418 Glen Ridge
San Antonio, TX 78229
(210) 290-9376
939 3rd St, Rosenberg, TX. 77471-2605 Phone (832) 595-2777
cjones@fish-ranch.com

HCCC Leadership Group
Jim Beck
Dave Hansen
JB Edmundson
Diane Tennison
Dan Irwin
Evan Bowers
Greg Steeves
HCCC Webmaster
Robert DeLeon
HCCC Database guru
Evan Bowers
HCCC Treasurer
Dave Hansen
HCCC Membership
Diane Tennison
HCCC Meeting Coordinator
Dan Irwin
HCCC Librarian
Takeru Garcia
HCCC Lateral Line Editor
Greg Steeves
HCCC BAP Chairman
Dan Schacht
HCCC CARES Chairman
Troy Veltorp
HCCC CARES Coordinator
Barbara Wooton
HCCC CARES/International
CARES Committee
Claudia Dickinson
Dave Hansen
Barbara Wooton
Troy Veltrop
Greg Steeves
Box Exchange Committee
Dave Schumacher
Greg Steeves
HCCC Honorary Life Members
Spencer Jack 2004
Robert DeLeon 2006
Anton Lamboj 2007
Dave Hansen 2007
Evan Bowers speaks on Apistogramma
HCCC meeting June 2009.
A new HCCC CARES species, Psammochromis riponianus.

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Benitochromis nigrodorsalis
- Diane Tennison
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis male.
The first time I saw this incredibly
beautiful fish, it was a photograph taken
by HCCC’s own Dave Hansen. I had
not kept any West African species but
this fish started my desire to do so. I did
some research and quickly found that I
was not prepared to keep this fish – so
began my not so patient wait... After
some furniture re-arranging (who needs
a couch anyway...), I made room and
purchased a 40 breeder. I aquascaped
with a large piece of driftwood, 2 rocks
(1 on each end) and HEAVY planting.
Since I am a little skeptical about my
thumb color... I used plastic plants. This
was the first tank that I had set up like
this as all of my other tanks (up to 16
now!) house Malawi or Tanganyikan
fish – so there are few to no plants in
them. The tank is filtered with an
Emperor 400 HOB filter. I actually
placed the filter to one side for best
results. Originally I had it in the middle
and I think that the first spawn was
sucked up when the parents released in
the back of the tank for privacy... I was
pretty proud of my handy work and
hoped the fish would like it. I picked up
six individuals from Dave’s Rare
Aquarium Fish and my adventure began.
A pair quickly presented itself and
seemed to be in the process of bonding.
Of the remaining fish, two began to

color (appear to be females) and the
other two remain, to this day, in juvenile
coloration. This dwarf riverine cichlid
from Cameroon, West Africa is very
difficult to sex. In my experience, the
differences are very subtle. The female
actually has more coloration than the
male. The gill plates are a blue-green
iridescent color, the tail has some yellow
in it, the pectoral fins have red in them
and the dorsal fin has a very black line
along the base with a silvery iridescent
outer edge. When the female is
becoming gravid, her pelvic area
becomes very pink. The male does not
have the silvery iridescent outer edge to
the dorsal fin and his dorsal fin is a little
longer and more pointed. He also has
some small silvery spots in his anal fin.
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis pair with
the male holding eggs.
I have not been able to observe an actual
spawning process with this pair, but the
warning signs are obvious. The
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis, as a pair
bonding species, is very aggressive to
others in the tank. The bonded pair
swims in all areas of the tank on a
regular basis. The other members of the
group spend their lives down on one end
in an area (from top to bottom) that is no
larger than a few inches. I was advised
to keep the entire group together until
the pair had gone through several
spawns. Having the “competition” in
the tank helps to strengthen the pair
bond. For the most part there is no
nipping – just aggressive chasing, so I
have left the entire group in tact. When
the pair is getting ready to spawn, the
female will begin to turn pink in the
belly. When this happens, the remainder
of the group is pretty much pinned into
the corners by both of the pair. The
group is NOT allowed to leave their
positions, unless it is feeding time. I
have observed that the pair show little
interest in the group when I drop some
flakes in. Typically within a few days of
this type of behavior I will notice the
female holding eggs. From what I have
read in Anton Lamboj’s publication
“The Cichlid Fishes of Western Africa”,
spawning occurs on a flat, hard surface.
The female will drop the eggs and the
male will fertilize them. Once this is
done, the female picks up the eggs and
holds them in typical mouthbrooder
fashion. That’s where the “typical”
stops. This fish is a bi-parental
mouthbrooder. This means that the male
and female will share in the incubation
process. In my pair, the female alone
will hold the eggs for the first 4-5 days.
Once the fry have developed a bit, she
will begin exchanging them with the
male. I was in awe the first time I
realized that the male was holding the
fry! More so when I actually saw the
pair, allowing the small fry to explore
the sand bed as they kept a watchful eye.
When they became uncomfortable with
my observation, the male began to pick
the fry up. It was really funny because,
as is typical with children, they didn’t
want to come in! The male had to

forcibly pick up several fry and then the
others got the idea and swam into his
mouth on their own. Unfortunately, I
did not have my camera ready and didn’t
want to disturb them, so I have not
photographed this process yet. The pair
has spawned 3 times since I have had
them. The first spawn only lasted for a
few days and then the fry were gone.
The second spawn was successful. The
parents traded the fry back and forth for
about 2 weeks. Once the fry were being
let out on a regular basis – I noticed that
they were growing smaller in numbers. I
think they were being poached off by the
rest of the group as the Benitochromis
nigrodorsalis is normally known to be a
very good parent. The third spawn was
also successful. I allowed the parents to
exchange the fry for almost 2 weeks to
the day. I was going on vacation so I
didn’t want to leave this spawn to fate. I
netted the female and was going to strip
her. I gently caressed her in the net and
she willingly spit her fry. I caught her in
my hand and returned her to the tank. I
was left with a net of fry! I didn’t even
try to count – but would guess that there
were at least 20 fry.
release the fry at the back of the tank for
the first few days. Once the fry became
more bold -–the pair began releasing
right at the front glass! The pair will
calmly “tread water” as the fry swim all
around – bouncing along the bottom,
picking at the sand, picking at the plants,
picking at the rocks. The pair watches
VERY closely. If a fry gets too far from
the group – one of the pair will actually
pick the fry up in the mouth and bring it
back to the group – gently spitting it
back with its siblings. They will let me
watch for a long time. However, I guess
they are like famous people because
when I start behaving like the paparazzi
– they will only let me snap a few
pictures before they pick the fry up and
move on.
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis male.
This beautiful fish has been a wonderful
addition to my Fish House. I have truly
enjoyed watching the behavior and look
forward to new spawns – hopefully I
will be able to photograph the fry
exchange or get some better shots of the
fry “play sessions” soon.
Benitochromis nigrodorsalis female.
Upon returning from my vacation, I
noticed that the pair had spawned again.
After some patient waiting, I have
finally been able to witness some of the
parenting behavior. The pair would only
Authors Benitochromis nigrodorsalis
aquarium.

CARES REPORT
- Barbara Wooton
I know this is something you all hear a
lot from CARES, but I think it's
imperative to remember how important
what you are all doing really is. Setting
aside a tank for an “at risk” species is
critical, and being able to breed these
fish and pass them around is the ultimate
in caretaking. It is the goal we all strive
for, to be able to set up new colonies of
our babies.
part, and hopefully learned something
from it.
Thoracochromis brauschi is on the
CARES priority list.
For those of you that have set aside a
tank for an at risk species, I thank you,
and so should all hobbyists. The fish I
so enjoy wouldn't be here if it wasn't for
people like you, who dedicate so much
time and energy into this endeavor. So
let me say it now, "Thank you."
CARES species Paretroplus menarambo
pair fanning eggs. Photo by Dave
Schumacher.
I think we've all had our successes and
failures with endangered species. To
lose a fish can be difficult; to lose one
that is irreplaceable is devastating. The
"what happened? What should I have
done differently?" questions kick in, and
at least for me, the guilt and sadness. I
think these failures make the successes
sweeter; but sometimes it's difficult to
look to the future with such a blow.
There have been a few times that I've
considered giving up after just such an
event, but with support from members of
this club, I've managed to get past that
Yssichromis sp. “blue tipped”, a CARES
species from Lake Victoria.
For those that are considering doing this,
I can only say that I've found such a
sense of accomplishment from this
hobby, and being able to gift fry to other
hobbyist. I'm not an old hand at this,
being a part of this club for less than a
year, but I've found something I truly
believe in. And one thing I believe is:
Together, we can make a difference!