African Cichlid – Red Top Balck Bar Zebra – 4cm

The Red Top Black Bar Zebra Cichlid comes from Nakantenga Island in Lake Malawi, Africa.

Breeding and feeding is quite similar to that of other Mbuna. As they eat algae in nature, a vegetable diet with an additional protein snack (krill, mysis, artemia, chopped shrimp, … but NO animal meat!) every now and then is recommended. These Mbuna breed like rabbits, so if you provide many hiding places (many small rocks) in the aquarium, you’ll soon get an overcrowded aquarium.

Red Top Black Bar Zebras are a maternal mouthbrooder. The male will select a breeding site, it will usually be on the sandy bottom. He may, or may not, dig a pit in the sand down to the aquarium bottom. This pit may be up against a large rock, or it may not. They don’t seem too finicky. Once his breeding site is picked out and a female is ready to spawn, he will display by shaking in front of the female. (Note if a male is shaking in the same way in front of another male, he is displaying his dominance. The subdominant male will clamp his fins and lose his colour as a sign of submission.) After displaying for the female, he will attempt to lead her back to his spawning site by swimming away, but shaking his tail in a manner only seen during spawning. Once the spawn is complete, the female will hold the eggs in her mouth until the fry are able to swim and forage for themselves. This is usually 13-18 days. The female will take food into her mouth during the brooding cycle, however, it may be to feed her fry as much as it is to feed herself. Brood sizes will usually be less than 20 fry, and 10-15 is most common.

• Species – Pseudotropheus Pyrsonotos
• Common Name – Red Top Black Bar Zebra
• Origin – Lake Malawi
• Diet – Omnivore/Herbivore
• PH Range – Alkaline 7.5 – 8.5
• Water Type – Hard
• Temperature – Tropical 24°c
• Breed Type – Mouth brooder
• Current Size – approximately 5cm (Grows to approximately 12cm)
• Sex – Un-sexed