Uaru amphiacanthoides
Uaru amphiacanthoides - An immature pair. Note the wedge-shaped black patch on the flanks. PHOTO: © Peter Robinson. |
Scientific Name: Uaru amphiacanthoides Heckel, 1840.
Common Name: Triangle Cichlid, Wedge Cichlid.
Geographic Origin: Brazil and Guyana.
Habitat: Quiet, slow-moving backwaters of the middle and lower Rio Negro.
Diet: Herbivore/insectivore, but loves all foods. Greedy eaters.
Gender Differences: Male has red eyes, female yellow.
Breeding: Substrate spawner.
Temperament: Peaceful. May get slightly aggressive with conspecifics. Can be bossy at feeding times.
Maximum Size: 25cm.
Temperature Range: 27-30°C.
pH: 6.0-7.0.
Water Hardness: Very soft.
Comments:
In my experience with these regal and gentle giants, which dates back to 1973, spawning them in January 1974. I find they are rather timid and easily scared, yet they rule the tank in which they live. They spawn similarly to Discus and the fry are contact feeders, meaning they crop their parents' body slime for early sustenance. The fry can be reared away from the parents by using Liquifry or boiled egg yolk squeezed through a cloth, but I left the fry with the parents and they grew rapidly. You have to watch the fry or they can do damage to the adults if left too long, so it is wise to remove them at around 20mm.
The Uaru are probably one of the most intelligent cichlids I have kept; they proved very inventive in stopping me from netting out their fry, developing new ways at each attempt, even to allowing me to net fry against the tank glass then gripping the net and pulling it back to let the kids out. I found in the end I had to drain the water till the adults were unable to swim upright and then net out the young. The young Uaru are very different in colour to adults, they are light in colour and attractively mottled, this colouration gradually disappears as the fish grow and develop the rich chocolate shade with the characteristic black wedge marking on their flanks.
Uaru do not like bright lights and love to hang out around driftwood. Floating plants are a good idea but they will graze on them; floating Water Fern is probably the best as it regenerates easily. A large tank with regular water changes keeps the fish happy and healthy, along with a varied diet, as the Uaru are susceptible to hole-in-the- head, but if treated in this fashion will avoid the problem.
Some months back I purchased a couple of young Uaru, beautiful specimens of locally bred fish. I introduced them to a 40" x 18" x 18" tank where I had two Acarichthys heckelii; the heckelii were considerably larger yet they paid homage to the Uaru and deferred to them. At meal times the Uaru rule the tank and chase off their other tank mates to stuff themselves with black worms, freeze-dried shrimp, frozen brine shrimp or blood worms, spirulina flake or any other food I toss in. I know they love to eat plants and I found they even eat breeding moss, Fontinalis, a plant I have never known fish to eat.
All told the Uaru are not common by any means, but well worth looking for and keeping.
— Peter Robinson
Uaru amphiacanthoides is a large, peaceful cichlid that likes it a little on the warm side, like Discus. They are a prized food fish among the people of the Amazon Basin.
Their fry look nothing like the adults and have a dark, mottled pattern. The "Uaru wedge" does not appear until they are more than 5-6cm long.
Uarus are almost entirely herbivorous, but will take earthworms/bloodworms and have been reported to eat snails. They should only be kept with the cheapest of fast-growing plants such as Valisneria, as they will graze on them constantly. It has been suggested that driftwood is also a necessity for their well-being.
Uaru amphiacanthoides is one of those cichlids, not entirely uncommon in the New World, that interracts with its carers and displays interesting behaviour. They are schooling fish, that prefer the company of their own species and should not be kept with more aggressive fishes. Suitable companions include tetras, catfish and mild-mannered cichlids such as Angels and Rams.
><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><((((º>`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸><((((º>
