Midas Cichlid

Amphilophus citrinellus

Many of the other Cichlids that we've talked about up to this point live in the African Rift Valley. Today's species is a bit different, and actually hails from the other side of the world-- the San Juan River and nearby waters in Central America.

The Midas Cichlid, as it is often called in the aquatics trade, is a large, hardy freshwater fish that is actually a pretty popular pet, due to their size and coloration. In nature, males have much larger humps than females, though they are only especially large during the breeding season. Those same humps remain year round in captive individuals.

Midas Cichlids are not at all picky about what they eat. In the wild they consume plants, invertebrates, and small fish. In captivity they have a similar diet, and will readily consume vegetation, as well as live and frozen creatures.

One interesting quirk that I discovered is that these fish really like to redecorate! If you keep a Midas Cichlid as a pet, don't put them in a tank with decor that can be easy moved around. The fish will dig up substrate, dislodge plants, and even knock around water heaters and filters!

Keep in mind though, Midas Cichlids can be very aggressive. This behavior is less pronounced when they have more space, so a big aquarium is a must.

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IUCN Status : Not Listed

Location : Central America
Size : Length up to 30in (75cm)

Classification : Phylum : Chordata -- Class : Actinopterygii -- Order : Perciformes
Family : Cichlidae -- Genus : Amphilophus -- Species : A. citrinellus