Lateral Line August 2005.pub - Hill Country Cichlid Club

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The Lateral Line Page 8Species Profile:Labrochromis ishmaeliAn interesting cichlid from Lake Victoria is therarely seen Labrochromis ishmaeli. Unfortunatelythis specialized snail eater is thought tobe extinct in the wild. Labrochromis ishmaeli isalso rare in the aquarium hobby. Small foundercolonies can still be obtained from privatebreeders but itwould seem thatthe number of peopleworking withthis cichlid isshrinking as well.Hopefully asawareness of thisamazing fish increases,other hobbyistswill work totry and propagateit.Superficially, Labrochromisishmaeli is really not the most attractiveof the available Lake Victoria cichlids.The female Labrochromis ishmaeli isa silver fish with six to eight black verticalbars running the length of the body.The male resembles a faded Astatotilapiasp. 44 in coloration. The vertical barringis imposed on a dull golden yellow background.The pelvic fins are an attractivedeep black. The caudal and dorsal fins aretinted a translucent orange. A deeplycurved cranial profile is reminiscent ofanother more common cichlid from thesame waters, Ptyochromis salmon. The jawstructure of Labrochromis ishmaeli is mostmuscular and has evolved to exploit a foodsource consisting of mollusks, more specificallysnails. Although I personally have neveractually witnessed my herd devouring theirfood of choice, Ihave added snailsto their tank andwithin a coupledays, none wereto be found.Unlike other snaileaters that extractthe actual meat ofthe mollusk fromits shell, Labrochromisishmaeliingests the entirePhotos by Greg Steevesanimal, shell andall. It uses its formidable jaws to crush theAmazonia Internationala proud supporter of the HCCCMember discounts:20% off Fish & Live Plants10% off Tanks, Stands, Eheims & Eclipses25% off Filters & Powerheads4631 Airport #116 Austin, TX(512) 451-0958
The Lateral Line Page 9snail's shell and passes this as a clump throughits digestive system.In the aquarium Labrochromis ishmaeli willaccept all prepared foods. One should ensure aslightly greater amount of protein in the diet ofall molluscivores and chopped clam usuallysuffices nicely. It is the opinion of some that ifLabrochromis ishmaeli is not fed a diet thatwill allow it to make use of it's specializedjaws, proceeding generations will begin to losethis physical characteristic.The debate continues.There is little sizedifference between thesexes. The animals inour colony are all near10 cm.We have a group consistingof a single maleand 5 female Labrochromisishmaelihoused in a 65 gallontank. Décor consists ofa small rockwork formation and a fine grainsand substrate. These cichlids prefer to scan theopen areas peacefully searching for food morsels.I don't know how males react with oneanother but the lone male in our colony doesnot seem to defend a territory. The only timethis behavior changes is with the onset ofspawning. The male Labrochromis ishmaeliexcavates a depression in the substrate in analmost lek-like fashion. It is in this pit thatthe act of spawning occurs. The male shimmiesin front of the ripe female all the whileattempting to lure her to his nest. After anumber of trials, the male and female circleeach other. The female drops a single egg thenquickly turns to scoop it up in her mouth. Shethen nips the male's occuli which he displaysagainst the substrate. It is at this point thatfertilization takes place. This continues untilthe female has expelled all her eggs. Clutchsize is smaller than many other Lake Victorianhaplochromines with 25 fry considered a goodsized spawn. The larvae are free swimmingafter 18 days and grow quickly on crushedflake supplementedwith baby brine shrimpand Cyclop-eeze.For aspiring aquariststhat appreciate workingwith a rare cichlid andwould like to be directlyinvolved ensuringsurvival for futuregenerations, Labrochromisishmaeli couldPhoto by Greg Steevesbe the fish you arelooking for. What Labrochromis ishmaelilacks in striking beauty, it certainly makes upfor with peaceful disposition and diversity.■ Greg SteevesLisa’s Lair BookstoreOnline BooksVarious Discounts forHCCC Memberswww.lisaslairbookstore.com
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Lateral Line August 2005.pub - Hill Country Cichlid Club

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