Otopharynx Tetraspilus
Otopharynx Tetraspilus cichlid living in the southern part of Lake Malawi, Africa. The fish stay in shallow water among dense thickets of plants. These fish can also be found in the trade under the names Copadichromis sp. "yellow fin mloto" and Otopharynx tetraspilus.
Otopharynx tetraspilus males are blue with a yellow belly and blue head. Head is large with pointed muzzle. The eyes are large. Dorsal plumage with white and blue edging. The anal fin has yellow roe spots. During the spawning period, males become darker coloration. Females and juveniles are golden brown. The body has three large spots. The same spots, only smaller, are located along the base of the dorsal plumage. The size of males in nature reaches 18 cm and females about 14 cm. In aquariums, the size of fish may be slightly larger.
Otopharynx Tetraspilus is a peaceful fish. These fish can easily be kept in a common tank with other species of peaceable fish. At 1 male should have 2-3 females. Most of the time the fish spend in the middle and upper layers of water.
As the substrate used coarse-grained river sand or gravel. At the bottom to place large stones so that between them formed splits, which fish will use as hiding places. The perimeter of the aquarium should be densely planted with a variety of aquarium plants, which can grow in hard water. Need to take care of enough space for free swimming fish. To contain fish suitable aquarium of 400 liters.
Water parameters: temperature 24-28° C, hardness dH 7-30°, pH 7,4-8,5. Requires filtration, aeration and weekly replacement of 1/3 of the aquarium water with fresh.
In the wild, Otopharynx Tetraspilus feed on algae, invertebrates, and small insects they find among vegetation. Under aquarium conditions, they eat almost all foods that they are given, such as flake and granular food containing spirulina, mises, daphnia, artemia, shrimp, etc.
Reproduction
Otopharynx Tetraspilus reaches its sexual maturity at the age of about 1.5 years.
Spawning takes place in a common tank. During the spawning season, the male digs a hole in the substrate or cleans the flat surface of a large stone of dirt and algae. Then he attracts the females to the nest. One of the females that responded to the male attention swims up to the nest and hatches there an eggs (about 20 eggs), which the male immediately fertilizes. After that, the female collects all the eggs in her mouth and hides in the shelter. The eggs incubate in the female's mouth for three weeks. During this time, she does not eat anything. During this time, the female should not be disturbed because she may swallow the eggs or spit them out when frightened. Hatch fry at first swimming under the supervision of his mother and immediately swim into her mouth at the slightest danger.
Fry are fed artemia 4 times a day. The fry grow slowly.
Life expectancy of Otopharynx Tetraspilus is about 10-15 years.
