|  A beautiful jewel from
southern Mexico, Cichlasoma salvini is perhaps inch for inch and ounce
for ounce, the most aggressive and pugnacious little cichlid ever to
inhabit an aquarium. Some die hard cichlidophiles such as myself will
tell you that the aggression exhibited by this fish is just one of its
many fascinating behaviours, but i'll also tell you that this fish is
not for everyone.
Cichlasoma salvini
is found in the tropical forest jungle areas of Mexico, Belize, Guatamala
and into Honduras. It inhabits rivers and lagoons which are heavily
shaded by the huge trees and abundant vegetation throughout this habitat.
The aquatic bottom is covered with leaf litter and tree branches and
the water has low visibility. Water chemistry is always alkaline with
pH ranging from 7.7- 8.4 or higher. Hardness is quite variable, ranging
from a DH of 8° to greater than 50°.
C. salvini grows to
a maximum of 7 inches (males) and females to about 5 inches. Both males
and females display a bright golden yellow base color blending with
reds and shades of yellow. Females exhibit brighter, bolder colors than
males, primarily on dorsal and ventral areas, which are replete with
red colors fluctuating in intensity and size depending on the geographical
variant. Males have a ventral area which shows just a hint of this red
coloration but have beautiful blue spangling on the dorsal area above
the lateral line and blue streaks on the head. Females can be easily
differentiated from males on the basis of a blue-edged black blotch
on the middle portion of the dorsal fin. Breeding colors in both males
and females begin with an intensifying of the base yellow color, diminished
blues and a blackening of the dorsal area from upper lip to as far back
as the caudal peduncle along the lateral line.
Despite its relatively
small size, in its natural habitat C. salvini displays extraordinary
aggression levels and a single pair of spawning cichlids will defend
a territory 6 feet or larger in diameter against all comers no matter
how large. This is all the more incredible given the wide variety of
large and belligerant cichlid species with which salvini is found sympatric.
These may include the Theraps species, Vieja species, Amphilophus species,
the piscavorous Petenia splendida, Nandopsis urophthalmus and the Guapotes
of the Parachromis group, most notably the managuense. Evidently, the
intense and supremely brilliant coloration of salvini is most often
sufficient to dissuade other fish from getting close to them. That failing
however, salvini will make quick work of any predator which gets too
near it's territory.
Cichlasoma salvini
in your tank? The primary consideration in keeping this species is successful
management of their aggressiveness. Salvini exhibits a special animosity
towards individuals of their own species which means no more than one
male in the tank. That tank needs to be at least 5 feet in length ...
the farther apart you can keep the fish in this tank, the better. In
my experience, smaller tanks almost always result in death of subordinate
individuals such that you end up with that single male again. So how
will you breed this little jewel? My suggestion is to start out with
a group of 6-8 juveniles and allow a single pair to form. Once pair
formation is complete, quickly remove all unpaired salvini or they will
be summarily 'removed' for you by the dominant pair.
Additional means of
aggression control can include the use of other, larger species as tank
mates. Those sympatric species mentioned above are excellent choices.
C. salvini shows a great tolerance for fish which are too large to be
eaten, and will virtually ignore them outside of spawning time. An abundance
of cover is also important ... many caves and hiding places which will
afford other fish the opportunity to 'disappear from view'.
Spawning in the aquarium.
The preferred biotope for this cichlid is an abundance of driftwood
and rocks over a fine gravel substrate. Despite the presence of caves,
my salvini have always picked a vertical piece of wood to lay their
eggs on. Several hours are required for completion of the egg laying
process, the reason being that salvini typically lay about 500 eggs.
This is a throwback to the fact that in the wild, salvini need to keep
their population density constant .. no small task given the extent
of the danger which fry and juveniles encounter during development.
Complete batches of eggs are lost due to unexpected heavy rains during
the spawning season, producing strong currents which may wash the fry
away. Couple that with the plethora of predatory species which both
fry and juveniles will encounter in their habitat and you can understand
the tremendous expenditure of energy that salvini requires in order
to thrive.
Is this a cichlid for
you? If you take the time to understand the behaviour and needs of this
beautiful cichlid, its aggression can be managed. Provide it with the
space it requires to exhibit normal behaviour and the results can be
very rewarding.
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