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| IAA Profiles:
Astatotilapia Nubilus - Article and Photo's by
Ron Meier |
Scientific Name:
Astatotilapia Nubilus, also known as Haplochromis Nubilus.
Location: Lake Victoria, Lake
Victorian Basin, Kyoga, Anchor Island, and most rivers surrounding
Lake Victoria.
Size: Males-3.5-4" typically
Females-3-3.5"
Temp: 78-82F
PH: 7.2-8.6
My Experience: I started with
a young group of 7 of this species. In a few months i could tell
males and females apart. My dominant male would turn jet black and
have blood red fins when displaying to females or dominance over
other males when he was young. Other colors showed up on his body as
he got older, usually a bluish tint to his black. Males for me were
very territorial, especially during spawning towards each other.
They started spawning for me when the male was just over 2 inches.
Spawns will be small at first but will usually consist of about 40
fry for an adult female. I would recommend a setup in a 40bdr with 2
males to 5 females as a minimum. I was able to get away with keeping
a trio in my 55 with evenly aggressive Malawi mbuna such as
Cynotilapia Afra Cobue and Pseudotropheus Zebra Long Pelvic. This
species accepted anything I fed them without second thought. IMO
they do best with plenty of rockwork while also having open space to
swim about. I would recommend this species to the beginner aquarist
and to the experienced. Being very easy to take care of with clean
water and being one very vibrant species to watch and breed.
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