Uaru Cichlid Care Guide - Aquarium Setup, Diet & Breeding

The Uaru Cichlid is a large, deep-bodied South American cichlid with a distinctive oval shape. Adults are usually brownish to grey-green, marked by a broad dark triangular patch on the flank and darker areas around the eye and tail. Their subdued colours become more striking when the fish are mature, excited or in breeding condition.

Despite their size, Uaru Cichlids are generally thoughtful and relatively peaceful compared with many other large cichlids. They are intelligent fish that recognise their surroundings and keepers, and they often spend much of their time moving calmly through the middle and lower levels of the aquarium.

In the wild, they inhabit forest streams, flooded woodland and areas filled with submerged roots and leaf litter. Their body shape and laterally compressed form allow them to navigate among branches and vegetation, while their strong teeth are adapted for processing plant matter as well as small animal foods.

Uaru Cichlids are highly social and are best understood as group-living fish rather than solitary display animals. A compatible group develops a natural hierarchy, although mature pairs may become more territorial when preparing to spawn. Their parental behaviour is particularly remarkable, with both adults caring for and feeding their young.

Uaru Cichlids are native to slow-moving rivers, tributaries and flooded forest habitats in the Amazon and Orinoco river basins of South America. They occur in Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela and neighbouring parts of the Guianas, often in warm, nutrient-rich seasonal waters.

A pair should have at least 300 litres, while a group is better housed in 450 litres or more. Choose a spacious aquarium around 150 cm long or greater, with strong filtration and excellent oxygenation, while avoiding excessively turbulent flow. Use a soft sand or fine-gravel substrate with smooth rocks, substantial driftwood, roots and shaded areas that resemble flooded forest. Tough plants may be attached to wood, but many specimens will graze or uproot planted vegetation. Leaf litter can provide additional cover and help create a natural setting.

Uaru Cichlids can reach approximately 30 cm (12 in) in total length. Males may become slightly larger and more robust than females, although the difference is modest.

Uaru Cichlids are primarily herbivorous omnivores and should receive a diet centred on quality spirulina or vegetable-based cichlid pellets, algae wafers and plentiful fresh vegetables such as blanched spinach, kale, peas, courgette and cucumber. Supplement this with occasional high-quality cichlid foods, earthworms, bloodworm or other meaty foods, especially for growing fish and breeding adults. Their diet should contain plenty of fibre and plant matter, while rich animal foods are best offered sparingly.

Uaru Cichlids can share a large aquarium with similarly sized, peaceful South American fish such as Geophagus, severum, peaceful large tetras, larger Corydoras and compatible plecos. Tankmates should be robust enough not to be swallowed but calm enough to avoid persistent conflict. Avoid small tetras, shrimp and other tiny fish, as well as highly aggressive cichlids, fin-nippers and species that compete intensely for territory. They may also eat soft-leaved plants.

Uaru Cichlids are substrate spawners that usually form pairs within a group. The female lays several hundred eggs on a flat rock, piece of wood or another smooth surface, and both parents guard and fan the clutch. Hatching normally occurs after around three days, with the fry becoming free-swimming a few days later. The parents provide protection and produce nutritious skin mucus for the young to graze on, so a well-established breeding pair should be left undisturbed and given suitable soft, acidic water.

Uaru Cichlids show little obvious sexual dimorphism, and reliably sexing young fish by appearance is difficult. Mature males may be slightly larger with a broader head and more pointed dorsal and anal fins, while females can appear rounder when carrying eggs; breeding papillae provide the most dependable distinction.