White-spotted Cichlid

About

The White-spotted Cichlid (Tropheus duboisi) is one of the more visually dramatic transformation stories in the freshwater hobby. Juveniles are jet black and covered in bright white or pale blue spots. A pattern that disappears almost entirely as the fish matures into an adult wearing blue-black coloration with a bold yellow or white vertical bar across the body. This species comes from the rocky northern shoreline of Lake Tanganyika, where it grazes algae from rock surfaces in the upper littoral zone. In the aquarium it can earn a reputation for aggression, but that label is a bit misleading. It is reasonably civil toward other species and makes decent company for similarly robust tankmates like Julidochromis or Eretmodus, but it will absolutely scrap with its own kind until a hierarchy is sorted out. That intraspecies tension is actually the key challenge with this fish. Small groups tend to fight destructively, so most experienced keepers recommend starting with fifteen or more individuals and letting them establish a colony together. Adding new fish to a settled group almost always ends badly. Water quality is genuinely critical here, as this species is prone to a potentially fatal digestive condition called bloat. Several geographic color forms exist and should be kept separate to prevent hybridization. A rewarding fish, but one that deserves careful planning before purchase.