Yellow Regal Peacock

About

Aulonocara sp. stuartgranti maleri is one of those Lake Malawi peacock cichlids that goes by an almost comical number of trade names, yellow regal peacock, sunshine peacock, orange peacock, Maleri gold, depending largely on which island population the fish originated from. Males develop vivid yellow-to-orange coloration across the body, and if you know what to look for, this fish can be distinguished from the closely related A. baenschi by its noticeably flatter head profile and relatively smaller eyes. Whether it represents a truly distinct species or a population variant is still debated, but that's a question for taxonomists. For the keeper, it's a moderately sized cichlid that reaches around four inches and is manageable even for someone newer to African cichlids, provided the tank is set up thoughtfully. Males are not particularly tolerant of other fish that share a similar color pattern, so tankmate selection matters. Other Aulonocara species are best avoided entirely given the real risk of hybridization. A single male kept with four to six females is the standard approach, both to manage male aggression and to give the colony a sensible social structure. This species is a maternal mouthbrooder, and females carry the eggs for roughly four weeks. A rewarding breeding project once you have a stable group settled in.