Aulonocara
Aulonocara stuartgranti
Aulonocara ( Gr. " aulos " = tube, pit, " kara " = head ( refers to the sensory pores on the head ) ) is a cichlid genus that lives endemic to Lake Malawi in East Africa.
Features
Aulonocara species are 8-18 centimeters long. They have a typical perch shape with a compact body and muscular-looking, spitzmäuligen head. The dominant colors are blue and yellow body with many Aulonocara species. For the genus many small sensory pores on the back of the head are characteristic that can perceive the sidelines pressure stimuli similarly and used for orientation and foraging. The food is searched in the sandy ground.
Way of life
All Aulonocara species are mouth brooders and most species reproduce in Felslitoral or in the transition zone to Sandlitoral where the males form territories in the center of which is usually a cave. Some species are adapted to life in the Sandlitoral. The eggs are yolk- rich, the young fish hatch at water temperatures of 28-29 ° C after 17 to 19 days.
Aulonocara species are caught as aquarium fish and bred. Under aquarium conditions many species hybridize with each other, which must be considered in the care of the aquarium.
System
There are 23 described and several undescribed species:
- Genus Aulonocara Regan, 1921 Aulonocara aquilonium Konings, 1995
- Aulonocara auditor ( Trewavas, 1935)
- Aulonocara baenschi Meyer & Riehl, 1985
- Aulonocara brevinidus Konings, 1995
- Aulonocara brevirostre ( Trewavas, 1935)
- Aulonocara ethelwynnae Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara gertrudae Konings, 1995
- Aulonocara guentheri Eccles, 1989
- Aulonocara hansbaenschi ( Blue Emperor cichlid ) Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara hueseri ( Yellow-bellied Emperor cichlid ) Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara jacobfreibergi (Johnson, 1974)
- Aulonocara kandeensis Tawil & Allgayer, 1987
- Aulonocara koningsi Tawil, 2003
- Aulonocara korneliae Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara macrochir Trewavas, 1935
- Aulonocara maylandi (yellow forehead Emperor cichlid, sulfur head peacock ) Trewavas, 1984
- Aulonocara nyassae Regan, 1922
- Aulonocara rostratum Trewavas, 1935
- Aulonocara saulosi Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara steveni ( Usisya Emperor cichlid ) Meyer, Riehl & Zetzsche, 1987
- Aulonocara stonemani ( Burgess & Axelrod, 1973)
- Aulonocara stuartgranti Meyer & Riehl, 1985
- Aulonocara trematocephalum ( Boulenger, 1901)
Swell
- Claus Schaefer, Torsten Schroer: The great encyclopedia of fighting dogs, Ulmer Verlag, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-8001-7497-9
Further Reading
- Andreas Butze: Aulonocara - Peacock Cichlids. Bede Verlag, Ruhmannsfelden 2002, ISBN 978-3-8986-0013-2