Two of the most popular groups of these cichlids are the 'Peacocks' (mostly the Aulonocara genus) and 'Mbuna's' (native term for 'rock fish' and including the genera Pseudotropheus, Labidochromis, Maylandia, Melanochromis and others). As with all cichlids, they are very territorial and will not tolerate other cichlids around 'their' crevice. They seldom stray far from the rocky bottoms and sides of the lake and will quickly dart into the rocks to hide. Most cichlids in both lakes are rock-dwellers. Several hundreds species of cichlid are found in Lake Malawi, along with many regional variations, but Lake Victoria has far fewer due to the introduction of invasive predators. Malawian and Victorian cichlids are similar in care and temperament, leading to fish from these two lakes being grouped together in the hobby. The pattern varies between individuals so no two are identical. It has a reddish-orange body color with dark marbling. The Orange Blotch Red Zebra is an aquacultured color variant of Metriaclima estherae. Groupings are shown for representative purposes only fish are sold individually. Please contact a Livestock Mailorder representative at 87 or for more information on current availability. The fish pictured here are representative only and the fish you receive may vary in pattern or coloration.

Dark red zebra cichlid