Multifasciatus Shell Dweller

About

The multifasciatus shell dweller is the smallest cichlid in the world, a Lake Tanganyika endemic that lives among vast beds of empty Neothauma snail shells on the lake's sandy floor. Each fish claims and excavates its own shell as a home and spawning site, and a group forms a busy colony ruled by a dominant male over several shell-holding females. It is peaceful toward tankmates but defends the few centimetres around its shell with astonishing spirit for its size.

Care

Keep a colony of 6+ over a deep fine-sand bed strewn with plenty of empty snail shells, in hard, alkaline water at 24-27 C. Peaceful in general but fiercely territorial right around each shell, so give ample floor area rather than height.

Diet

Micropredator that grazes zooplankton and micro-invertebrates near the sand; feed small frozen and live foods with occasional fine sinking dry foods.

Sources

• Seriously Fish — Neolamprologus multifasciatus
• Gensou — Neolamprologus Multifasciatus Care Guide