Cichlids identified as Aequidens portalegrensis have been kept and bred in the aquarium since 1913. The German common name was “Streifenbuntbarsch” ( = striped cichlid) because the fish can show numerous vertical stripes in the rear half of the body. As there is a very nice photo by Paul Unger from the 1930s of a broodcaring pair with young, this cichlid species was mentioned in pretty much every handbook on aquarium fish until the 1970s. Even then it was known that these animals look very different depending on their origin and also grow to very different sizes. The only thing they all had in common was that – compared to the Central American cichlids known at the time – they were relatively peaceful and did not burrow excessively.
In 1983, a revision of the genus Cichlasoma was published by Kullander. This turned the previous naming system on its head. Kullander had discovered that only a few cichlid species that had previously been placed in the genus Cichlasoma were actually allowed to bear the name Cichlasoma, all others were not. From then on, the “true” Cichlasoma also included the portalegrensis, which were now called Cichlasoma portalegrense. Kullander restricted the distribution area of the species to the Laguna dos Patos system and several coastal rivers in southern Brazil, Bolivia and Uruguay. At the same time, Kullander described eight new Cichlasoma species, bringing the genus to 12 species.
One of the newly described species is Cichlasoma pusillum. The species name means “small”, because Kullander had no specimens larger than 81.1 mm (standard length without caudal fin), the vast majority were significantly smaller (around 6 cm). After all, other Cichlasoma can grow to over 20 cm in length! The distribution area of C. pusillum lies in the upper reaches of the Rio Paraná and Rio Uruguay in Paraguay. A good feature by which C. pusillum can be distinguished relatively reliably from the similar species C. dimerus and C. portalegrense is the very large dark spot below the eyes, which the other two species lack.
We can currently offer adult C. pusillum from European breeding. The fish may not be a “hit” in terms of color, but they score with their pleasant behavior (see above) and the fact that they belong to the “energy-saving fish”. At least outside the breeding season, C. pusillum thrive best at room temperature, i.e. 18-22°C. Aquarium heating is therefore not required for these fish. C. pusillum are problem-free omnivores, the water values are irrelevant, any drinking water is suitable for keeping and breeding. Like all Cichlasoma, C. pusillum are open-breeders with a biparent family.
For our customers: the animals have code 659104 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
