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One of the most peaceful cichlids, Shy and reclusive the keyhole cichlid will make a fine addition to a community set up. Not seen as much as before , don't pass up this fine fish when it is available.

Quick stats: Listed tank sizes are the minimum Size: 4 3/4" (12 cm) Tank: 36 inches Strata: All PH: 6.8 to 8.0 Hardness: dH range: 20.0 Temperature: 75ºF to 81ºF (25-27°C) Classification: Order: Perciformes Suborder: Cichlasomatinae Family: Cichlidae Genera: Cleithracara Species: maronii

Photo from venezuela-tuya.com

Common name:

Keyhole cichlid

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Distribution

South America: Rio Orinoco basin, and rivers of Guyana .

Tall in proportion to its length the keyhole is an oval-shaped cichlid with a short body and a forehead that is rounded . The rear portions of the dorsal and anal fins are drawn out to a point. In the adult males this is much more pronounced.

The body has a mottled yellowish cream coloration, sometimes leaning toward brown. Occasionally the body is marked with faint lateral lines. A curved, dark band runs through the eye, from the front ray of the dorsal fin, down to the corner of the gill cover. The keyhole shaped marking, which the keyhole cichlid gets it's name from is located in the middle of the rear half of the fish. This marking may look like a keyhole or just a black dot.

The keyhole needs to feel secure in its tank, you should provide plenty of hiding places in the form of caves and driftwood. Plants are also helpful. The substrate should be fine gravel or sand and you should leave some open areas for swimming. Once established they are not difficult to keep they will accept all types of food including flake, frozen and live. Not overly fond of strong currents.

Small creeks in the coastal zone, which have clear water and little current

Breeding:

They can be one easier cichlids to breed, and have even bred in community tanks. Several young should be placed in your tank and allowed to pair off. They are open breeders, up to 300 eggs are deposited on a cleaned stone. The eggs are cared for by both parents, who will fan them with fresh water and pick out the unfertilized eggs. Many times a pair will eat their first brood, but they will spawn again in a matter of days. You can remove the eggs after they are laid if this continues and raise them in a separate tank.. The fry hatch after 3-5 days and are free-swimming several days later. Start feeding with roftiers and baby brine shrimp. The parents may continue their care for the fry for up to six months.

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From: From: DaMossMan / DaFishMan (Herb) Date:12/1/2007 I was finally able to get 3 of these after wanting them for so long. Hopefully I have a trio ! These were lively right out of the bag and eating like piggies in a few minutes. They swam right up to the A.agassizii male in the tank. And came up to my fingers when I put a pinch of bloodworms. Actively looking all around exploring and looking for more food now. The aggie is chumming around with them now lol. Cute. I really hope 1 or 2 of these are a female and I get a spawn :) From: From: John Date:10/13/2007 These fish are extremely amiable, and my male, whom I got first, always meets me at the front of the tank. He and his lady friend have decided to lay eggs, about 50 or so for their first batch, on a false-rock decoration in their 55 gallon tank. They are keeping every fish except for the guppies off their half of the tank. I would recommend these fish to anyone who wants great personality in their tank. Also, I would just like to note that it is possible, despite previous comments, to sex these fish. The males have extensions on the caudal, dorsal and pelvic fins that are much more extreme than those on the female. From: From: Shelley Date:09/19/2007 What keyholes lack in color, they more than make up for with their peaceful nature and cute faces. These are without doubt one of my all time favorite fish. Make sure to keep lighting subdued and substrate dark, since Keyholes are quite shy and timid. From: From: Glenn Date:09/15/2007 I purchased six juveniles and raised them together sexing could be accomplished. Young keyholes are extremely hard to sex, and there is no outward differences until they've paired off and breeding appendages are visible. They can become quite aggressive during breeding, and are very quick to ward off interlopers. However, with these fish I've found that although they are very aggressive to defend their territory they did little or no damage to the other keyholes and ignored the small tetras and corydoras completely, even ones that were swimming over the breeding site. These cichlids have been a joy to keep as they are peaceful (to a fault) and will not destroy plant leaves or damage roots. After breeding the pair resumed its place in the group and no further aggression was noticed. What the fish lacks in color It more than compensates in personality and complacent behavior in a community setting. From: From: Matt Date:09/3/2007 Very nice community fish. While if you don't have larger than a 30 gal you might want to keep a shoal to distract the male. While the most peaceful cichlid I've ever kept they can still tend to be over eager with the smaller female. My favorite fish for a planted eco. From: From: Phil Date:05/23/2007 There where 2 of these in my local pets I went straight back and bought the second one. They are the least aggressive cichlids I have come across and live quite happily in my Community tank (a Rekord 120)with 2 Angels, a Kribensis and lots of smaller fish including neons which none of the above have ever looked at twice. They feed well on all foods although can be a little shy sometimes. Hop and I decided to give one a go after reading about them. The very next day From: From: Stenna Date:07/05/2005 After years of having tropical fish I can safely say that the Keyhole Cichlid is without doubt my favorite,its described in many books as a drab fish ! maybe in colours but certainly not in viewing as this fish has so many features you can watch it hours it is a peaceful fish yet when breeding can be very protective to its eggs and fry. Its very responsive to its keepers too. Must have plenty of hiding places and I have found that its good to have clean flat rock in the tank as it prefers this for laying its eggs. From: From: Hop Date:05/16/2005 One could make a very strong case for the Keyhole as being "THE MOST PEACEFUL CICHLID of all"!! They get along fine with large peaceful cichlids such as Jurapari's, Severums, and Festivums. And can be trusted with very small rasboras and tetras. Although I would not try that with some of the other cichlids I mentioned above. They like alot of hiding places and small regular water exchanges. A diet that is varied is also appreciated. One other thing to note is that they seem to really need their rest. Be sure to give them a proper light cycle. From: Marc Date:1/5/2004 This is a such a great fish, they are a great choice for a community tank. They are hardy, and what they may lack in color they make up for in being very peaceful. I have kept them in a 55 gallon community tank with guppies and neon tetras. The temperature was 82-84 degrees farenheight and the water was changed once a month(not the best idea). And the ph was at 7.0(recommended ph for a community tank). These are overall an excellent fish and will readily eat practically anything! This is an intelligent fish with great character and gets to know the keeper! From: Donna Date:9/13/2003 This is without a doubt my favourite fish. They are very under appreciated. I am now on to my third pair. They seem to live on average between 5 and eight years for me. They are very devoted to each other in the pair and when one eventually dies the other follows within a few months due to sulking and refusing to eat. They are safe with the very smallest of shoaling fish and are very easy to breed. They do like to choose their own partners though. This is not entirely foolproof however as my current pair are two females who spawn regularly and simultaneously and they chose each other out of a group of eight youngsters. I haven't the heart to split them up . They are very affectionate with each other and display constantly and are a joy to watch. From: Nimish Date:5/29/2003 Wonderfully peaceful cichlids.. Defying the whole family of cichlids. Very hardy and tolerant. Will eat anything from dried, live worms, daphnia, big earthworms which wont fit into their mouth, flake, pellets, and also strained spinach (??? cichlids and spinach???) except fish. Even the smallest of the smallest neons are not threatened. Though they sometimes do have a tussle or so with my Bolivian rams.. But its aggregated from the rams and not keyholes. Certainly recommended for beginners but with cycled tanks. They don't like nitrite peaks.

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