Animal-World > Freshwater Fish > Large Cichlids - American > Flag Cichlid

Flag Cichlid

Festivum ~ Barred Cichlid ~ Festive Cichlid ~ Bandeiro Family: Cichlidae

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Mesonauta festivus Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy Ken Childs

   A beautiful and interesting cichlid, the Flag Cichlid or Festivum has been a very long time resident in the aquarium hobby!

   The Flag Cichlid is actually a very social cichlid and likes to be in groups. They can be kept in a community aquarium with quite a variety of other fish, even many smaller fish. Though they make an interesting and welcome addition to a tank with Angelfish, they are not so good with the small colorful Neons as these are a favorite snack. In the wild they have some very interesting behaviors from resting on their sides to jumping up out of the water when feeling threatened, rather than swimming quickly to the bottom as most cichlids do.

   They are easy to moderate to care for as long as water conditions are kept up with regular water changes. They are a timid cichlid and need to be able to hide, a tangled bunch of bog wood is appreciated and they also like plants that reach to the top of a tall tank. They do not dig up plants and hardy species such as Sagittarius and Vallisneria will work well, as do plastic plants. Depending on their personality they may or may not eat the live plants, especially if its not on their menu. Have the plants reach to the top of the water, but still leave some open areas for swimming. Be sure to have a lid on the aquarium because of their tendency to jump up when frightened.

   The Flag Cichlid has been around for many years. It was first introduced into the hobby in about 1908, and first bred in captivity in West Germany at the Weinhausen Aquarium of Brunswick in 1911. Many of these fish available today are captive bred in Florida, USA and in the Far East.

   As its name describes, the Flag Cichlid or Festivum is a most handsome and attractive fish. The most distinguishing characteristic is a black stripe running from its mouth across the top of its back. There are at least 6 or more color varieties and patternings to choose from, but they all have this distinguishing black mark. The variations stem from the locations where the parent species were originally captured. Today the Mesonauta genus itself is known to be very complex. It has been found that it comprises not one, but a group of species, with at least five now described. The actual species that makes up the captive bred Flag Cichlid is no longer definite.

For more Information on keeping this fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Dream Aquarium Build your own aquarium The Coolest and Funnest Screensaver in the World.

Distribution:
   The Flag Cichlid or Festivum was described by Heckel in 1840. They are from South American, found in the Paraguay River drainage in Paraguay and Brazil. They are also found in the Amazon River basin in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, and Jamari. They inhabit white, clear and blackwaters in lakes, rivers and streams where the water is slow moving and there is vegetation for hiding. They eat a variety of benthic weeds and algae along with benthic crustaceans, insects, annelids (worms), and plankton. These main foods are in the form of “aufwuchs” or organisms that live on rocks.

Status:
   This species is not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:
   The body of the Flag Cichlid is a more angular oval shape and is strongly compressed laterally. The most distinguishing characteristic is a black band that runs from the mouth, through the eye at an angle upward to the top of the very back of the dorsal fin. No matter what the color variation, they all have this diagonal line. They can be yellow above that line and white/silver below. Another variety is brown on top white/silver on the bottom and the fins are striped in light faded yellow and brown. Still another variety has 7 irregular multi-barred with brown vertical bars that run the entire length of the body ending in an “8th” bar as a spot on the caudal fin. There are at least 6 or more other color varieties and patterning. The variations stem from the locations where the parent species were originally captured.

Size - Weight:
   The Festivum Cichlid grows to a length of 8” (20 cm) in captivity, though only about 6" (15 cm) in the wild.

Care and feeding:
   The Flag Cichlid is an omnivore that eats weeds, algae, and various proteins in the wild. In the aquarium they can be fed fresh, frozen, freeze dried, pellet and flake foods that are for these types of fish. Be sure to occasionally include some vegetable type foods like spirulina flakes, or even oatmeal. Feed 2 to 5 small pinches of food a day. Feed in smaller amounts several times a day instead of a large quantity once a day. This will keep the water quality higher over a longer time. All fish benefit from vitamins and supplements added to their foods.
   A minimum 40 gallon aquarium is suggested. They are fine with low to moderate water movement, but do need good aeration along with good efficient filtration. Provide a fine gravel substrate with rocks and pieces of driftwood. They need to be able to hide, so a tank that is tall with plants reaching to the surface is ideal. Also a tangled bunch of bog wood is appreciated. They do not dig up plants and hardy species such as Sagittarius and Vallisneria will work well, as do plastic plants. Depending on their personality they may or may not eat the live plants, especially if its not on their menu. Offering spirulina will help them to ignore any plants you may have in your tank. Have the plants reach to the top of the water, but still leave some open areas for swimming. Be sure to have a lid on the aquarium because of their tendency to jump up when frightened.
   Do water changes of 15% biweekly or 25% weekly, depending on stocking numbers. They are sensitive to chemicals and nitrates. Keeping nitrates below 10 will be beneficial for their health. These fish are susceptible to typical fish ailments, especially if water is stale and of poor quality and oxygenation. One common problem is Ich. It can be treated with the elevation of the tank temperature to 86° F (30° C) for 3 days.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:
   These fish will swim in the middle and upper areas of the aquarium.

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   Hardness: 2 -18° dH (low to moderate)
   Ph: 5.5 to 7.2
   Temp: 72 - 82° F (25 - 34° C)

Social Behaviors:
   The Flag Cichlids is a community fish that can be kept with many other fish, even smaller fish. They are not so good with the small colorful Neons however, as these are a favorite snack. They can be kept in pairs or groups, but do not do as well singly. They are generally peaceful toward those of the same species and they will tolerate those of a different genus. Do not house with aggressive fish.
   Their closest native inhabitants are the Angelfish Pterophyllum scalare. They can be kept with these cichlids along with the mouthbrooding Acaras (Bujurquina species), Severums, and the Pearl Cichlid as well as other Eartheaters (Geophagus species). They can also be housed with larger gourami species, medium to large barbs, and some catfish species such as pimelodid catfish, tropical loricariids, and larger callichyid.

Sexual Differences:
   Very difficult to distinguish between the sexes. As adults the males may be larger than the females. They may also have a little more elongated snout, more pointed dorsal and anal fins, and larger pectoral fins. They pair up when they are about a year old.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   The Flag Cichlids are egg layers and they form a nuclear family. They are somewhat more difficult than other cichlids to breed in captivity. Using a solid surface to spawn on is helpful. In the wild, some species will find submersed sugarcane stems to lay their eggs. A similar looking structure should help to breed them in your aquarium. They like fake or real plant leaves or a solid object like a rock or clay pot piece. The female will use these structures to hold the approximately 100 eggs near the surface (between 200 to 500 eggs have been observed in the wild).
   When the fry hatch, they are hung on the structure near the top with gland secretions. Both the parents guard the young. In 5 more days the fry are free swimming and the parents then use their peduncle ocellus to signal the fry to keep them oriented in the water. The parents will use water plants to hide their fry if threatened by predators.
   In the aquarium they are particularly hard to breed. Eggs will be laid, but convincing the parents to care for the eggs is another issue. Having non-aggressive tank mates will help. A species specific tank with a few dither fish that are not much larger or meaner, and are smart enough to stay away from the parents and young, would be ideal. Some say dither fish encourage the parents to care for the young. Feed the babies newly hatched brine shrimp for the first week or two. Juveniles love fruit flies according to one aquarist. See more about cichlid breeding in: Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Buy Flag Cichlid - Festivum From LiveAquaria.com

Availability:
   The Flag Cichlid or Festivum is readily available online and is usually available in fish stores. They will run about $10.00 - $20.00 USD.

Author: Carrie McBirney
Additional Information: Clarice Brough, CFS

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