Neolamprologus similis
Encyclopedia
Neolamprologus similis is a shell-dwelling cichlid
Cichlid
Cichlids are fishes from the family Cichlidae in the order Perciformes. Cichlids are members of a group known as the Labroidei along with the wrasses , damselfish , and surfperches . This family is both large and diverse. At least 1,300 species have been scientifically described, making it one of...

 native to Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika
Lake Tanganyika is an African Great Lake. It is estimated to be the second largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, and the second deepest, after Lake Baikal in Siberia; it is also the world's longest freshwater lake...

 in east Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...

. N. similis is copper coloured with vertical white stripes running from the head to near the base of the tail. It typically grows to between four and six centimeters in size. It is a popular freshwater aquarium
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...

 fish.

Breeding habits

This fish is monomorphic save in size (males are bigger) and form small colonies or harems - depending on available space - in which the male fry
Fry
-Food and cooking:* Frying, the act of cooking food in oil or fat** Pan frying, frying food in a flat pan** Stir frying, frying food in a wok and stirring it while it cooks* Full breakfast, a traditional cooked meal, also called a fry-up or Ulster fry...

 are tolerated until they become active competitors of the male. Female fry are not only tolerated, but are eventually courted as mates. The females also are objects of interest to neighboring males and may be targets of theft.

The male of the harem goes to great lengths in protecting his territory from intruders (other males) and all members of the harem do their best (and it is much, considering their size) to protect the fry: similis will face fish as big as a Tropheus
Tropheus
Tropheus is a small genus of six species of cichlid fish endemic to Lake Tanganyika in East Africa. The genus Tropheus is widespread across all regions of lake Tanganyika, from Burundi in the North to Zambia in the South.Males and females are relatively similar but do display obvious sexual...

 - if the latter become too curious - and will escape into their shells in a blink of an eye if the threat is deemed serious.

Aquarium care

N. similis can be kept successfully in aquaria as small as 10 gallons (40 liters), but will do much better in bigger tanks, especially if it is monospecific; they will, however, thrive in a community tank if their tank mates are not much bigger than 4 inches (10 cm). Goby cichlids (genera Eretmodus, Spathodus, and Tanganicodus) are ideal Tanganyikan tankmates since they remain relatively small and mainly eat vegetation. The vegetarian genus Tropheus, on the other hand, while remaining relatively small, contracts the oft fatal "Malawi bloat" when fed on the high protein diet similis require. N. similis should not be kept with other shell dwellers — particularly Altolamprologus compressiceps "Sumbu shell", a predator — except when the territories are well-defined by rocks, mounds of sand, or plants.

The tank decoration should take into account N. similis — habits. N. similis favor a sand substrate in the aquarium and benefit from having access to many empty snail-shells. Rocks can be used as background, but are irrelevant to the fish, except in cases of intense aggression; in such cases, the cover provided by rocks often saves the expelled fish's life. Plants - either real or plastic - can also be introduced, but should be weighted, for this fish is an untiring digger, digging sand pits in which to hide its shells from predators and thieves.

In Lake Tanganyika shell dwellers use the Neothauma tanganyicense
Neothauma tanganyicense
Neothauma tanganyicense is a species of freshwater snail with a gill and an operculum, an aquatic gastropod mollusc in the family Viviparidae.This is the only species in the genus Neothauma.- Distribution :...

 snail shell as their refuge. In the aquarium, any lightweight shell about the same size, such as a whale's eye shell or empty escargot shell, is acceptable to the similis, and much less expensive for the hobbyist.

Water parameters are those typical of the Lake – pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...

 from 8 to 9, water hardness from 10º to 20º, temperature between 23 and 26 ºC (74–78 ºF), ammonia
Ammonia
Ammonia is a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . It is a colourless gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to food and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or...

 and nitrite
Nitrite
The nitrite ion has the chemical formula NO2−. The anion is symmetric with equal N-O bond lengths and a O-N-O bond angle of ca. 120°. On protonation the unstable weak acid nitrous acid is produced. Nitrite can be oxidised or reduced, with product somewhat dependent on the oxidizing/reducing agent...

s very close to zero, some nitrate
Nitrate
The nitrate ion is a polyatomic ion with the molecular formula NO and a molecular mass of 62.0049 g/mol. It is the conjugate base of nitric acid, consisting of one central nitrogen atom surrounded by three identically-bonded oxygen atoms in a trigonal planar arrangement. The nitrate ion carries a...

s.

N. similis accept almost any type of food, from flakes to small pellets, but are far better off if shrimp mix
Shrimp mix
Shrimp mix, also known as European shrimp mix, is a term for a class of frozen fish feed used for fish with special dietary requirements, e.g. Tropheus, which are difficult to maintain using normal fish feed...

, live Artemia larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...

e, live mosquito
Mosquito
Mosquitoes are members of a family of nematocerid flies: the Culicidae . The word Mosquito is from the Spanish and Portuguese for little fly...

 larvae (red or black) or "Tanganyika Mix" are regularly provided.

This fish is reputedly easy to spawn. Clean, stable water, varied high quality food, minimum aggression, and a water change with the temperature one or two degrees above its normal will usually be enough to cause any fish to spawn, and Neolamprologus similis is no exception; indeed, once started, they will increase in number fairly rapidly. If the available space is adequate for only one harem, excess males must be removed before the harem's male injures or kills them.

Care must be given so that Neolamprologus similis does not crossbreed with the similar and closely related Neolamprologus multifasciatus
Neolamprologus multifasciatus
Neolamprologus multifasciatus is one of the small shell-dwelling cichlids endemic to Lake Tanganyika. The male reaches five centimeters in length, and the female only 2.5 cm. This makes them one of the smallest cichlid species in the world. Its natural habitat is the neothauma shell beds of...

. N. similis grow slightly larger than "multis", but the two species are more reliably identified by the following:

(1) N. similis stripes extend onto their heads, multis' stripes stop before the head.

(2) N. similis has broader brown stripes, making it seem a brown fish with beige stripes while N. multifasciatus seems a beige fish with brown stripes.
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