Aulonocara

Aulonocara

Of all Malawi cichlids, the Aulonocara form a separate group. They are also known as emperor cichlids. There are currently around 22 officially described Aulonocara species and a number of others awaiting official description.

The name Aulonocara refers to one of the most important characteristics of this species, namely the lateral line canals on their heads. The name can be broken down into two Greek words: aulus means flute and caras means face, a reference to the flute-like lateral line canals.

The lateral line canal is visible in the photo below. It resembles the holes in a recorder.

Aulonocara diet

In the wild, Aulonocara live above sandy areas. Using their lateral line organ in their head, they listen for movement in the sand just above the surface. As soon as they detect movement in the sand, they dive headfirst into the sand and take a bite. They sift the sand through their gills and eat the invertebrates that were in the sand.

In the aquarium, they are not picky eaters. All food will usually be eaten. They are naturally carnivorous and occasionally eat some algae. It is therefore harmless to occasionally feed them some spirulina flakes. The spirulina will also contribute to the optimal colouring of the Aulonocara.

You can feed them cichlid pellets, flakes, artemia, water fleas, black and white mosquito larvae, mysis, chopped mussels, and shrimp, among other things. This can be live or frozen food.

The Aulonocara aquarium

For the Aulonocara, you can set up the aquarium with plenty of sand on the bottom. If you use filter sand with a size of 0.4 to 0.8, you will not run the risk of the bottom becoming clogged.

You can further decorate the aquarium with rocks around the edges of the open sand. Make sure there are some crevices, cracks, and caves where the females can hide to escape the attention of the males. Brooding females also tend to retreat between the rocks to find peace and quiet.

Water values
The water in Lake Malawi is pretty much the same everywhere in terms of water values. The temperature is between 22 and 26 degrees Celsius. The pH is between 7.5 and 8.5 with a GH of 12 to 16.

Tank mates

Aulonocara are not the strongest Malawi cichlids. Therefore, make sure you do not keep them together in an overly crowded aquarium. Mbuna are often much fiercer and stronger than Aulonocara and will suppress them. Many females also look very similar. If you keep several species of Aulonocara in an aquarium, crossbreeding cannot be ruled out.

Breeding Aulonocara

Like most Malawi cichlids, the Aulonocara is a mouthbrooder. The male lures the female to a spot in the sand with trembling movements. He shows her his flank and spreads his fins wide. As soon as the female is ready to mate, they begin to circle each other. The female lays an egg, quickly turns around and takes the egg into her mouth. The male turns with her and rubs his anal fin with egg stains in front of the female’s head. She snaps at the egg stains, causing the male to release some sperm. This fertilises the eggs in the female’s mouth.

After mating, the female incubates the eggs. Although the eggs hatch after about 3 to 4 days, the female keeps the young in her mouth. Only about 3 weeks after mating does the female release the young. In the aquarium, the young must immediately fend for themselves. You can feed them finely ground flakes, fine dust food, artemia, etc.