Uaru cichlid (Uaru amphiacanthoides) is a freshwater fish genus of the Cichlidae family. This is a large aquarium fish that eats plant food. Further in the article, you’ll find out how to keep uaru fish, feed it, select tank mates, and breed it.
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Habitat in the wild
Where are uaru fish from? Uaru amphiacanthoides habitat is in the Amazon River basin and fresh waters of Guiana. Its generic name originated due to the natives living on the benches of these rivers.
They call the fish «uaru ura,» which is translated as «mirror-like.» It is most likely that this is because of the fish’s saucer-shaped body. Locals eat it.
The fish’s specific name is amphiacanthoides, where «amphi» translated from Greek means «around,» «acanth» – spine, and «oides» – alike. The name originated due to some similarities of uaru fish body shape and eating preferences with fishes of the Acanthurus genus.
Acanthurus includes about 30 fish kinds that are mostly herbivorous ones from the West of the World Ocean.
For the first time, uaru cichlid was described by Heckel in 1840 as a large cichlasoma. In 1913 the fish were first brought to Europe. This kind first was bred Nuremberg Zoo. In the wild, uaru cichlid prefers areas with complex underwater topography. Typical nature biotope, as a rule, is a slowly flowing water, thickly planted which bottom is covered with stones of various sizes and snags. This is where the fish feels relatively safe. Water in such ponds is slightly mineralized, and it has a pH < 7. Uaru cichlid prefers clean, soft waters where it feeds with worms, crustaceans, insects, detritus, fruit, and algae.
Unlike discus and freshwater angelfish dwelling in the same places, uaru cichlids don’t gather in large schools since they prefer staying in couples or small groups. For this reason, they are encountered much more seldom, and their catching involves some specific difficulties.
| Scientific Name | Uaru amphiacanthoides |
| Family | Cichlidae |
| Common Names | Uaru fish; uaru cichlid; triangle cichlid |
| Ease of keeping | Easy |
| Lifespan | 10 years and more |
| Tank size | 250 liters (62 gallons) and more |
| Temperament | Peaceful |
| Tank type | Community of large fishes |
| Diet | Omnivorous |
| Temperature | 28-30 °C (82,4-86 ºF) |
| pH | 5.8-7.5 |
| Water hardness | 6–20 dGH |
| Size | Up to 14 inches (35 cm) |
Description
In the wild, uaru cichlid size is 12-14 inches (30-35 cm), the largest. In a tank, their size is significantly smaller, about 8-10 inches (20-25 cm).
Uaru’s body is very flattened from sides and is egg-shaped. Their forehead goes straight to the beginning of their dorsal.
Yellow-brow colors prevail in the adult species coloring. They have a large triangular dark spot on their bodyside. Due to this spot, the kind has obtained several names, the most popular of which is a triangle cichlid. Another smaller-sized spot is near the fish eyes that we should pay special attention to.
Firstly, Uaru has rather large eyes, and secondly, its eyes color varies from bright yellow to red, and they really attract attention due to the general dark background.
Difficulties in keeping
The fish is a rather undemanding but very rare one. Despite its quite menacing look, uaru cichlids almost pay no attention even to relatively small tank mates. Most of the time, they stay in their shelters or groups of the same kind in the middle or bottom water layer. We should mention that a group of adult uaru cichlids in a large, nicely decorated with snags and stones aquarium with dim colorful lighting is a magnificent spectacle.
Care and keeping in a tank
In the 60s and the 70s of the last century when aquarists could get only wild, and for this reason, very expensive discus fishes, uaru were called «poor man’s discus.» Both juveniles and adult species were sold for less than 1/3 of one discus price, while their body shape and behavior were quite alike.
Lifespan
Uaru cichlid lifespan in a tank is about 10-12 years.
Tank size
To keep a couple, you’ll need a tank of at least 250 liters capacity with very clean water. For a small group, the tank should be not less than 500 liters large, and it’s better to be a species tank (with just uaru fish in it).
Water parameters
Recommended water temperature is 28-30 °C (82,4-86 ºF). However, the fish can stand a short-term water temperature drop up to 20 °C. But excessive use of this feature is not advisable since uaru can easily get cold. Water hardness may be in the range from 6 to 20°dGH, pH 6,0-8,0. For wild species, water hardness should be up to 12°dGH, pH 5.8-7.5.
Tank setup: decorations and plants
Wild Uaru are extremely timid, so they stay in the shadows of snags, thus in a tank, they’ll also require shelters and some dark areas. It is preferable to have scattered lighting in the tank.
Since the fish, by its nature, is a herbivorous one, it has a seeming inclination for eating aquatic flora. For this reason, planting live plants in the tank almost makes no sense since, sooner or later, they’ll be eaten. At that, uaru fish not just eats them. It looks like it is at war with them, and the aim is to destroy the latter completely. Once I’ve observed an adult uaru teaching a young one how to eat Vallisneria leaves. I was impressed. During three years of keeping these fish in a tank, none of the plants survived.
Filtration
Uaru is sensitive to nitrogen compounds contained in the water. Thus, in the tank, efficient biological filtration (use canister filters), aeration, and frequent water renew are required (not less than 30% of the tank volume every week).
Feeding
In the wild, the adult uaru cichlids diet is 80% plant food. The rest, 20%, is the fodder of animal origin. In a tank, their favorite food is duckweed, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, blowball, sliced apples, cucumbers, zucchini. Spinach isn’t recommended as regular food for them since its leaves contain oxalic acid.
All greenery should be washed well, gathered in a bunch, and then put in a tank with a load weight attached to it. Usually, everything is eaten very quickly.
In case of plant food deficiency in the fish diet, they often suffer from deficiency disease, and it makes them gnaw round snags on the tank, which can be easily seen on snags.
Uaru cichlid eats protein food as well: worms, blood worms, tubifex. However, such food may also contain both infecting agents and parasites. Considering that the fish is large, lives long, it is recommended to feed them with special artificial food for cichlids. On the one hand, they are rich in nutrients. On the other hand, it is impossible to bring the infection into the tank when using it.
Tank mates
Uaru cichlid isn’t a fish for community tanks with small fishes (even though it is not aggressive, but this is a large cichlid, and small-sized tank mates it treats as food). However, it is good for dwelling together with other cichlids of Central and South America. These cichlids are less aggressive than their relatives from Africa, but in general, it depends on the tank size.
Uaru can be kept together with discus fish (however, this sensitive fish isn’t the best tank mate in this case), with keyhole cichlid, Texas cichlid, firemouth cichlid, blue acara, convict cichlid, green terror cichlid, blood parrot cichlid, and freshwater angelfish.
In general, it gets on well with any cichlid, on the condition that the latter don’t demonstrate aggression towards it.
Uaru is a social fish, and it should be kept at least as a couple, and keeping several species will be even better. In this case, they create a hierarchy and demonstrate the best of its behavior. However, such a group will require quite a spacious tank.
Gender differences: male vs. female
Sex dimorphism is rather poorly visible. Coloring of both sexes is the same but males have a larger forehead, and they are a bit larger and slimmer than females. To define the sex for sure becomes possible only during the spawning period when the males demonstrate a pointed sperm duct and the females have a large pear-shaped terebra.
Breeding
Couples are formed only during the spawning period. During this time, uaru males become more aggressive. Nevertheless, other more agrressive species of other kinds (even smaller in size) often attack uaru and drive them out from their spots.
Uaru cichlid becomes reproductive when being from 16-18 months old and 18-20 cm large.
Breeding uaru in a tank is quite challenging, even though it doesn’t differ much from other African cichlids’ breeding.
Its success by 90% depends on the selected breeders. That’s why it is recommended to get 8-10 fish teens. Before the spawning, you should feed the fish with sliced cucumbers for a long time. This diet is good for the better development of genital products.
A couple formed on its own usually spawns in the same tank where it lives and selects the most shadowed space for this purpose.
You can put the breeders in a separate spawning tank about 40 inches long (100 cm) with shelters and water of the following parameters: temperature 27-30 °C, dGH 2-12°, pH 5.5-6.
The successfully selected couple later successfully spawns again.
You can use a large stone, flower pot, or any other object with a smooth surface as a spawning substrate. Together with preparing the spawning substrate, uaru makes a deepening in the tank bottom substrate. The spawning process lasts about two hours.
The maximal fertility of the females is about 500 eggs in one spawning. Usually, it is 150-300. The eggs are quite small of bright-yellow color.
Newly-minted parents may eat their first clutches. You can remove the eggs to a separate volume to resolve the issue. Good breeders who thoroughly take care of their offspring ensure that their juveniles grow faster than those in the incubator.
Sometimes the breeders may fight because of their different ideas about how to treat the juveniles. In this case, remove one of the breeders into another volume.
At the temperature of 30 °C, the incubation time is about two days. The breeders gather larvae and put them into the hole in the bottom substrate they’ve prepared in advance.
On the 3rd day, the larvae gather in a school that resembles a ball, and they spend about two more days in a state like this. Then they turn into juveniles and start to swim actively.
Like discus fish, uaru juveniles use the epithelial secretory product on the body surface of their parents as a starter food. While one of the parents has rest, the other one carries the offspring on its body. To switch the roles, uaru with juveniles abruptly gets to the water surface, at that the juveniles go to another parent.
In an aquarium, uaru have not enough epithelial secretory product, or it may be missing at all. That’s why at the beginning, the juveniles are fed with tiny plankton.
As they grow, they eagerly eat standard food of animal origin.
Except for traditional food, the diet of the uaru juvenile should include duckweed. At the age of three months, their food preferences change significantly, and they love spinach, lettuce, or blowball leaves.
Uaru juveniles have violet-blue coloring with white spots scattered around their body and fins. Just one-third of the juveniles grow to become adults.
Due to rare cases of uaru breeding in captivity and very limited import from Brazil, the aquarium population of the fish kind becomes progressively infrequent.
Not surprisingly, the fish price has become significantly higher. Even though uaru doesn’t have such an appealing coloring as that of the discus fish, it is welcome as an aquarium fish due to its challenging breeding process and interesting behavior.