Cyphotilapia Frontosa/Gibberosa Profile

[sailor]

Since I joined this community I have seen some great profiles of different species of fish added for the education of the members. I wanted to contribute so I have been working on this off and on for about 2 weeks. I in no way am trying to pass this off as all my own work. I have gathered this information from other articles, friends and personal experience and tried to condense it all into 1 read. So here it goes a profile of my favorite.

Cyphotilapia Frontosa,
Gibberosa & C. sp. "North"

Scientific Name: Cyphotilapia Frontosa
Common Name: Frontosa Cichlid, Frontosa, Fronts, Humphead Cichlid, Tanganyikan Humphead
Habitat: Endemic to the sloping lake bottom off shore in Lake Tanganyika. Widespread throughout the lake from Burundu down to Zambia
Environment: Deep waters of the lake generally found at a depth of up to 50 meters, Sandy and rocky parts Strata: Bottom - Middle
Size: Up to 35 cm for males, females up to 25 cm
Lifespan: More than 25 years if the right tank and water conditions are met
Diet: Carnivorous / Piscivorous. A good quality sinking pellet ie NLS is a great staple diet. Occasional treats such as mysis shrimp or any fresh seafood
Social Behaviour: Territorial but gentle , slow-swimming. Be careful of tank mates as they are opertunic feeders and will eat other fish if they will fit in their mouths

Preferred Water Parameters General: Hard and alkaline as with Lake Tanganyika water pH: 7.8 to 9.0 KH: 14 to 20 GH: 12 to 20 Temperature: 24 to 27 °C

Frontosa belongs to Cyphotilapia because of the hump on the forehead and the broad vertical bands on the body. Frontosa is to include the 7 stripe variety collected in kigoma and surrounding area.

Gibberosa is the new species name for the southern varients of frontosa. Much like any species from the Zambian coastline, southern Tanzanian coastline, and the southern Zaire coastline. Things like zaire blue,kerugma, moba, nangu, nsumbu, ikola, kipili, and mpimbwe, bismark, samazi are all identified as C.gibberosa. They were different enough than the northern varients to recently warrant a separate species name. So technically the Zaires and such are no longer frontosa.

Cyphotilapia sp. "North" would include the Burundi, Kavala and Karilani

General Information:
Cyphotilapia Frontosas are one of the most beautiful and intelligent cichlids available in the hobby, and are considered as the "King of Lake Tanganyika". Their basic physical features are: white bodies with 6 or 7 vertical black bars (depending on race or variant); and a varying shade of blue in some parts of the body - particularly on the face and fins - sometimes replacing some of the white. They are monomorphic with little difference between the genders or sometimes none at all. Adult Fronts, both male and female, develop a large protrusion called a nuchal hump on the frontal lobe as they mature or increase in size. Some species have a larger hump than others. The hump is made up of fatty tissue that rests on a dorsal muscle that extends forward.
These gentle and slow-moving cichlids are lethargic piscivores. In the wild, they don't exert much effort or energy in hunting. They are semi-nocturnal feeders and they don't need much light to wake up. So at dawn, when all the other fish descend to rest and settle on the substrate, Fronts are still out there to collect them by a mouthful seemingly effortless. Cyphotilapia Frontosa live in large groups or colonies in the deep portions alongside the coastline of Lake Tanganyika. They like to swim in the open and only to seek security in caves during breeding or when threatened.
Because of the depth of where they dwell in the lake, they are used to high pressure. Similar to the "Diver’s Disease” or "Decompression sickness", Frontosas, when collected, they have to be brought to the surface in stages. Fish that may survive a drastic ascension to surface would end up getting "The bends" or a swim bladder problem.
They do not tolerate quick and super active species much, like the ones of genera Tropheus and Mbuna complex from Lake Malawi.
Frontosas are slow-growing. It normally takes 2 to 3 years before juveniles reach sexual maturity. Good diet and water condition are always helpful to aid a healthy growth process.
In their native land, Frontosas are considered a delicacy and serve as one of the major sources of protein for the local people.


cont in next post

[sailor]

Suggested Tank Setup:
Cyphotilapia Frontosa are really large fish. It is therefore recommended that the minimum tank size should be 100 to 110 litres per adult fish. These fish can be kept successfully in small groups (1 male / 3 females) but they are more comfortable and are better kept in larger groups. A group of 8 to 10 adult Fronts can "comfortably" be housed in tanks of at least 500 litres. The larger your tank is, the better.
Suggested substrate for Frontosas are: sand or fine gravel. A couple of caves should be provided as the male will definitely need one for a sense of security. Females normally do without caves but should at least have a "ground" territory. The caves can be made of clay pots, lace rocks, or PVC pipes. Make sure they are smooth and that the structure of your caves do not form sharp edges. Fronts are easily spooked and would dash clumsily towards their niche. These fish are also very strong, so make sure that your rock formations are stable or are anchored well. If not they may end up hurting themselves badly, or worse, crack the tank.
Like all fish a combination of an appropriate sized filter (mechanical and biological) is very beneficial for the Fronts. These fish can be sensitive to water pollutants and changes in water conditions and can produce large amount of wastes (also due to their size). A good amount of water circulation is necessary to filter the wastes. Having two or more filters also allow you to alternatively change filters when necessary (leaving one filter in while the other one gets cleaned) during water changes, avoiding taking out too much nitrifying bacteria. It is very important to diffuse the water pumping into the tank as Frontosas do not like too much turbulence in the water. And since they normally spawn in the open (but secluded spots), the quality and quantity of the males' sperms released on the substrate may be reduced due to too much water movements.
Cyphotilapia Frontosas like to swim in the open, so it is necessary to provide a good amount of space as a swimming area in their aquariums. They also prefer dim lighting.

Breeding:
Cyphotilapia Frontosas are mouthbrooders and harem spawners.
They are not sexually dimorphic. Males usually are larger but this is not always accurate. The most reliable sexing is done with venting them once they reach 4 inches plus together with behavioural observation. Sexing juvenile Fronts is almost impossible.
When sexually active, males often turn blue / bluer, especially in the snout region. The females egg tubes, on the other hand, will be protruding. The males can also be seen swimming closely to the females.
The spawning is not very active. It happens, approximately, every two to three months. It usually does not involve shaking, flashing colours, wagging of tailfins, or sparring. It starts with the male selecting a spot in an open area where he will release his sperm, folding its fins while he glides through the substrate. The female will then pass through the same spot (and almost the same manner as the male) and drop her eggs. She backs up, usually without turning around, and picks the large eggs up. This will continue until she has vented all her eggs out. The whole spawning can last from 10 to 15 minutes or longer, depending on the amount of eggs and/or interruptions going on in the tank.
The female will then hold the spawns for approximately 5 weeks, usually not eating during the duration. The eggs will be incubated for about 4 to 5 days. If the eggs were not fertilized, they will begin to dissolve in 3 to 4 days. When the fry are free swimming, they will start to emerge. Brood normally amounts from 20 to 50 fry or even up to 80. These tiny fronts are not so tiny at all and will measure around 1.3 to 1.5 cm long. They can already be fed with Artemia and Daphnia and some flakes. The female will still accommodate the fry in her mouth, especially when threatened, for about two weeks more. After the female abandons the fry, it is recommended to move them to their own grow-out tanks. Small fish under 6 cm are considered as food by adult Frontosas.
Cyphotilapia Frontosa fry can be difficult to rear and needs regimes of small water changes to grow properly. As mentioned above, one must take into consideration their sensitivity to changes in water conditions when preparing their replacement water.
A lot of patience is required in keeping and breeding these gentle giants, but it is surely worth it.

[jbeining75]

woot woot Sailor..... Good read.... great post

[AquaBANG]

sailor, this species looks very interesting, but a large tank is required.