Aquarium Setup: An adult size of a golden zebra is anywhere between 4- 5 inches, thus a large tank no less than 80 gallon is the minimum requirement. Different mixture of pebbles and rocks with different sizes is highly recommended. The water flow in the tank should be gentle and avoid high turbulence in the water caused by oversized aquarium filter.
Species Compatibility: Should only be mixed with other mbuna cichlids which are aggressive in nature. Mixing with other species of small sized fish is not an option here. Avoid mistakes of putting in Amazon based river fish because they will not be compatible with your Metriaclima barlowi.
Diet: The fish's favorite food is mainly confined to algae which can be found growing on large rocks. Spirulina can also be added to the diet as a supplement. Sometimes the fish will also nibble on soft leaves plants which will also form part of their diet.
Breeding: Your pet is a shy mating species which will stay away and avoid all the attention from the outside. They can be seen hiding in caves or among dense aquarium plants when mating. During the spawning season the pair can turn to become highly aggressive. Females often become the subject of bullying and attacking exhibited by the over zealous male fish and best option is to separate them to different tanks once spawning is completed.
Metriaclima mbenjii (Cobalt Zebra Cichlids)
Aquarium Setup: The fish can attain adult growing size of 5 inches if well cared for. It is considered a highly territorial fish that would not tolerate other fish species encroaching into its area. The species loves an aquarium setup filled with plenty of live plants combined with artificial caves as a perfect hiding spot.
Species Compatibility: The fish will live and get along well with other Metriaclima species provided that the aquarium size is large enough for each of them to declare their territory. If you intend to maintain a pure bred fish retaining the red top bar trademark unique of the mbenjii species, then I would suggest maintaining only a single species tank.
Diet: Similar with the Golden Zebra Metriaclima barlowi dietary requirement.
Breeding: The male is highly aggressive and during the spawning season it will defend its chosen spawning spot and will not hesitate to attack any invaders. Usually typical behavior seen on the fish is that it will search out the females and lead it back to the spawning site. It is a good idea to keep at least 3-4 female fish because the male can be extremely picky to select only the healthiest specimen. Once the fry is released, they will grow very fast and the best food to offer to them is brine shrimp.
Other types of aquarium fish:
Glass Catfish
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