Melanochromis Auratus are nasty!!!! What else can be said about this mbuna cichlid? Of all the cichlid species, the Melanochromis are probably the most aggressive. This fish is simply a serial killer. I have tried to put 3 other Melanochromis fish in this tank, only to find them dead the next day. The one I have is a female and she simply will not allow any fish that looks anything like her. Thus, if you have noticed, this is the only fish in my tank with HORIZONTAL stripes. She has killed everything else with those types of stripes.
Males and Females look idenical when young, but as they grow, the male slowly turns to an opposite color of the female. The male is black, with a white stripe and brown top, where the female is yellow, with a white stripe and yellow top. As you can see in my pics, there are pics of her showing yellow colors. However, here's where the strange part happens. Because she is the dominant fish in the tank, she has taken on MALE colors. You can see in several of these pics that she is holding eggs, proving her female sex.
Another thing about Melanochromis is that they are omnivorus and will hunt and kill new fry. This can be a good thing if you don't want lots of babies swimming in your tank.
John Carr's African Aquarium
