Learn about keeping these beautiful, but unusual, aquarium fishes (Lake Victoria Basin Cichlids - Mark Smith)

Member Name: markos9

Product:	Lake Victoria Basin Cichlids - Mark Smith
Date:	27/08/09 (80 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Possibly the best guide to these fish.

Disadvantages: Some topics not covered in enough detail.

Lake Victoria, at 68,000 square kilometres surface area, is the second largest lake in the world. This vast ocean-like lake is home to over 500 species of fishes, many of which are endemic so found nowhere else on Earth.

One may imagine that a lake this size would be invulnerable to man's influence, but in the 1950s, an environmental disaster of epic proportions was played out in the lake.

To 'improve' local fishing, Nile perch were introduced. This fish makes good eating and grows six feet long. Unfortunately, the Nile perch is a voracious predator and within a decade its population exploded to the detriment of the resident species.

No one knows the exact extent of the impact, but it's estimated that over 200 species of fish became extinct; many before they could be described by science. Unfortunately, man's negative influence on the lake continues today. Huge amounts of pollution now wash into the lake from the expanding villages on the shores, pressuring the already precarious existence of its fishes even more.

On a positive note, many scientific studies on Lake Victoria are ongoing today. Hopefully, some good will come of these studies and some of the effects reversed. One benefit of this has been the increase in the number of species exported for the aquarium trade.

Many of the fishes of Lake Victoria and the surrounding area are cichlids which exhibit fascinating behaviours, and are small enough to be kept in an aquarium. Many are extremely colourful and because of this are becoming more popular as aquarium residents.

Lake Victoria Basin Cichlids, by Mark Philip Smith is an attempt to provide a useful guide to the setting up, maintenance, and stocking of a tank of these attractive and interesting fishes.

Despite their suitability for aquaria, Lake Victoria cichlids are not a good choice for the beginner aquarist. The author cautions that these are highly aggressive fish and intolerant of similar species. Because of this, they must be kept in a large aquarium, with carefully chosen tank mates.

One other fact the aquarist must consider is that, although many of the species have stunningly beautiful male colouration, the females are often drab silver and look similar to other species. This gives two problems. Firstly, only a few of the aquarium residents will be colourful; three times this amount will be plainer looking (kept at a ratio of one male to three females). Secondly, the similarity of the females means that interbreeding can be an issue.

The author is eminently qualified to write this book. He is an acknowledged expert in cichlids of this area and has, in fact, discovered two new species personally.

The first part of the book describes Lake Victoria and its satellite lakes, the area's characteristics and history (it is geologically very young at around 14,000 years), before describing the cichlids that live in the lakes and explaining how so many species have evolved, in such a dazzling variety of shapes, colours, and behaviours, within an amazingly short period of time (many of the studies of Lake Victoria are concerned with exactly how hundreds of species could evolve so soon).

Cichlids are quite advanced fishes, having evolved from marine species which moved into freshwater, and are very intelligent and active, so making engaging aquarium residents.

Many of the cichlids from Lake Victoria practice 'mouth brooding'. The female keeps her fertilised eggs in her mouth during their development until after they've hatched, protecting the young from being eaten. It is amazing to watch a holding female care for her brood for several weeks until finally letting them go free.

The next chapter describes setting up an aquarium specifically for these fishes. The author explains that because of their aggression, Lake Victoria cichlids require more space than their size (typically three to five inches long) suggests. A typical size of aquarium would be around 250 - 350 litres in volume.

As with any aquarium housing large hungry fish, effective filtration is necessary for a Lake Victoria tank. These fishes will benefit from the water being as clean as possible; efficient filtration will help to ensure good health of the aquarium inhabitants.

Filtration is, however, inadequately covered in this small book. Only a couple of pages are given over to this important subject which means that anyone unfamiliar with the correct techniques for setting up and maintaining aquarium filters may be in for an expensive, upsetting time.

Water chemistry is the other subject important to looking after Lake Victoria cichlids. The lake's water is hard and alkaline. Here, Smith does give good advice for achieving and maintaining correct water parameters (such as adding crushed cockle shell to keep the hardness high and the pH above 7).

The other aquarium setting up details are covered reasonably well such as ensuring that the shape of the aquarium is suitable for the habits of the fish (i.e. mid-water swimmers like a tall tank), heating, lighting and decoration.

Water changes, which remove pollutants from the water and prevent them from building up will keep these fish in top condition. The author explains how and why to do this (25% change per week is recommended).

The section on fish health is reasonably comprehensive and describes the different types of food these fishes require. What to do when fish fall ill; what to look for and how to treat the various common diseases is explained.

Given good aquarium conditions, it is reasonably easy to get these cichlids to breed, The various methods for enticing reluctant spawners to breed are examined in detail (one technique described involves separating males and females with a barrier that's porous, to enable egg fertilisation thus preventing aggressive males from hurting the females).

For fish keepers, this is often one of the nicest parts of the hobby and these cichlids can delight the owner with their maternal care. How to raise the young, after they have been released from their mother's mouth, is then detailed.

The second half of the book shows the various species from the area that are available to be purchased for the aquarium. These species' descriptions have excellent photographs of the fishes, many in their natural habitat. The beauty of these cichlids means that this section is fascinating to browse through.

The colouration of many of the cichlids is amazing. The males can be multicoloured and multi-patterned giving a dazzling effect, with greens, blacks, reds, and yellows all competing on the same fish! I'm sure any fish keeper looking through this section will spot fish that they would really like to keep. It's worth remembering, however, when looking through these photographs that the fishes shown are males. The females will be very drab in comparison.

The range of species is extensive but has wildly differing requirements. Some eat other fish others eat tiny crustaceans. Some are very aggressive, others are less so. The author gives enough advice as to the species' habits and information on possible compatibility issues to ensure the reader can make an informed choice on a suitable colony of fishes for his or her aquarium.

Keeping the cichlids from Lake Victoria can give the fish keeper a beautiful, active, and fascinating aquarium for the home. These cichlids can be kept for a more important purpose, however. Many of the cichlids kept by professional aquarists and cichlid groups are now extinct in the wild. It's possible, for an advanced aquarist to take part in a breeding scheme for these fishes, with the eventual aim of releasing them into the wild, thus contributing to the survival of a species; surely a worthwhile undertaking.

This is not a large book and contains only 96 pages. The author has done a good job of including most of the information required to keep these species, with the notable exception of information on filtration. The book would, however, have benefited from being longer, allowing the author to give even more information on these fascinating fishes.

This is possibly the best resource for the fishes of the Lake Victoria area available today. Having said that, beginner fish keepers should also get a good general book on fish keeping to ensure that all the information required to keep fish healthy is available.

The book is available from Amazon for £7.19.

Summary: An excellent introduction into keeping the cichlids from Lake Victoria