Cleithracara maroni (Steindachner, 1881)
Suggested pronunciation: klee-thra-CAR-uh marown-ee

 

Rating Availability Hardiness Overall appeal

Species description

• Physical description....
  • Cleithracara maronii is an egg-shaped cichlid.
  • They have a short, oval-shaped body and a smoothly rounded forehead profile. The throat profile matches the rounded forehead profile.
  • The body colour is a fawn-brown and they have some blue in the dorsal, caudal and pelvic fins.
  • The body is occasionally marked with faint lateral lines.
  • A broad dark band, tapering at either end runs through the eye, starting from the front ray of the dorsal fin, down to the corner of the gill cover.
  • A characteristic dark splotch edged in cream is present under the dorsal fin about two-thirds of the way down the length of the body. A faint dark line runs from the bottom of the mark to the belly. This mark is said to resemble a keyhole - giving the common name.
  • They sometimes have an overlapping double mark.
  • The fins range from body colour to dark green-blue in colour.
  • The Keyhole cichlid has the ability to change colour quickly when frightened. The colours can change to a dark brown.
  • The rear ends of the dorsal and anal fins are pointed - more in males
  • The caudal fin is rounded.
• Taxonomy....
  • Kingdom: Animalia
    • Phylum: Chordata: Sub-phylum: Vertebrates - Group: Fish
      • Class: Osteichthyes (Bony Fish): Sub-class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned Fish)
        • Order: Perciformes (Perch-like Fish)
          • Family: Cichlidae (Cichlid): subfamily: Cichlasomatinae
            • Genus: Cleithracara
              • Species: maronii
• Geographical variants....
  • None.
• Similar species....
  • None

Habitat information

• Cleithracara maronii is a dwarf cichlid.
• They are found in the Maroni River on the border of Surinam and French Guyana and in small creeks in the coastal zone that have clear water and little current.
• They are also found in the Orinoco delta in eastern Venezuela and in the Ouanary River in French Guiana.
• They are found among tangles of roots, branches and marginal vegetation.

About the Maroni River

• The Maroni River forms the boundary between French Guiana and Suriname (formerly Dutch Guiana), in South America.
• It rises on the northern slopes of the Tumuc-Humac Mountains, near the Brazilian border, and descends generally northward through dense tropical rain forests, to enter the Atlantic Ocean at Point Galibi, Suriname, about 19 miles (30 km) below the river ports of Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni.
• The people that live along the Maroni River are known as Maroons.

Aquarium care
The following information relating to tank size, decoration and tank mates is indicative and intended to be used as a rough guide only. Other possible tank mates are listed under Compatibility and there are many plants and decorations that can be used - just ask us.

• Tank ideas....
  • Cleithracara maronii can be kept in a minimum 60 centimetre (25 inch) tank of about 54 litre capacity. This is a tank of the dimensions 60x30x30cm (25x12x12 inches).
  • A larger tank will be necessay if you want to keep them in a large peaceful tropical community.
  • They are also good fish for a planted Amano-style tank as they don't eat or dig up plants and are small enough not to disturb plantings.
  • Example - Planted tropical community tank:
    • 80x35x35 centimetre (32x15x15 inch), 98 litre tank
    • Fish ideas
      • 5 x Cleithracara maronii
      • 6 x Nannostomus marginatus
      • 5 x Iratherina werneri
      • 3 x Ancistrus hoplogenys
      • 1 x Epalzeorhynchus frenatus
    • Building the tank:
      • Background - eg. external printed dark blue or black.
      • Substrate - 3mm Coffs Harbour gravel; roughly 20kg. Mix aquarium peat moss into gravel. Use some eucalypt leaf litter.
      • Decoration - Driftwood to create a branch tangle; flat river stones.
        
      • Plants - Suitable plants include Anubias barteri var nana (on wood), Ambulia (Limnophila sessiflora), Cryptocorene wendtii; Pygmy Chain Sword (Echinodoras tennellus) and Java Moss (Vesicularia dubyana).
• Maintenance and Disease....
  • Regular partial water changes are essential to the health of this cichlid.
  • Sudden changes in pH and temperature should be avoided.
  • As they can be timid, care should be taken not to startle them during tank maintenance.
  • They should not be introduced to a new tank, but put in once the tank is established and aged.
  • Water parameters:
    • pH: slightly acid to slightly alkaline (6.0-7.6)
    • Hardness: soft to moderate (3-20dH)
    • Temperature: 22-27oC.
      
• Compatibility....
  • Keyhole Cichlids are a completely inoffensive fish, even when breeding.
  • Cleithracara maronii are a beautiful little Dwarf Cichlid that makes a good addition to a well-established peaceful tropical community aquarium.
  • They are easily intimidated by larger bossy and boisterous fish.
  • Fish to avoid include many of the Barbs and Danios (they are too active) and any aggressive fish.
  • Keyhole Cichlids can live with small schooling fish and other small peaceful fish.
    
    

  Ideas for suitable tankmates.... The fish listed below are indicative of the species that can be kept with this fish. Other fish may also be suitable - please ask us which other fish are compatible. ______________________________ South America Yellow Dwarf Cichlid (Apistogramma borelli) Neon Tetra (Paracheirodon innesi) Oto (Otocinclus affinis) Dwarf Corydoras (Corydoras hastatus) Giant Silver Hatchetfish (Gasteropeleca stenicla) Three-line Pencilfish (Nannostomus trifasciata) Spotted Headstander (Chilodus punctatus) ______________________________ Asia Emerald-eye Rasbora (Rasbora dorsiocellata) Harlequin Rasbora (Rasbora heteromorpha) Sparkling Gourami (Trichopsis vittata) Khuli Loach (Acanthophthalmus sp) Dwarf Loach (Yasuhikotakia sidthimunki) ______________________________ Africa - Riverine Upside-down Catfish (Synodontis nigriventris)

• Breeding....
• Cleithracara maronii form strong monogamous pair bonds.
• For them to breed, the pH should be between 6.4 and 6.8, the temperature 24-26oC and the hardness between 3 and 12.
• They are an open spawner and the female may lay up to 300 eggs on a previously cleaned rock or broad plant leaf, such as Anubias or Echinodoras species.
• Both parents look after the eggs, fanning them to keep the water circulating over the eggs and removing any unfertilised eggs.
• The fish is relatively easy to spawn although new pairs can be notorious egg eaters.
• The fry hatch within 3-5 days and are free-swimming several days later. The parents may keep looking after their fry for up to six months.

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• References....
  Web sites
  Fishbase
  Books
  Baensch Aquarium Atlas Vol 1 (Mergus Publishing, 1996)
  Enjoying Cichlids (Cichlid Press, 1993)
  Popular Freshwater Tropical Fish (Parragon, 2002)
  

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ph: (07) 3823 1866