I agree, they are generally the same size, I think the burundi and kigoma types can "appear" larger because of exceptionally large nuchal humps compared to the gibberosa species such as mpimbwe or moba types. In general frontosa are rather slow growing but over time achieve larger than average size in adult hood. I consider a 12 inch cichlid to be quite large, frontosa commonly exceed that (both male and females) but it takes more years to get that big than some similar new world cichlids such as oscars etc...
Information on types of Frontosa
- Thread starter Red Devil
- Start date
Thanks very much everyone...keep in mind that all of your contributions..make this thread informative and a helpful resource.. all opinions and info welcome.. anything you like to share please do... and any facts that i have not coverered please add.. thanks again everyone...
There are collection points not listed, i will go over some at the top of my head. There are alot that are not brought in. The market for frontosa is not so great right now for anything other then Zaire. And even with that, not all Zaire blue types are brought in because lack of name recognition.
Example, there are other blue types that look just as good as Moba, kitumba, kapampa, but those are the most well known so they are the most requested. Other new blue types will have a hard time over coming lack of name recognition, thus they will have zero demand.
Not all frontosa are the same size, example mbita island is smaller then the others and one of the meanest frontosa.
Others at the top of my head that are missing on your list....
halembe, molwe, chituta, mamalesa island, mbita island, gombi, magara and resha.
Example, there are other blue types that look just as good as Moba, kitumba, kapampa, but those are the most well known so they are the most requested. Other new blue types will have a hard time over coming lack of name recognition, thus they will have zero demand.
Not all frontosa are the same size, example mbita island is smaller then the others and one of the meanest frontosa.
Others at the top of my head that are missing on your list....
halembe, molwe, chituta, mamalesa island, mbita island, gombi, magara and resha.
I took some pics last night of my mpimbwe and burundi tank. Most of the fish in the pics are mpimbwe but there are a few burundi hiding in the background LOL. My mpimbwe are a little over a year old and most are 4 to 5 inches long now. Liz asked me to post them here, she liked their color so here are some of those pics :
Here is a shot that shows how different two fish can look , they are both mpimbwe but camera angle and angle of the fish can make a huge difference :
Here is my alpha burundi :
My alpha is the only burundi not "shy". He rules the tank with a iron fin :
Here is a nice shot showing the mpimbwe "pearls" along the topline of the fish. I feel these pearls are what make the mpimbwe look so blue compared to their burundi tankmates that lack the pearling :
In this pic you can see one of the burundi "hiding" in the background. As you can tell the mpimbwe are much more outgoing and interact with me and the camera alot more . They almost seem to be posing and enjoying the attention :
My "herd" of mpimbwe at feeding time, they follow me from one end of the tank to the other and wiggle and beg till i drop in the food LOL:
Here is a shot that shows how different two fish can look , they are both mpimbwe but camera angle and angle of the fish can make a huge difference :
Here is my alpha burundi :
My alpha is the only burundi not "shy". He rules the tank with a iron fin :
Here is a nice shot showing the mpimbwe "pearls" along the topline of the fish. I feel these pearls are what make the mpimbwe look so blue compared to their burundi tankmates that lack the pearling :
In this pic you can see one of the burundi "hiding" in the background. As you can tell the mpimbwe are much more outgoing and interact with me and the camera alot more . They almost seem to be posing and enjoying the attention :
My "herd" of mpimbwe at feeding time, they follow me from one end of the tank to the other and wiggle and beg till i drop in the food LOL:
18 months to get about 5 inches.. the alpha male seems to grow faster then any others.. after 18 months it really slows down.. then they have growth spurts.. mine are just getting to be 8 inches over 3 years of growing.. and one that was 7 inches three years ago is almost 10 inches now...
here are my frontosa, they are still very young. all have 6 stripes, the only difference i can physically tell between them at this point is that some are darker on the face than others. thank you for creating this post. great idea!
Alright well I guess I can contribute to this thread. I'll give you guys a little info on Cyphotilapia frontosa -Kigoma and then tell you a little bit about my experience with them so far.
Cyphotilapia frontosa - (Kigoma 7 stripe)
The only true "frontosa"
Habitat: Deep rocky waters of Lake Tang.
Diet: They are carnivores so they will eat meaty foods. (You can feed: krill, brine shrimp, sinking pellets and things a long those lines...)
Breeding: They are Maternal Mouth Brooders
Temper: Can be docile but is also agressive
Size: They can grow anywhere from 12-14 inches
Tempature: 72-77 degrees F
They are generally a hardy fish.
To state the obvious if you are intrested in these, like any frontosa you are better off with a colony of them. 1-2 male/5+ female. I currently have a colony of 16 F1 Kig's in size range of 1inch - 2.5 inches. It took some of the 1.5ish inch fish about 6 months to reach around 2 -2.5 inches. I will later reduce size and create my male to female ratio. I would not reccommend just buying these fish from anyone, but look for a breeder and make sure it is one you can trust. I looked for awhile for mine and I am very happy with my choice.
My tank is set-up with some large rocks that are intrestingly shaped so that when they sit on the bootom the create caves that they can swim through. I use sand as my substrate. I think the rocks/caves are important in breaking up territory and giving them more areas to divide into. Also the caves can help b/c when they are larger they will not be able to get into most of them, however if they have fry it's a great hiding area for them untill they can be seperated. I keep my tank temp. around 75 degrees F.
I feed them New Life Spectrum Sinking pellets. With some very strangeeeeeee problems I have had I am very hesitant to feed anything else.
I have had 2 tankmates with them a helianthus and synodontis. I would not reccomend any tank mates for these guys other then the synodontis if you feel you want something else in the tank. Watching the behavior and interactions with some of the kig's old tankmates I found them to be more agressive then my Burundi. The Burundi - one being 9 inches all got along fine with each of their tankmates and I never really saw agression from them, which is not the case with my kigomas. The only tankmate that is in the tank with the kig's now is a synodontis and that seems to be the only fish that they get along with. I am sure the fact that I have 16 of them makes a difference also. That is in my experience though.
I am hoping to continue to watch these guys grow (hopefully with no problems) and eventually breed them. I really enjoy these guys, watching how such a large colony interacts and how the pile up at feeding time. They are great fish!
Hopefully some of this information can be helpful to those of you who are new to Frontosas as well as Kigomas.
*Sorry I have no pictures right now
Cyphotilapia frontosa - (Kigoma 7 stripe)
The only true "frontosa"
Habitat: Deep rocky waters of Lake Tang.
Diet: They are carnivores so they will eat meaty foods. (You can feed: krill, brine shrimp, sinking pellets and things a long those lines...)
Breeding: They are Maternal Mouth Brooders
Temper: Can be docile but is also agressive
Size: They can grow anywhere from 12-14 inches
Tempature: 72-77 degrees F
They are generally a hardy fish.
To state the obvious if you are intrested in these, like any frontosa you are better off with a colony of them. 1-2 male/5+ female. I currently have a colony of 16 F1 Kig's in size range of 1inch - 2.5 inches. It took some of the 1.5ish inch fish about 6 months to reach around 2 -2.5 inches. I will later reduce size and create my male to female ratio. I would not reccommend just buying these fish from anyone, but look for a breeder and make sure it is one you can trust. I looked for awhile for mine and I am very happy with my choice.
My tank is set-up with some large rocks that are intrestingly shaped so that when they sit on the bootom the create caves that they can swim through. I use sand as my substrate. I think the rocks/caves are important in breaking up territory and giving them more areas to divide into. Also the caves can help b/c when they are larger they will not be able to get into most of them, however if they have fry it's a great hiding area for them untill they can be seperated. I keep my tank temp. around 75 degrees F.
I feed them New Life Spectrum Sinking pellets. With some very strangeeeeeee problems I have had I am very hesitant to feed anything else.
I have had 2 tankmates with them a helianthus and synodontis. I would not reccomend any tank mates for these guys other then the synodontis if you feel you want something else in the tank. Watching the behavior and interactions with some of the kig's old tankmates I found them to be more agressive then my Burundi. The Burundi - one being 9 inches all got along fine with each of their tankmates and I never really saw agression from them, which is not the case with my kigomas. The only tankmate that is in the tank with the kig's now is a synodontis and that seems to be the only fish that they get along with. I am sure the fact that I have 16 of them makes a difference also. That is in my experience though.
I am hoping to continue to watch these guys grow (hopefully with no problems) and eventually breed them. I really enjoy these guys, watching how such a large colony interacts and how the pile up at feeding time. They are great fish!
Hopefully some of this information can be helpful to those of you who are new to Frontosas as well as Kigomas.
*Sorry I have no pictures right now
thanks Ash.. kigoma are my favorites too.. i have only one who is about 11 inches.. and by far my favorite.. thanks again for your contribution...Ash;3338216; said:
Jus found this forum.. Thanks for the info. My fontosa is really dark. Supposedly was given to my LFS because of aggression issues. He is the most peaceful fish in the tank. I look forward to continuing to learn about these fascinating fish.
