Cichlid Profiles - Bartoni, Mojarra
 

Probably the world's rarest cichlid, Herichthys bartoni lives only in the upper Rio Verde in the state of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. (I caught one there in 1977 on an NYU fish collecting trip, but didn't know what it was!) It is medium sized cichlid that in the wild eats snails and rotting vegetation. The males are about 7 inches long, the females 5. They are normally greenish grey, but are polychromatic, and when breeding season comes, they turn silvery gold on the upper front guarter with a black eye, silver white above the lateral line, and dark brown to black from mouth to caudal peduncle below the lateral line. They have a few irridescent green flecks amid the black area.

They like pH of 7.8-7.9, temperature of 85 degrees, and very hard water. The live on the bottom, as far as 90 feet down, but in very clear water. In captivity they need a 55 gallon tank and are very nasty. They like rocks, roots and plants, and are adaptable to eating most meaty foods, especially pieces of fish. The breed on stones in the muddy sides of the river bank and are good parents. They are now considered to be threatened.