Julidochromis regani Kipili

Origin and locale/variety: Kipili--Tanzania, Lake Tanganyika, East Africa

Size: Adults are usually 2.5 to 4.5 inches in aquarium environment.

Sex differences: Males and females are colored.

Aquarium behavior: Julidochromis regani inhabit rocky environments. They do not need very large aquariums. Males and females tend to stay in close vacinity when paired off.

Aquarium diet: J. regani readily accept most foods: flakes, frozen, and live. A combination of flakes, frozen, and live is recommended.

You Need to Know: For the aquarist that has some smaller tanks and has wondered how to use them, Julies are an answer. A single adult pair can easily be housed and breed inside a 15 gallon or larger aquarium. They can be left with their young until the fry reach about one inch.

Compatability: Adult Julidochromis can normally hold their own in almost any community setting that has structure in the form of Texas holey rock, pvc pipe, caves, or similar. We have kept larger Julies with fish from Lake Malawi up to six inches in length without problems.

Observed spawning habits: Julidochromis are pair bonding cave brooders. The female lays eggs inside a cave or crevice and guards the young.

Other information: The best way to obtain a pair of Julidochromis without purchasing large specimens is to obtain 4 to 8 juveniles and let them pair themselves off. Most likely, they will form more than one pair, and one can easily retreive the intial investment by selling the "extras".

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