Dicrossus maculatus

Dicrossus maculatus is a checkerboard cichlid that lives around the Tapajós and Maués rivers in Brazil. It is often confused with D. filamentosus, but its tail is spade-shaped, not a lyre with filament tips. The male's cheeks and gill covers have a blue sheen; the female is plainer, and her pelvic fins turn bright yellow during breeding. Because females can be the same size as males, or sometimes even larger, sex cannot be told from size.

• At least 80 liters for a pair.
• 27–29°C, pH 4.5–6, GH 1–3; very acidic and almost mineral-free water is needed for the eggs to hatch.
• Fine sand, dried leaves, dense plants and dim light; values must be kept very stable.

Carnivorous. It feeds on small live or frozen foods such as cyclops, daphnia, brine shrimp and fine bloodworms; it is slow to accept dry food.

Very peaceful toward other species, but it can be hard for it to get along with its own kind; keeping a single pair is recommended. A female guarding fry steers the brood using her pelvic fins.

Good companions: cardinal tetras, pencilfish, hatchetfish, small rasboras that tolerate blackwater.

Avoid: busy and domineering fish, large cichlids, hard-water species, a second pair in the same aquarium.