Venustus Cichlid

The venustus is one of the large predatory haps of Lake Malawi. Juveniles and females carry irregular brown blotches resembling a giraffe on a cream-yellow background. In mature males the head and face turn bright blue, the body becomes yellowish and the blotches fade.

With its size of up to 25 cm and its large mouth, it hunts any fish that fits in its mouth. So when buying a juvenile that looks small and cute in the store, its adult size must be taken into account. Toward fish close to its own size, however, it is relatively calm.

It lives along the sandy and shallow shores of Lake Malawi. Its hunting method is interesting: it lies motionless on the sand and, thanks to its blotched pattern, looks like a dead fish. It catches approaching small fish with a sudden lunge.

• Volume: at least 600 liters and 180 cm in length for an adult group; depth and width also matter.
• Layout: A wide open sand area with sturdy rock groups along the sides.
• Water: Hard and alkaline (pH 7.8–8.5); aragonite substrate or Malawi salt.
• Maintenance: Because it is a large fish that eats a lot, strong filtration and weekly 40–50% water changes.

Carnivorous. A large cichlid pellet should be the staple; it is varied with frozen mysis, krill, shrimp and fish meat. Live feeder fish can carry disease and are not necessary. Mammalian meat and overly fatty foods can lead to Malawi bloat.

As males mature, they set up territories and become aggressive toward other males of their own species. It generally gets along with haps of similar size. Keeping it in the same aquarium as mbuna is not recommended: the small ones get hunted, while the large ones push the slow-eating venustus away from food.

Good companions: large haps (electric blue ahli, blue dolphin cichlid, Malawi eye-biter, Fossorochromis rostratus), large Aulonocara species, large Synodontis catfish suited to hard water.

Avoid: any fish that fits in its mouth, small Aulonocara and mbuna, community fish, shrimp and snails.

• Harem: 1 male and 2–3 females; a single male in the aquarium is recommended.
• Large hap community: A mixed aquarium made up of single males or small harems of different species is a common setup.
• Because it can hybridize with other Nimbochromis species (livingstoni, polystigma), keeping a single species in a harem aquarium is recommended.

A mouthbrooder. The male digs a wide pit in the sand and calls the female there; the female picks up the eggs in her mouth and they are fertilized via the egg spots on the male's anal fin. Large females carry dozens of eggs for about 3–4 weeks. The fry grow quickly and are fed crushed pellets.

• Malawi bloat: wrong food and stress.
• Hole in the head: insufficient water changes and a monotonous diet.
• Growth problems: stunting and deformities can occur in fish kept in a small aquarium.

Sexing is easy in mature fish: males have a bright blue head and a yellow body, their blotches fade, and the egg spots on the anal fin are prominent. Females keep the giraffe pattern for life. All juveniles have the female pattern; males begin to color up at around 12–15 cm.