Boesemani Rainbow Cichlid
Common Names: Boesemani Rainbow, Rainbow Cichlid
Scientific Name: Melanotaenia boesemani
Family: Melanotaeniidae
Maximum Size: 5 inches
Life expectancy: 6+ years
Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 - 77°F
pH Range: 6.5 - 7.2
Water hardness: dH 5-10
Temperament: Peaceful
Origin: Asia, Australia
Aquarium Setup:
The ideal tank for the Boesemani Rainbow Cichlid will be wider than it is tall as these fish like to swim horizontally. They won’t disturb plants so add plenty of plants leaving them open spaces in the middle and front of the tank for swimming. Moss should also be added for spawning.
The substrate can be gravel or any other material you choose. But, it’s thought that a dark colored substrate will help develop their vibrant colors.
Diet:
Boesemani Cichlid’s aren’t picky about their diets and will eat almost anything. You can feed them a quality flake food, live blackworms and frozen bloodworms. As well as most other live or frozen foods.
A diet that includes live food at least three times a week will enhance their brilliant colors. Any foods that you give them should be in fairly small sizes, while their mouth is very large their throats are quite narrow.
Vegetable matter is also an important part of the Rainbow’s diet. You can feed them vegetable flakes or even offer them some skinned peas and other veggies.
Tank Mates/Community:
This peaceful fish can get along with many different tank mates. The community can include Angelfish, Guppies, Tetras, Loaches, Tiger Barbs, Gouramis and Discus as well as other peaceful fish.
These Cichlids are schooling fish, so it is recommended to have several in the tank. They are also often shy fish and having more than one will bring them out into the open more.
Behavior:
While naturally a very peaceful fish, the Rainbow like most other fish will become aggressive during spawning. With this species the ratio is for two males to each female, so the female can have a break while the males chase each other.
Color:
The Boesemani Rainbow adds a splash of color to any aquarium. The males heads are a bluish purple that fades into a vibrant orange toward it’s tail. He will also have some light and dark vertical marks and a blue stripe that starts at his mouth, goes through his eye and fades.
Though the female isn’t as colorful, she will have a dark strip in her mid section and narrow reddish orange stripes over her body. Older females often have the same colors as the males.
Breeding:
While inducing spawning is simple, the hard part is in keeping the newly hatched fry alive due mainly to their very small size. Moss can be added to the tank for spawning, or a “mop” can be made from strands of acrylic wool that is a dark green.
Boesemani’s are egg laying fish, the female will deposit between 100 to 200 the eggs on moss over a period of several days. Within about a week the fry will hatch and need to be fed very small live foods.
Interesting Notes:
Partially changing the water on a frequent basis will help them develop their vibrant colors. Boesemani Rainbow’s have very large mouths, but they have very narrow throats!
In the wild this species is on the endangered list, due to millions and millions being collected for commercial sales.
