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Well, here we are again: it is soon to be July and with it, the annual convention of the American Cichlid Association, this year to be held in Denver Colorado from July 18 – 21. Please go to their website 2013ACA.com for further information and links to register for ‘Cichlids with an Altitude’. This July issue is filled with exciting articles from start to finish! Juan Miguel Artigas Azas presents Part 2 of his lavishly illustrated article on his recent experiences cichlid-watching in the Brazilian Rio Negro, with illuminating comments on the natural history of many of the species we South American cichlid fans enjoy keeping in our aquaria. Uwe Werner shares his experiences with a Nanochromis parilus ‘look alike’, N. teugelsi, offering up some further remarks on the closely-related third species, N. splendens. In so doing he provides a review of their basic biology and systematic relationships, along with tips on maintaining and spawning all three species in the home aquarium. For those of you who have seen and lusted after the rare and often expensive species of the genus Petrochromis, Tom Williams reviews the requirements of these beautiful and interesting Tanganyikan cichlids and bashes some of the myths surrounding their ‘extreme difficulty’ in the aquarium. In this third, of a series of articles on Julidochromis groups, broadly defined, Patrick Tawil offers his take on the Julidochromis ornatus group or ‘super-species’. In so doing, he exhaustively reviews the systematic and taxonomic status of these diminutive Lake Tanganyika jewels, along with evidence for their genetic introgression (hybridization) in nature. This definitive article is capped off by a detailed discussion of their maintenance, behavior, and spawning in the aquarium. Well-known importer, photographer, and aquarist Oliver Lucanus reviews the recent importation and aquarium behavior of a New World rarity only recently imported into USA from Colombia, Heroina isonycterina, the fish gracing the cover of this issue. I add my own parallel and complementary observations on their basic biology and spawning behavior in this article illustrated with Oliver’s incredible photographs of this way-cool new cichlid. We close with our regular features. Fish photographer extraordinaire Mo Devlin (Aquamojo) shares his six favorite cichlids—and his amazing images—with us. ‘New World big and showy’ is an apt summary. Finally, Laif DeMason brings us ‘What’s New’. It’s a great issue! As always, enjoy your cichlids! |
Wayne S. Leibel, Editor  |
