Metriaclima sp."estherae blue face" Lumessi O
Metriaclima sp."estherae blue face" can only be found on both sides of the river Lumessi on the eastern side of the lake. They are livng there in a rocky environment on depths between 3 and 10 metres. The males of this species are beautiful blue with a dark blue lower jaw, the females are mostly beige-brown but there are also many OB- and O-females, the O-females have a beautiful orange color. In this species "marmelade cats" are not yet found however O-males (like the one shown here) can be found, although also extremely rare.
In the lake the males of these species can grow to 11 cm, in the aquarium however they can grow taller because of a good feeding. The males can then grow to about 13 cm, females grow to about 10 cm.
Metriaclima sp."estherae blue face" can behave intolerant against equal species, against other inhabitants they are in general tolerant.
You can best keep this species with multiple females and other mbuna in an aquarium with a lot of hiding places.
In the lake they are mainly feeding themselves with algae, invertebrates and plankton. In the aquarium they are comfortable with any food. They take everything they get offered, like spirulina pellets, mysis, artemia, cyclops and shrimp-peas mix. Food rich of algae like spirulina pellets or flakes is very important to them so this should not be missing on their menu.
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