Neolamprologus multifasciatus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Neolamprologus multifasciatus |
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| Neolamprologus multifasciatus male | |
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Lamprologus multifasciatus Boulenger, 1906 |
The Neolamprologus multifasciatus is a tiny cichlid fish. It lives only in Lake Tanganyika in Africa. These fish are famous for living inside empty snail shells.
Males grow to about 5 centimeters (2 inches) long in aquariums. Females are even smaller, reaching only 2.5 centimeters (1 inch). In the wild, they are a bit smaller. This makes them one of the smallest cichlid fish in the world!
They have a pale white color with black stripes along their bodies. It is very hard to tell males and females apart just by looking at them. However, adult males are usually bigger than females.
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Home Sweet Shell: Where Multies Live
These small fish live in the Neothauma snail shell beds of Lake Tanganyika. They form huge groups with thousands of fish. Their special behavior is all about these shells.
Multies dig sand to move shells around. They hide inside shells when they feel scared. They also use the shells as safe places to lay their eggs and raise their babies.
Caring for Multies in an Aquarium
In the world of fish keeping, N. multifasciatus are often called "multies." They are quite popular among fish lovers. Many fish stores know about these shell-dwelling fish.
Multies are not as common as some bigger cichlids. But they are great for smaller fish tanks. They also have many babies, which makes them easy to find.
What Your Multies Need
Setting up a tank for multies is similar to caring for other African cichlids. For example, fish like the Mbuna need similar conditions.
However, multies have special needs. You must use sand at the bottom of the tank. This is because they love to dig and move shells. You also need to add plenty of empty shells. It's best to have at least one shell for each fish, or even two.
Meet Their Cousins: Similar Shell Dwellers
Two other fish species look a lot like N. multifasciatus. These are N. similis and N. brevis.
These three types of fish are so alike that stores often sell them under general names. You might see them called "shellbreeders" or "shell dwellers."
See also
- List of freshwater aquarium fish species
