[Jason_S]

Species Name: Theraps wesseli

Common Name: Wessel's cichlid

Size: ~5-6" for females and ~6-7" for males.

pH: ~7.0 to 7.8. With proper acclimation this species will accept a wider range of ph. Mine are kept in pH of 8.2 and are they are thriving.

Minimum Recommended Tank Size: 40 gallons

Native Location: Central America

Temperature: 72-80F.

Diet: Omnivore. A good staple pellet food with occasional supplements/treats of freeze dried/frozen/live shrimps and worms will keep this fish in best health.

Breeding: The pair will clean a spawning area. The female will lay and guard the eggs while the male guards the surrounding area.

Gender Differences: Males will grow larger than females. During breeding, the female's colors will drastically change. The upper portion of her body will turn white or pale yellow while the lower half of her body will be completely black. During breeding and courtship, females look very similar to Herichthys bartoni.

Aggression: Being such a new species, it's kind of hard to say how aggressive they are. I have 8 juveniles ranging from 2-3" and so far get along fine with other similar sized cichlids in a 75 gallon tank. I have observed full grown mating pairs that got along fine with other cichlids...however this was in a 265 gallon tank. The breeding pairs did appear to be quite territorial of their spawning area so tankmates should only be added in larger tanks.

Notes: This is a very new species. It was discovered in 1996 by Rusty Wessel, a well known collector, importer and breeder of many New World Cichlids. I acquired my 8 juvenile T. wesseli from his wild caught pairs. As juveniles, this species is quite active and will swim around out in the open, but as they mature they will be much more secluded and hide in caves or behind large rocks. Proper cover should be provided to make them feel comfortable. This tendency to hide as they mature is why the species remained hidden and unknown for so long.

**A very unique quality of this species is that the fish will show full adult coloration at only 2". This is very uncommon among New World cichlids. Most species of cichlid require at least 4-6 months if not a year or two to fully color up.

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