Geophagus abalios (Geophagus cf. abalios)

This colorful eartheater from the ‘surinamensis’ group of the genus Geophagus originates from the acidic, soft waters of the Orinoco Basin in Colombia and Venezuela. A peaceful cichlid, they generally do well in community cichlid aquaria with sandy substrate and lots of open swimming space. Like all eartheaters, they are highly specialized bottom feeders, using their downward facing mouths to inhale mouthfuls of fine substrate and then sifting it through their gills in order to pick out small invertebrates or other tiny prey. In the aquarium, they will accept a variety of sinking foods but will do best when offered a combination of small sinking granules and frozen foods like bloodworms, mysis shrimp, or spirulina enriched brine.