All fish / Cichlidae

Six-bar Lamprologus

Altolamprologus sexfasciatus

Also known as sexfasciatus, six bar lamprologus, sexfasciatus gold, neolamprologus sexfasciatus gold, lamprologus sexfasciatus, sexfasciatus blue, six-banded lamprologus, ネオランプロローグス・セックスファッシアータス, 六间棘, 六间

A deep-bodied Tanganyikan cichlid marked with six broad dark vertical bars over a yellow, gold or bluish ground colour. It is kept for its bold pattern and its interesting territorial, snail-crushing behaviour among rockwork. Most fish keepers still know it as Neolamprologus sexfasciatus, but it is now placed in Altolamprologus.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Aggressive

Adult size

12 cm

Temperature

24 to 27 °C

pH

7.8 to 9

Smallest tank

200 litres

Keep as

A single pair or one male with females in a large rocky tank

Diet

Carnivore: snails, shrimp, mysis, krill and quality cichlid pellets

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

8 to 12 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Lake Tanganyika (southern part: Zambia, Tanzania, DR Congo)

Breeding

It spawns in caves or crevices among rocks, and the female guards the eggs while the male defends the wider territory. Pairs are not easy to form, but once a compatible pair has formed, breeding in a spacious hard-water tank is fairly reliable.

Good to know

Adults are territorial and aggressive towards their own kind and similar cichlids, so provide plenty of rockwork and only house them with robust Tanganyikan tankmates. It looks very like Neolamprologus tretocephalus, which has five bars.