Profile - Aulonocara baenschi"Benga Sunshine"

Name: Aulonocara baenschi (Benga)

Trade name:  Benga, Sunshine

Habitat: Provide rocks, sand and caves

Diet:  Omnivore.  A. baenschi readily accept most foods: flakes, frozen, pellets, and live.

Potential size:  5"-6" in captivity

Gender differences:  Males as pictured.  Females are a silvery grey color with vertical barring.

Minimum recommended tank size:  30 gallon tank for a group of four

Minimum recommended group size:  Trios do quite well

Recommended group ratio:  1 male to 3-4 females

Breeding:  Maternal mouth brooder

General comments and observations:

Bemba peacocks are a great addition to any cichlid tank.  Their vibrant yellow color stands out in a crowd of fish.  Males exhibit a metallic blue coloration on their face with a yellow color on their bodies.  Females tend to be rather drab and exhibit a brownish to silvery grey color with vertical barring.

They are a peaceful fish and generally tolerate other fish in the aquarium without issue.  During breeding, they can be mildly aggressive to females.  Generally speaking, a good ratio is one male to 3-4 females in a breeding setup.  Several males can be kept together in a show tank type setup without females.

Breeding is rather easy with this fish.  Provide rockwork and a cave or two and it should take care of itself.  Female peacocks will hold eggs in their buccal cavity for approximately 28 days.  At that time, fry are free swimming and can be fed a variety of small or crushed food.  Clutches usually run from 8-20 fry.  it should be noted, males can continue to be aggressive to females post spawn, so it is essential to provided adequate cover for the holding females.