Mikrogeophagus Explained

Mikrogeophagus is a genus of cichlids native to the Llanos wetlands (Orinoco basin) and Guaporé–Mamoré river system (southern Amazon basin) in tropical South America.^[1] They are dwarf cichlids that reach up to in standard length.^[1]

They are popular with aquarists, especially M. ramirezi. These species spawn on flat rocks or leaves and not in small caves like the closely related cichlid genus Apistogramma.^[2]

Species

The currently recognized species in this genus are:^[1]

• Mikrogeophagus altispinosus (Haseman, 1911) (Bolivian ram)
• Mikrogeophagus maculicauda Staeck, Ottoni & I. Schindler, 2022
• Mikrogeophagus ramirezi (G. S. Myers & Harry, 1948) (ram cichlid)

Notes and References

1. Staeck . Wolfgang . Ottoni . Felipe Polivanov . Schindler . Ingo . 2022-09-08 . Mikrogeophagus maculicauda, a new dwarf cichlid (Teleostei: Cichlidae) from the eastern drainage of the upper Rio Guaporé, Brazil . FishTaxa . en . 24 . 49–58 . 2458-942X.
2. Book: Kullander, S.O.. 2003. Cichlidae (Cichlids). 605–654. R.E. Reis . S.O. Kullander . C.J. Ferraris, Jr. . Checklist of the Freshwater Fishes of South and Central America. Porto Alegre, Brasil. EDIPUCRS.