Dwarf golden mbuna

The dwarf golden mbuna (now often placed in Chindongo) is a small but pugnacious rock-dweller endemic to a couple of islands in southern Lake Malawi. Males are striking, dark with electric-blue vertical bars and yellow-edged fins, while females are a plainer golden-brown. Though it tops out near 9 cm, it is intensely territorial for its size, so give it a rock-packed tank with many caves and crevices and keep one male with several females to spread aggression. House only with equally assertive mbuna and avoid crowding a lone dominant male. Maintain hard, alkaline water, pH 7.8 to 8.6, at 24 to 27 C, with strong filtration and regular water changes. A grazer of algal aufwuchs, it needs a vegetable-based diet, spirulina and vegetable pellets, with minimal protein to prevent Malawi bloat.