Rocky shoreline habitat. Typically found at depths of about 1–15 m.
Typical adult size:
Males grow to about 15 cm, while females remain noticeably smaller (up to ~9 cm).
Recommended aquarium size:
200 L
Aquarium setup:
Provide plenty of rocks arranged to create caves and narrow crevices.
Suitable tankmates are other sufficiently large Tanganyikan cichlids such as Cyprichromis,
Neolamprologus, Julidochromis, etc. Avoid keeping them with robust, highly competitive species
such as Tropheus or Petrochromis.
Best kept as a single pair, or (in a large enough aquarium) a group of at least 7 individuals.
A tight-fitting lid is recommended as they may jump.
Diet:
Carnivorous predator. Feeds mainly on invertebrates, crustaceans, and cichlid fry.
In crowded community tanks it may also steal eggs—including from mouthbrooders—snatching them before the female
can collect them. Its extremely laterally compressed body allows it to hunt within very narrow rock crevices.
Breeding:
Substrate spawner. The male forms only a weak pair bond with females; outside the breeding season he is often found alone.
The female chooses a tight cave or gap between rocks that only she can enter. She lays roughly 50–200 eggs inside.
The male fertilizes them from outside by releasing milt into the cave entrance.
Larvae hatch after about 3 days and become free-swimming after 5–7 days; at that point they can be fed newly-hatched Artemia.
The female cares for eggs and fry; the male guards the area near the cave but often disappears before the fry are free-swimming.
Aggression:
Generally peaceful; males may be aggressive toward each other. Being a predator, it will opportunistically eat any fry it can catch.
Notes:
Very similar to Altolamprologus calvus and likewise slow-growing, but there are a few key differences:
A. calvus has a more elongated body shape than A. compressiceps.
A. compressiceps has a shorter jaw and an upturned mouth.
A. compressiceps typically shows more distinct vertical bars and less pronounced spotting,
while A. calvus usually has the opposite pattern (fainter bars and stronger spotting).
A. compressiceps has local variants around the entire lake, whereas A. calvus is restricted
mainly to the southwestern part of Lake Tanganyika.
Suitable tankmates are other sufficiently large Tanganyikan cichlids such as Cyprichromis, Neolamprologus, Julidochromis, etc. Avoid keeping them with robust, highly competitive species such as Tropheus or Petrochromis.
Best kept as a single pair, or (in a large enough aquarium) a group of at least 7 individuals. A tight-fitting lid is recommended as they may jump.
The female chooses a tight cave or gap between rocks that only she can enter. She lays roughly 50–200 eggs inside. The male fertilizes them from outside by releasing milt into the cave entrance.
Larvae hatch after about 3 days and become free-swimming after 5–7 days; at that point they can be fed newly-hatched Artemia. The female cares for eggs and fry; the male guards the area near the cave but often disappears before the fry are free-swimming.
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