Description

Common Names

No common names available.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Teleostei

Order: Cichliformes

Family: Cichlidae

Genus: Geophagus

Species: Geophagus surinamensis (Bloch, 1791)

Climate Zone

Location

Biology

Though not so abundant, it is often caught in the quiet zones of cascades with G. harreri (Ref. 35237). Lives in mud and sand-bottomed canals. Maximum length 30 cm TL (Ref. 5723). Omnivorous, with a tendency towards herbivory, searches for food by digging into the substrate with its protractile mouth. Can emit sounds through its pharyngeal teeth though it is not known whether it is a form of communication or not. Spawning takes place on a flat stone or in a hole dug in the sand. Parents generally take the eggs into their mouths until hatching occurs three days later. At night or when faced with danger, the alevins seeks shelter in the mother's mouth. Parents take care of their siblings for several weeks (Ref. 35237).

Habitat

benthopelagic