Firemouth Cichlid Conservation status: Secure
A juvenile Firemouth
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Superclass: Osteichthyes Class: Actinopterygii Order: Perciformes Family: Cichlidae Genus: Thorichthys Species: meeki
Binomial name
Thorichthys meeki (Brind, 1918)

The Firemouth Cichlid is one of the "typical" and most commonly seen (in pet stores) of the Cichlasoma-type South American cichlids. Originates from Central America. A somewhat deep bodied, grayish fish with green-blue flecks and red trim on the dorsal fin, their coloration is average with one exception: a bright orange-red "flame" on the underside of the jaw/body. This can range from hardly noticeable to eye-catching depending on the fish, its sex, and whether it is in a breeding mood. Image File history File links A juvenile firemouth cichlid File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ... Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria Placozoa Subregnum Bilateria  Acoelomorpha  Orthonectida  Rhombozoa  Myxozoa  Superphylum Deuterostomia     Chordata (vertebrates, etc. ... Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicates Ascideiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with... Subclasses Actinopterygii Sarcopterygii Osteichthyes are the bony fish, a group paraphyletic to the land vertebrates, which are sometimes included. ... Orders See text The Actinopterygii are the ray-finned fish. ... Families many, see text The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, include about 40% of all fish and are the largest order of vertebrates. ... Genera Apistogramma - Dwarf Cichlids Astronotus (Oscars) Boulengerochromis Cichlasoma - American Ciclids Crenicichla Pterophyllum - Freshwater Angelfish Symphysodon - Discus Teleogramma Tilapia Cichlids are a family of perciform fishes. ... In biology, binomial nomenclature is a standard convention used for naming species. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

Firemouth Cichlids prefer a well planted environment where it can find protection. Its native environment is one of slow moving water. Their native substrates are sand and rock bottomed canals, ponds, and rivers. They live in the low and middle water levels. Firemouth Cichlids natively live in a tropical climate and prefer water with a 6.5 - 7.5 pH, a water hardness of 10.0 dGH, and a temperature range of 79 - 86 °F (26 - 30 °C). While they are omnivorous, their diet mainly consists of algae. The word substrate can mean the following: In biochemistry, a substrate is a molecule which is acted upon by an enzyme. ... Patterns in the sand Sand is an example of a class of materials called granular matter. ... The tropics are the geographic region of the Earth centered on the equator and limited in latitude by the two tropics: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere. ... click here for more info The title of this article is incorrect because of technical limitations. ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ... Fahrenheit is a temperature scale named after the German physicist Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736), who proposed it in 1724. ... The degree Celsius (°C or ℃ (Unicode 0x2103)) is a unit of temperature named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius (1701–1744), who first proposed a similar system in 1742. ... Omnivores are organisms that consume both plants and animals. ...

Firemouth Ciclids will grow up to 17 cm (7 in). They are relatively peaceful except for mated pairs, which follow the typical cichlid behavior of aggressively defending their territory. The fish have been used scientifically in behavioral studies. cm redirects here, alternate uses: cm (disambiguation) A centimetre (symbol cm; American spelling: centimeter) is an SI unit of length. ... Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial and U.S. customary unit of length. ...

See Also

• List of freshwater aquarium fish species
• AmericanCichlids.Com - Firemouth Profile

A vast number of species of fish have been successfully kept in the home aquarium. ...

References

• "Thorichthys meeki" (TSN 169787). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. N.p.: Integrated Taxonomic Information System, 2005. Accessed on June 22, 2005.
• "Thorichthys meeki". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. May 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.