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Twoband Cichlid
Vieja bifasciata
Vieja bifasciata, also known as the twoband cichlid or red-spotted cichlid, is a large and colorful freshwater fish native to Mexico and Guatemala. It is found from the River Grijalva and Usumacinta basins in western parts of Mexico and Guatemala. It belongs to the family Cichlidae, which includes many popular aquarium fish. Vieja bifasciata can grow up to 12 inches (30 cm) in length and has a deep-bodied shape. It has a reddish-brown base color with two black bands running along the body, and a red or yellow patch on the forehead. The fins are also edged with different colors, and the tail fin is slightly forked.
From the article Vieja bifasciata on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
Range & habitat
It prefers slow-moving or still waters with plenty of vegetation and algae, such as lakes, coastal lagoons, and rivers.
Wikipedia: “Habitat”
What it does
Vieja bifasciata is a sexually dimorphic fish, meaning that the males and the females have different physical characteristics. Males have a prominent nuchal hump on their forehead and are larger, brighter colored. Females are smaller, duller, and have a rounded genital papilla. Vieja bifasciata is an egg-layer that forms monogamous pairs and spawns on flat rocks or in pits dug in the substrate. Both parents guard and care for the eggs and fry until they are independent.
== References ==
Wikipedia: “Reproduction”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Vieja bifasciata in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 317440.