# Urau



## redblufffishguy (Jul 16, 2009)

Has anyone here kept and bred Urau?

I saw a few at a LFS and think they are cool, but dont have a lot of info on them. Any info would be great, whether you had success or not.

RBFG


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## mambee (Apr 13, 2003)

Had 2 but now have one. Probably the most mellow cichlid. They get big (10") and are mostly vegetarian. Don't even think about keeping plants with them. Mine ate Java Fern which is supposed to be inedible. Then he/she ate the Java Moss that I fastened to driftwood, including the rubberband.

When I had 2, they frequently laid eggs on the driftwood, but the eggs were eaten by other fish almost immediately.

Most people say that they should be kept in schools, so a huge tank is required.

Mike


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## batho_777 (Feb 8, 2010)

I have an Uaru in my Cichlid tank. Very shy compared with the others but stands his ground at feeding time.

Eats well on Cichlid pellets as well as bloddworm etc.

Steve


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## gage (Feb 7, 2007)

It is Uaru (pronounced War-ou), just to pick it apart .

regardless, as mentioned, 10" and schooling = big tank.

I bought my old one as a single from petland, it was brought in for killing some guys motoro stingray, I figured no one else would take it, so I bought it. He was an a**hole, not normal for the species, but shows you it does happen.

as far as info, Omnivore but diet should be heavy on the vegetation (85% Veggies, 15% meat), size 10", likes schools of 6+ but pairs are possible, provided they are well bonded.


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## freshwaterhobbyist (Feb 10, 2010)

I had 6 of them for about 3 years and loved every second of it. I lost them to a ice storm and the power was off for 3 days.

Just keep them warm 82 degrees and low Ph 6.2 worked for me

tank mates 
2 Microgeophagus altispinosa
10-12 random cory cats panda's , green and gold skunk corys 
leaf fish 
gold nugget pleco 
red tail sternilla pleco 
other random stuff

every thing made it through the storm out side of the corys and Urau;s 
75 gal with wet dry filter system 
peat supplement
mongo root 
kent buffer

If you have the space they are great and have lots of personality


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## Joels fish (Nov 17, 2007)

I kept 2 for a while, very friendly and very mellow. They were inseperable always side by side. Always hungry too. Raised them from 1.5" to over 6" , which took no time at all since they were the fastest growing fish I've ever seen  . I lost one to one of those mysterious tank disasters, and rehomed the other  . I'd certainly keep them again one day, great fish .

Give them warm water (at least 82F) and a Ph below 7 and you'll be good. Feed them high quality mostly veg based diet, though they will eat anything and I mean anything :lol: . One of the nicknames for this fish is the "aquatic goat" and they will live up to it. With these guys if it looks like food , it is :lol: ! Also I never had a single hint of aggression with mine . I at one point had a school of serpae tetras in that tank and they never paid them one bit of mind. The Sevs on the other hand decided to spawn and wiped them out.

I'd say if you have the opportunity to get them then go for it. They do prefer groups but IME pairs work fine. Just remember that they are a very messy fish (lots of poop, if you get them you'll see what I'm talking about) so you'll need to adjust your waterchange schedule accordingly.


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