Peacock bass

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peacock bass
An adult butterfly peacock bass
A juvenlie peacock bass
Conservation status
Least Concern
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Cichlidae
Genus:	Cichla

Peacock bass is the common name in English for a group of closely related species of tropical, freshwater fish of the genus Cichla, native to the Amazon River basin of South America. They also inhabit the waters of Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Malaysia, Panama, Singapore, Venezuela and parts of the United States (Guam, Florida, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and the United States Virgin Islands). Despite their name, these fish are not basses, but rather cichlids.

Contents 1 Taxonomic and common names 2 Conservation status 3 Physical traits 4 Valued as gamefish 5 Invasive species 5.1 Panama's Gatun Lake introduction 6 Florida introduction 7 Aquariums 8 Aquaculture 9 Eating quality 10 References 11 Links and References

[edit] Taxonomic and common names

There are 15 known species of peacock bass and two more that ichthyologists have yet to name. Their common names vary greatly depending on the country, region, stage of development and local anglers. Below is a complete list of the taxonomic, binomial names for these cichlids along with four English common names.^[1]

• Cichla intermedia (royal peacock bass)
• Cichla jariina
• Cichla kelberi
• Cichla monoculus
• Cichla melaniae
• Cichla mirianae
• Cichla nigromaculata
• Cichla ocellaris (butterfly peacock bass)
• Cichla orinocensis
• Cichla pinima
• Cichla piquiti
• Cichla pleiozona
• Cichla temensis (speckled peacock bass but three-barred peacock bass while spawning)
• Cichla thyrorus
• Cichla vazzoleri

The two species without taxonomic names are the Rio Travessao peacock bass and Rio Paru peacock bass.

There are many common names for these fish in Brazil, the country of their largest native region. The most popular of these is tucunaré (too-coo-nah-REH). In Spanish, the generic common name for these cichlids is pavόn (pah-VON).

[edit] Conservation status

The IUCN has never investigated the conservation status of any peacock bass species. Therefore they do not appear on its red list.^[2] Currently, there are no reports of any peacock bass species being endangered.

[edit] Physical traits

The speckled peacock bass is the largest species and can grow up to 100 centimeters (three feet, four inches) in length. The royal peacock bass is the smallest and grows to a maximum length of 55 centimeters (one foot, 10 inches). Also, most display three wide vertical stripes on their bodies and a spot on their tail fins that resembles the eyes on a peacock's tail feathers -- a feature which resulted in their English and Spanish common names. In addition, all adult males have a pronounced hump on their foreheads. Other physical traits can vary greatly depending on the species, individual and stage of development. These include but are not limited to: dark rosettes instead of stripes, light speckles and impressive shades of bright green, orange, blue and gold. The stripes, however, tend to fade in late adulthood.^[3]

[edit] Valued as gamefish

fly fishing
targets
bluefish
brook trout
crappie
hucho taimen
largemouth bass
northern pike
peacock bass
shoal bass
smallmouth bass
more fly fish...
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I N D E X
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Sport fishermen have made these cichlids prized game fish for their fighting qualities, so much so that many travel agencies now arrange fishing trips to Brazil and Florida specifically to catch peacock bass.

Renowned American peacock bass fisherman and fishing author, Larry Larsen, refers to them as "freshwater bullies" due to their ferocious nature when hunting and their tendency to damage and sometimes destroy fishing gear when striking. Also, the most common techniques for catching them are similar to those for catching largemouth bass with the notable exception that peacock bass usually won't strike artificial worms -- a widely used lure among largemouth bass fisherman. In addition, fly fishing techniques, including lures such as poppers and large streamers, are becoming increasingly popular for catching these cichlids.

Despite their popularity among anglers, some naturalists have identified peacock bass as potential pests for causing ecological imbalances in some of their introduced areas.

[edit] Invasive species

Peacock bass introduction in the Rosana Reservoir and upper Paraná River, both in Brazil, resulted in a 95 percent decline in native fish density and 80 percent decline in richness in only two years.^[4]

Few measures can protect native fish once peacock bass have been introduced: reduction in native species richness in lakes with introduced peacock bass was observed in all areas of each lake regardless of the presence of macrophyte refugia.^[5]After initial increase in abundance, introduced peacock bass often deplete local prey and resort to cannibalism.^[6][7][8]

[edit] Panama's Gatun Lake introduction

Cichla monoculus was introduced into Panama via a fresh water creek in the Rio Chagres drainage region unintentionally in the late 1950s (experts aren't certain of the exact date), causing significant damage to the native fish assemblage, by eliminating seven out of 11 previously common fish species and significantly reducing three others.^[9] Local extinctions and decrease in abundance of many species led to cascading second-order effects on zooplankton and tertiary consumer communities.^[10]

A well known aquarist and medical doctor began raising peacock bass in a small pond in his back yard for sale as aquarium fish. Within a year, heavy rains flooded the pond causing some fry to escape into a nearby creek which drained into Gatun Lake. By 1964, the lake and nearby rivers and creeks were overrun with the cichlids, providing sport fishing opportunities that hadn't existed previously. Since then, C. monoculus has become the dominant sport fish species in the area.

[edit] Florida introduction

In 1984, Florida officials deliberately introduced butterfly peacock bass and speckled peacock bass to the southern region of that state.^[11] There they prey on other non-native and invasive species such as the oscar, Midas cichlid, and the spotted tilapia. Also, their introduction now provides additional sport fishing opportunities for local anglers along with the common snook, largemouth bass and bluegill. While the butterfly peacock bass has flourished there, the speckled peacock bass has not. Therefore, it is now illegal to kill or possess speckled peacock bass in Florida.

Because of their tropical origins, peacock bass cannot tolerate low water temperatures. This has prevented them from becoming abundant outside of Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and Broward counties within the state of Florida.

[edit] Aquariums

Peacock bass make for poor aquarium fish. Amazonian cichlids often eat any other fish they can fit in their mouths. This is especially true of peacock bass which tend to have very agressive natures. This causes a potential problem for expensive tankmates, especially since peacock bass tend to outgrow other popular aquarium fish. Also, peacock bass require large tanks upon reaching adulthood.

[edit] Aquaculture

Tilapia farmers sometimes keep peacock bass to eat any spawn that occur among their fish. Spawning and brood-raising reduce the growth rate of the tiliapia.

[edit] Eating quality

Their eating quality is very good. Their flesh is white and sweet when cooked, and has very little oil, making it similar in taste to snapper or grouper. Also, they are not excessively bony. However, most professional American anglers recommend practicing catch and release for these species to protect their numbers in the United States. To help ensure this, Florida Wildlife and Game Commission officers strictly enforce bag limits for these fish.

[edit] References

[edit] Links and References

• IUCN Website
• Speckled Peacock Bass
• Butterfly Peacock Bass
• Cichla orinocensis (TSN 648359). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved on 30 January 2006.
• "Cichla orinocensis". FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. 10 2005 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2005.