Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri

A Lake Tanganyika cichlid for a hard-water community

Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri is a Lake Tanganyika cichlid for keepers who can give it hard, alkaline water and an aquarium shared only with other Tanganyikan species. Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes records Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri, named by Steindachner in 1909, as the current valid name. If you have seen this fish sold as Lamprologus boulingeri, that trade label refers to the same animal.

Its care is shaped as much by the community it joins as by the fish itself. OATA describes African lake cichlids as specialised fish that need particular water values, and also as usually undemanding once those values are in place. That makes it a rewarding choice for a keeper who enjoys testing water and planning a lake-specific community, and a poor fit for a mixed soft-water tank.

Lake Tanganyika is one of the best-known African cichlid lakes, alongside Lake Malawi and Lake Victoria. OATA names julies (Julidochromis), the fairy cichlid (Neolamprologus pulcher), Tropheus and frontosa (Cyphotilapia) among the most popular Tanganyikans kept, and the African lake cichlids as a whole run from shell-dwellers that grow to 6 cm to frontosa that can grow to over 30 cm. That spread is the reason every companion for this fish has to be checked by name rather than by lake alone.

Who it suits

Before you order, check three things: that your tap water can be brought into the hard, alkaline range set out in the care tab, that the filter is fully matured, and that every other fish in the aquarium comes from Lake Tanganyika. With those in place, the rest of this guide covers set-up, arrival, feeding, routine care and the order in which to add fish.

What you receive and how the sizes work

Each purchase supplies one live Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri at the size you choose on the product page: 3.5–4 cm or 4.5–5 cm. The size you select is the size supplied, not the adult size. Use the size selector to see which of the two can be ordered, and plan the aquarium around the grown fish rather than the one in the bag.

Both sizes need exactly the same water, filtration and company, so the choice changes only the length of fish that arrives. Whichever you pick, the arrival steps, the matured filter and the Tanganyika-only stocking rule in the care and compatibility tabs apply from the first day.

Sex is guaranteed only when the selected option explicitly states male or female. This Lamprologus boulingeri listing has no sex-guaranteed option. Neither size is sold as a male or a female, so plan the community without relying on a particular sex.

About the photographs

Gallery images have been digitally enhanced to improve image quality. Natural colour, pattern, size and maturity can vary between live animals. The main photograph shows the fish swimming over a floor of dark leaf litter. Treat that as part of the photograph rather than a layout to copy: for African lake cichlids, OATA recommends a fine coral sand or a similar substrate that helps buffer the water.

Your first weeks at a glance

Each step is explained in full in the care tab, with the reasons behind it.

Hold hard, alkaline water inside the Tanganyika range

Keep Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri at 23–27°C and pH 8.0–8.6, in hard water of 12–18°dH general hardness and 10–15°dKH carbonate hardness. Those figures come from OATA's care sheet for African lake cichlids and are broad values for the whole group rather than a species-specific optimum, so keep your readings steady inside each range.

Start with your tap water

Test your tap water for pH, general hardness, carbonate hardness and nitrate before you buy anything, then enter the readings into our water parameter matcher to compare them with the targets above. Our guide to aquarium water parameters explains what each test measures and why it matters, which helps when one reading sits just outside a range and you need to decide how far to go in correcting it.

Let the substrate help

OATA recommends a fine coral sand or similar substrate for African lake cichlids to help buffer the water. Lay it before the aquarium is filled and matured, then test the aquarium itself, not only the tap, once the filter is running. The reading from the matured aquarium is the one that decides whether the water is ready for this fish.

Work out your nitrate ceiling

The nitrate target depends on your own supply. If your tap water reads 10 mg per litre, the aquarium should stay at or below 30 mg per litre; if it reads 25, the ceiling becomes 45. Record the tap figure, write the ceiling on your testing notes, and treat any reading above it as a sign that water changes or feeding need attention.

Hold the temperature with a reliable heater and a thermometer you can read at a glance, and check it every day. Choose one point inside 23–27°C and keep it there through the seasons, adjusting the heater rather than letting the reading drift.

Size and furnish the aquarium for the whole community

Buy the largest aquarium you reasonably can. OATA explains that the right size depends on the African lake cichlids you keep: a pair of the smallest shell-dwelling species needs an aquarium at least 45 cm long, while a large species such as frontosa needs one about 180 cm long and may need more space as territories form. A bigger volume also keeps temperature and water quality more stable, which makes the hard, alkaline targets easier to hold.

Treat 45 cm as a floor for the smallest pairings, not a target for Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri. Plan the length around the grown fish and every companion you intend to add, and choose the larger option whenever you are torn between two tanks.

Filtration and oxygen

A filter is essential in every African lake cichlid aquarium, and OATA recommends an oversized one because some African lake cichlid communities need crowded conditions. Vigorous aeration is recommended as well, so that there is enough dissolved oxygen for every fish. In practice that means:

• choosing a filter rated above the aquarium volume rather than one that only just matches it;
• adding an air pump, or angling the filter outlet so the surface keeps moving;
• checking the filter for blockages as part of the weekly routine.

Substrate and décor

Cover the base with fine coral sand or a similar buffering substrate. Arrange the décor so the aquarium has distinct areas, and keep the layout flexible: OATA notes that rearranging décor can reduce aggression because fish find new territories, which is useful when you add companions later.

Set-up checklist before you buy

• An aquarium as long as your space allows, with 45 cm the minimum even for the smallest pairings
• An oversized, fully matured filter and strong aeration
• Fine coral sand or a similar buffering substrate
• A heater and thermometer holding 23–27°C
• Test kits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, general hardness and carbonate hardness
• Tap water conditioner that removes chlorine and chloramine

Mature the filter before the fish arrives

The filter needs a working population of beneficial bacteria before Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri goes in. The RSPCA's guidance on the fish environment explains why: fish release ammonia, which is toxic, and a working biological filter lets bacteria convert that ammonia to nitrite, which is also toxic, and then to nitrate, which is safer. No fish should be kept without a well set up and maintained filter.

OATA gives the same advice from the stocking side. Before adding any fish, check that ammonia and nitrite both read zero. Add fish slowly, because the bacteria have to increase every time more fish are added and feeding goes up. Stocking too many fish or stocking too quickly can cause new tank syndrome: too few nitrifying bacteria to cope with the extra waste, so ammonia and nitrite rise to levels that may make fish ill or kill them.

A maturing sequence that works

1. Set up the aquarium with substrate, décor, heater and filter, and treat the water with conditioner.
2. Mature the filter by following our step-by-step guide to setting up a first tropical tank, testing as you go until ammonia and nitrite both read zero.
3. Confirm that the aquarium, not just the tap, sits inside the hard, alkaline targets.
4. Add the first fish, then keep testing through the following days before adding more.

Adding this fish to an established Tanganyika aquarium follows the same rule on a smaller scale. An extra fish means extra waste, so test ammonia and nitrite in the days after it goes in and hold back further additions until both stay at zero.

Signs the filter is falling behind

A reading of ammonia or nitrite above zero after a new fish, or a nitrate figure climbing past your ceiling faster than usual, shows that the bacteria have not caught up with the stocking level or the amount of food. Slow down: pause additions, keep portions small and keep to the weekly water changes until the readings settle again.

Arrival day: film, float and release

Your fish is hand-bagged in pure oxygen and packed in an insulated poly box, with a heat pack when the weather calls for it. A licensed live-animal courier carries the parcel on a tracked service, and we email the tracking number and your confirmed delivery date so you know when to be in. Live fish cannot be left unattended, so someone needs to be at the address to receive the parcel.

1. Be at the delivery address to receive the parcel.
2. Film every delivery from the sealed parcel onward in one continuous take: the outer box still sealed, you opening it, and the fish still inside its sealed bag.
3. Open and inspect the parcel the same day it arrives.
4. Acclimatise the fish slowly: float the bag in the aquarium for 20–30 minutes.
5. Release the fish into the aquarium. Never pour the bag water into your tank.
6. If anything has gone wrong, contact us the same day with your order number and the unboxing video; WhatsApp is fastest, and we will arrange a replacement or refund.

Our delivery and Live Arrival Guarantee policy sets out these steps in full and includes short clips from our fishroom on unpacking and acclimatising. The guarantee depends on someone being at the address to receive the parcel, opening and inspecting it the same day, and a continuous unboxing video that begins with the parcel still sealed.

Aquarium checks before the parcel arrives

These checks come from OATA's introduction advice rather than the delivery steps. Test the aquarium shortly before the fish is due and confirm that ammonia and nitrite read zero and that temperature, pH and hardness sit inside the targets from the water section. If a reading is out, correct it before the parcel is due rather than after the fish is in the tank.

OATA also lists what a healthy fish looks like: clear, bright eyes, undamaged fins, intact scales and no ulcers or bumps. Look for those points while the fish is still in the bag and again once it is swimming freely, and note anything that worries you for the video and your message to us.

Feed small portions and keep the menu varied

Feed Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri only what it can eat within a few minutes, twice a day. That portion rule comes from OATA's African lake cichlid care sheet, which also warns that uneaten food breaks down and releases toxic waste into the water. Overfeeding is therefore a water-quality problem first.

OATA points out that diets differ widely across African lake cichlids. Herbivorous species such as Tropheus need specialised cichlid feeds with a high algae content, plus fresh vegetables, while larger predatory species need pellets with a higher animal content and frozen foods such as brine shrimp, prawns or cockles. For this fish, build the routine around a specialised cichlid food in a size it can take easily, then adjust the variety to what it takes readily and how its body condition holds.

A daily feeding routine

• Two small feeds a day, each no more than the fish clears within a few minutes.
• Food pieces small enough to be taken whole.
• Leftovers removed if anything is still lying on the substrate after a few minutes.
• A look at every fish during each feed, so a change in appetite is noticed early.

Watch the first feeds closely

Reduced intake or a lack of interest in food is one of the changes OATA lists as worth watching. Offer a small portion, take out anything left over, and keep testing the water. A poor appetite that carries on alongside other changes on the health list below is the point to act.

Match feeding to the filter

Every increase in food means more waste for the filter bacteria to process, which is one more reason to add fish gradually and to test after any change in the feeding routine. If nitrate climbs towards your ceiling between water changes, look at portion size first.

Test and change water every week

Change 25% of the water at least once every week. OATA strongly recommends a partial water change of that size for African lake cichlids, and advises testing at least once a week so that ammonia and nitrite cannot build up. The routine matters because African lake cichlids can be stressed by even the smallest amounts of ammonia.

Rinse filter media the right way

If the filter needs cleaning, do not run the media under the tap. Any chlorine or chloramine in tap water may kill the beneficial bacteria that have established in the media. Rinse it lightly in the tank water you removed during the partial water change instead, which reduces the number of bacteria lost.

A worked example

In a 120-litre aquarium, a 25% change means removing and replacing about 30 litres each week. Test before the change, siphon the substrate while you draw the water off, rinse any filter media in a bucket of that removed water, then refill with conditioned water that sits inside the aquarium's temperature and hardness targets. Note the readings each time so you can see a trend rather than a single number.

Keep a simple log

A notebook or phone note with the date, each test result, the volume changed and anything unusual you saw is enough. Over a few weeks it shows how fast nitrate rises between changes in your aquarium, whether pH and hardness hold steady on the coral sand, and whether the filter needs attention more often than you expected.

Spot early signs of stress or illness

All fish vary slightly in behaviour and appearance, but a change from what is normal for your Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri is worth noticing early. OATA's care sheet lists these areas to watch:

What to do first

1. Test the water: ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and temperature.
2. Compare each reading with the targets in the water section and with your nitrate ceiling.
3. If ammonia, nitrite or nitrate is above target, carry out a partial water change with conditioned water and test again.
4. Watch whether other fish are chasing the one showing signs, since changes in aggression are on the same list.
5. If the change continues, contact us with your readings and a description of what you see.

That order follows OATA's own advice: test your water quality first, then seek help from the retailer. Having the readings to hand makes any conversation about the fish quicker and more useful.

A fish that is being chased, or is hiding more than usual, may need a change to the community rather than to the water. The compatibility tab explains how the order of additions and a rearranged layout affect aggression in a Tanganyika community.

Keep it in a Lake Tanganyika community

Stock Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri only with other fish from Lake Tanganyika. OATA's guidance for African lake cichlids is to keep each species with others from the same location, such as a Lake Tanganyikan community, and it does not generally recommend mixing Malawi and Tanganyikan cichlids because their temperament and behaviour differ.

Within that rule, research every companion by name. African lake cichlids vary in size and temperament, so a species that shares the lake can still be the wrong size or the wrong character for your aquarium. When you browse our African cichlid collection for companions, check which lake each species comes from before adding it to your plan, because the collection brings together cichlids from more than one African lake.

Screen every companion

Plan for company, not a single fish

OATA advises that very few, if any, African lake cichlids do well when kept singly, and that they are likely to become stressed. The right number depends on the species, so decide how many of these fish and which Tanganyikan companions to keep as one plan, sized to the aquarium, rather than adding a single fish on impulse.

Write that plan down before buying: the aquarium length, each Tanganyikan species you want, whether any of them should go in as a group, and the order in which they will be added. Run every name through the screening table above, and drop any species that fails a single check rather than hoping the aquarium will absorb the difference.

Keep out of the same aquarium

• Malawi cichlids
• Cichlids from other African lakes, such as Lake Victoria

Add fish in an order that limits aggression

The order and grouping of additions shape how a Tanganyika community settles. OATA gives four practical rules for African lake cichlids:

• Add the more peaceful species first and the more aggressive species later.
• Some species need slight overstocking so that no individual becomes overly aggressive towards weaker members of the group.
• Adding some African lake cichlids in groups can stop a single newcomer receiving unnecessary aggression as the fish settle in.
• Rearranging the décor can reduce aggression, because fish find new territories.

Where this fish fits in the sequence

Place Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri by comparing it with the other species in your plan. If your chosen companions are more peaceful, add them first and bring this fish in afterwards; if they are more aggressive, add Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri before them. Either way, the filter bacteria need to catch up after each addition, so leave a gap and test ammonia and nitrite before the next fish go in.

If one fish is singled out

Use the options OATA describes: rearrange the décor so that territories are set afresh, and review whether the species in your plan need the slight overstocking that some require. Check the water as well, because a change in aggression is also on the health watch list.

Keep a note of the order in which fish went in and of any layout changes. If aggression follows a particular addition, that record shows which change to review first.

Questions keepers ask

How big does Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri get?

It arrives at 3.5–4 cm or 4.5–5 cm, depending on the size chosen, and that is the size supplied rather than the adult size. Plan the aquarium, filter and companions around the grown fish, and choose more space rather than less, as OATA advises for all African lake cichlids.

What size aquarium does this fish need?

Buy the largest aquarium you reasonably can. OATA's guidance for African lake cichlids puts even a pair of the smallest shell-dwelling species in a tank at least 45 cm long and frontosa in one about 180 cm long, and notes that larger aquariums keep temperature and water quality more stable. Treat 45 cm as a floor for small pairings and size the tank for the whole Tanganyika community, with an oversized filter and vigorous aeration.

How many should I keep together?

Plan Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri as part of a group of lake cichlids rather than as a lone fish: OATA advises that very few, if any, African lake cichlids do well when kept singly, and that they are likely to become stressed. The right number depends on the species, and some need slight overstocking so that no individual becomes overly aggressive towards weaker members. Size the plan to the aquarium and add fish gradually.

Is Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri suitable for beginners?

It can suit a beginner who is ready to hold hard, alkaline water and keep a weekly routine. OATA describes African lake cichlids as usually undemanding and easy to keep, but also as specialised fish that need particular water values, so success depends on a matured filter, a 25% water change at least once every week, weekly testing and a community made only of Lake Tanganyika species.

What does this fish eat?

Build its diet around a specialised cichlid food in pieces it can take easily, and adjust the variety to what it takes readily. OATA notes that African lake cichlids differ in diet, from algae-rich feeds for herbivores such as Tropheus to animal-rich pellets and frozen foods such as brine shrimp for predatory species. Feed only what it clears within a few minutes, twice a day, and remove leftovers.

What temperature and pH does Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri need?

OATA's guidance for African lake cichlids gives 23–27°C, pH 8.0–8.6, general hardness of 12–18°dH and carbonate hardness of 10–15°dKH, with zero ammonia and nitrite and nitrate no more than 20 mg per litre above your tap water. These are group values, so keep readings steady inside each range and test at least once a week.

Is Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri aggressive?

Plan for it as you would for any Tanganyikan cichlid. OATA notes that African lake cichlids vary in temperament, and advises adding more peaceful species first and more aggressive ones later, adding some in groups so one newcomer is not singled out, and rearranging décor to reduce aggression as fish find new territories.

Which fish can live with this cichlid?

Choose companions only from Lake Tanganyika, each researched for adult size and temperament. OATA advises keeping African lake cichlids with species from the same location and does not generally recommend mixing Malawi and Tanganyikan cichlids, because their temperament and behaviour differ. Every companion must also suit the same hard, alkaline water.

How does it arrive alive in the UK?

Start filming before you open the parcel, in one continuous take that shows the sealed outer box, you opening it and the fish still in its sealed bag. Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri travels hand-bagged in pure oxygen in an insulated poly box, with a heat pack when the weather calls for it, carried by a licensed live-animal courier on a tracked service. Someone must be at the address to receive it. Open and inspect it the same day, float the bag for 20–30 minutes, then release the fish without pouring the bag water into your tank. If anything has gone wrong, contact us the same day with your order number and the video so we can arrange a replacement or refund under the Live Arrival Guarantee.

Sources

• OATA: How to look after African lake cichlids – UK trade-body care sheet for the group, covering water values, aquarium size, filtration, feeding, maintenance, health checks and compatibility.
• RSPCA: Fish environment – welfare guidance on aquarium filters and how ammonia becomes nitrite and then nitrate.
• Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes – California Academy of Sciences entry giving Lepidiolamprologus boulengeri (Steindachner 1909) as the current valid name.