Pinima Peacock Bass (Cichla pinima)

Choose the Pinima Peacock Bass for a specialist predator tank

The Pinima Peacock Bass (Cichla pinima) is a large, fish-eating cichlid from the rivers that flow north into the lower Amazon in Brazil. Young fish are slim and greenish with a dark stripe and rows of small white spots; adults become yellow-green with black bars and black blotches ringed in white, including one high on the back that identifies the species. It grows to more than 50 cm, so this is a fish for keepers who already run, or are building, a very large aquarium.

Sven Kullander and Efrem Ferreira described the species in 2006 in their review of the genus Cichla. The name is a Tupi-Guarani adjective meaning "spotted with white", and the authors adopted tucunaré pinima, a name already used in Brazil, as its common name. They record it from the lower Rio Tapajós, the Rio Curuá-Una, where the type specimen was collected, the lower Rio Xingu, the lower Rio Tocantins and the Rio Capim. FishBase lists it as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

Check the names on the label

Before 2006 this fish was usually lumped with other species. Kullander and Ferreira found that the peacock bass introduced into reservoirs of north-east Brazil in the 1940s, and studied there as C. temensis, was in fact C. pinima, which now forms self-sustaining stocks there. They place it in a group of closely related, white-spotted species with C. temensis, C. thyrorus, C. jariina and C. vazzoleri. That history of successful introductions is one more reason never to release an aquarium fish.

See our Monoculus Peacock Bass for a different Cichla, and browse our South American cichlids, the South American cichlid category, our centrepiece fish and our rare and collector fish.

Know what you receive and how its pattern changes

One purchase supplies one live Pinima Peacock Bass of about 5–6 cm. It is a juvenile and cannot be sexed. The pinima changes more with age than most fish, so it helps to know the sequence Kullander and Ferreira describe:

Follow the colour stages as it grows

The adult photographs therefore show where your fish is heading, not how it will look on arrival. The authors describe live fish in the ringed pattern as yellow, strongest on the lower head, turning greenish on the back and tail base, with white underparts and sometimes an orange throat and yellowish lower fins. Young fish from the blackwater Rio Arapiuns, which the authors list as a tentative locality, were much darker than those from the Tapajós.

Before ordering, be sure an aquarium of about 2,000 litres is within reach, and read our delivery and Live Arrival Guarantee information.

Plan a pinima peacock bass tank of about 2,000 litres

FishBase records a maximum of 52.0 cm standard length, measured from the snout to the base of the tail; with the tail the fish is longer again. Kullander and Ferreira examined specimens up to 430 mm standard length and recorded the forehead hump in three fish of 260, 307 and 430 mm. Plan for an adult of 50 cm or more.

There is no published tank size for C. pinima. Seriously Fish says the Orinoco peacock bass, at about 60 cm the smallest species it profiles, needs at least 8 × 3 × 3 ft (length × height × width) as an adult: about 244 × 91 × 91 cm, roughly 2,000 litres. For C. ocellaris and the larger species it gives 10 × 3 × 4 ft. The Pinima falls between the two, so treat 8 × 3 × 3 ft as the floor for one adult and aim higher if you can.

Use a three-step space check

1. Length and depth: at least 244 cm long and 91 cm from front to back.
2. Volume and floor load: calculate the litres with our tank volume calculator; water weighs about a kilogram a litre, so 2,000 litres is about two tonnes before glass, sand and stand.
3. Grown companions: check the whole plan at adult sizes in our stocking calculator.

Seriously Fish allows smaller tanks for young fish, but warns that peacock bass are often sold as small juveniles that tempt people into buying a fish they cannot keep long term. Grow it on in a mature tank only while the final system is on its way.

Keep the layout open and the equipment protected

Seriously Fish recommends a sparse layout with plenty of swimming space, large pieces of bogwood and robust plants. Fishkeeper, a UK retailer's care library, suggests soft sand or a bare floor for easy cleaning, Anubias or Java fern grown on the wood, and stable rockwork bonded with aquarium silicone, because these fish can rearrange loose stones.

Divide the tank by function

Fishkeeper suggests keeping heaters in a sump, where a large fish cannot break them, and OATA recommends a secure lid for American cichlids.

Match warm, stable water

No water values have been published for this species. The closest guides are other peacock bass: Seriously Fish gives 25–28°C and pH 6.5–7.5 for C. monoculus and 24–27°C with pH 6.5–7.0 for C. ocellaris, both with hardness up to 15 dGH; Fishkeeper gives 24–27°C, pH 6.5–7.0 and up to 15 dH; OATA's American cichlid range is 22–27°C and pH 6.5–8.0. We suggest 25–27°C and pH 6.5–7.5.

Separate habitat values from waste readings

Peacock bass are described by Seriously Fish as hardy and adaptable, so steadiness is the goal. Check your local tap water in our water matcher, and read our water chemistry guide and the article on tropical fish water pH. With several heaters in a big system, the guide to tropical fish tank temperature helps keep the reading even.

Run powerful filtration and frequent water changes

Fishkeeper calls peacock bass voracious eaters that produce a lot of waste and need continuously excellent water, powerful oversized filtration and good oxygen, ideally from a sump. It stresses that a frequent partial water change regime is absolutely essential, because these river fish will not tolerate raised nitrate. Seriously Fish likewise recommends external or sump filtration.

Follow a weekly maintenance sequence

1. Test ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.
2. Siphon out any uneaten food and waste from the floor.
3. Change at least 25% of the water, the weekly minimum OATA gives for American cichlids, and more if nitrate is creeping up.
4. Clean mechanical media in removed tank water; leave biological media alone.
5. Check the heaters, pumps and lid.

Seriously Fish's species profiles size filters at four to five times the tank volume every hour, which for 2,000 litres means about 8,000–10,000 litres per hour. Our article on understanding aquarium filtration explains sump design.

Feed a predator's diet in measured meals

Seriously Fish describes peacock bass as piscivorous and recommends meaty foods such as prawn, mussel, lancefish, whitebait and other white fish. Fishkeeper suggests bloodworm, Mysis and chopped seafood for small fish, then earthworms, prawns, cockles, mussels, crab, crayfish and small whole fish, and lists cichlid pellets among suitable foods.

Build one measured meal

• First foods: frozen Mysis and small pieces of frozen cocktail shrimp meat.
• Staple pellet: Tropical Cichlid Carnivore Medium Pellet, later Cichlid & Arowana Large Sticks.
• Growing fish: large frozen krill, frozen sea fish meat and frozen smelts.

OATA advises feeding American cichlids once a day, only as much as they eat within a few minutes, and warns that they can eat a great deal in one sitting. Remove leftovers promptly. Live feeder fish are unnecessary and can bring disease into the tank.

Introduce it to a mature aquarium

Use a tank whose filter is fully matured, with zero ammonia and nitrite; our first tropical tank guide and the article on the nitrogen cycle explained cover this. Follow OATA's floating-bag method: lights off, float the bag about 10 minutes, mix in small amounts of tank water over up to 20 minutes, then release the fish with as little bag water as possible. More detail is in how to acclimatise new fish.

Use a first-week checkpoint plan

Keep it with fish it cannot swallow

Seriously Fish describes peacock bass as territorial and moderately aggressive. They can share an extremely large aquarium with other big fish such as arowana, stingrays, large catfish and large cichlids, but will eat any tankmate small enough to be considered food. Fishkeeper recommends keeping one fish or a known mated pair, never more than one male per tank.

Screen each companion

Our Oscar Cichlid and Leopard Sailfin Pleco are the kind of large, sturdy companions the sources describe; the Silver Arowana needs an equally huge tank. Our Oscar care guide and cichlid care guide explain how large cichlids share space; browse our oscar cichlids and pike cichlids, and test any combination with our tank mates tool.

Watch for problems early

OATA describes a healthy fish as having clear, bright eyes, undamaged fins, intact scales, no ulcers or bumps, normal swimming and steady breathing. Note how your pinima behaves at feeding time in its first month, so that changes stand out.

Pair each sign with an action

Understand sexing and breeding

Kullander and Ferreira found no obvious difference between the sexes in this species, except that males may lose the light spots completely while females keep some on the back; they recorded the forehead hump in larger fish. Seriously Fish notes that male peacock bass grow larger and develop the hump as they mature. Aquarium breeding is rarely reported. Fishkeeper describes the genus as biparental substrate spawners that lay adhesive eggs on a cleaned flat rock and later move the young in their mouths to a pit in the sand, and Seriously Fish records broods of 700–800 fry for C. monoculus; neither account is specific to the Pinima.

Answer Pinima Peacock Bass buying questions

What is a Pinima Peacock Bass?

It is Cichla pinima Kullander & Ferreira, 2006, a large predatory cichlid from the lower parts of the southern Amazon tributaries in Brazil, including the Tapajós, Curuá-Una and Xingu, and the lower Tocantins and Capim rivers. Pinima is a Tupi-Guarani word meaning "spotted with white", and Brazilians call it tucunaré pinima.

How do I tell a Pinima from other peacock bass?

Kullander and Ferreira identify it by a black, light-ringed blotch high up in the third dark bar, close to the soft dorsal fin, which appears before the fish reaches 100 mm standard length. Young adults also carry rows of white spots along the side.

How big does a Pinima Peacock Bass grow?

FishBase records a maximum of 52.0 cm standard length, measured without the tail. Kullander and Ferreira examined fish up to 430 mm standard length. Plan for a fish of 50 cm or more.

What size aquarium does it need?

No figure is published for this species. Seriously Fish gives at least 8 × 3 × 3 ft (about 244 × 91 × 91 cm, roughly 2,000 litres) for an adult Orinoco peacock bass of about 60 cm. Use that as the minimum for one adult Pinima.

Why does my young Pinima have a stripe along its side?

That is the juvenile pattern. Young Pinima have a dark band from the head to the tail spot, and Kullander and Ferreira found it stays distinct in fish of 100–200 mm standard length. The vertical bars, white spots and ringed blotches of the adult take over as the fish grows.

What does it eat?

Meaty foods: prawn, mussel, krill, white fish and whole small frozen fish, with a carnivore pellet as the staple once it accepts one. Feed once a day, only what is eaten within a few minutes.

What water does it need?

Warm, clean and well oxygenated. No species values are published; close relatives are kept at 24–28°C, pH 6.5–7.5 and up to 15 dGH. Aim for 25–27°C, pH 6.5–7.5, zero ammonia and nitrite and low nitrate.

Which tank mates are safe?

Only large, robust fish that are too big to swallow, such as oscars and big armoured catfish, in a very large aquarium. Keep one male peacock bass per tank.

How many fish come with one purchase?

One live Pinima Peacock Bass of about 5–6 cm. It is a juvenile, it cannot be sexed, and its pattern will change a great deal as it grows.

Consult the care references

• FishBase: Cichla pinima — maximum length, diagnostic spots and ocellated blotch, etymology and IUCN status.
• Kullander & Ferreira 2006, Ichthyological Exploration of Freshwaters 17(4): 289–398 — the revision of Cichla that described this species: native range, translocations, juvenile and adult colour patterns, largest specimens and local names.
• Seriously Fish: Cichla orinocensis — the smallest peacock bass profiled: adult tank of 8 × 3 × 3 ft, water values, décor, filtration, diet and temperament.
• Seriously Fish: Cichla ocellaris — the peacock bass: size, adult tank, water values, maintenance, diet and compatibility.
• Seriously Fish: Cichla monoculus — a close relative: size, adult tank, water values, maintenance, diet, compatibility, sexing and breeding notes.
• Seriously Fish: genus Cichla — sizes and adult tank sizes of the peacock bass species it profiles.
• Fishkeeper: Peacock Bass (Cichla spp.) — UK retailer care profile for peacock bass: water values, set-up, filtration, water changes, tank mates, foods and breeding.
• OATA: How to look after American cichlids — UK guidance on American cichlid water quality, aquarium size, lid, feeding, introduction and health checks.
• Tropical Fish Co delivery policy — current dispatch days and Live Arrival Guarantee terms.