The firemouth cichlid (Thorichthys meeki) is a species of cichlid fish native to Central America. They occur in rivers of the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, south through Belize and into northern Guatemala.
Their natural habitat is typically shallow, slow-moving, often turbid, water with a pH of 6.5 - 8.0. It has also been reported to live in underground cave systems. As fish with a tropical distribution, firemouth cichlids live in warm water with a temperature range of 23–30 °C (75–86 °F). The common name, firemouth, is derived from the bright orange-red colouration on the underside of the jaw. Males in particular flare out their gills, exposing their red throats, in a threat display designed to ward off male rivals from their territory.
The Firemouth is so named due to the fiery coloration on the underside of its mouth and throat. In addition, it has a vivid red coloration on the belly extending from the mouth to the base of the tail. The rest of the body is generally blue-gray with several black blotches while the fins are brown and streaked with blue. Slight differences in coloration are present on particular fish depending on where the fish originated.
This is a great fish for both beginning fish keepers and advance aquarists alike. It is generally a peaceful cichlid and makes for a suitable addition to a large community tank. It's best kept with its own kind and other large and similar tempered species. The one time when these fish tend to become more than marginally aggressive is when they are attempting to spawn. During breeding they can turn aggressive towards other fish and are especailly threatening towards smaller members of their own species.
During spawning the male Firemouth Cichlid is even more vivid in appearance as he displays an impressive bluff. A 'bluff' is an aggressive stance where he inflates his fiery red throat sac and gill covers to impress females and ward off competitors. It has been discovered by ethologists, scientists who study animal behavior, that just this red coloring alone is intimidating to other fishes!
Firemouths like to burrow on occasion, so it's best to provide a substrate of fine sand for them to dig and nest in. They will also appreciate a number of hiding places and caves formed out of rocks, wood, or any other type of aquarium decoration. Although they like to have some living plants in their tank, make sure the plants are potted so as to avoid them being uprooted if the Firemouth happens to dig around their roots. Place hardy plants, such as Sagittaria, around the inside perimeter leaving an open area in the center for swimming.
The body of the Firemouth Cichlid is strongly compressed laterally with a sloping forehead emphasizing a sharply pointed mouth and accented by broad and pointed dorsal and anal fins. They are known to reach up to about 6.5" (17 cm) in the wild, making them a moderately sized Central American cichlid, though they tend to be a bit smaller in captivity with males reaching about 5" (12.7 cm) and females about 4" (10.15 cm). They have a life span of about 10 - 15 years.
The eponymous coloring of the Firemouth cichlid presents along the underside of the fish, extending from the mouth along the body to the base of the tail. The rest of the body is generally blue-gray with several black blotches while the fins are a light brown accented with streaks of metallic blue. Note that depending upon where the particular fish came from or where its parentage originated, it may have some slight coloration differences. Males have more pointed dorsal and anal fins and are more intensely colored, especially during breeding.
All cichlids, along with some saltwater fish such as wrasses and parrotfish, share a trait of a well-developed pharyngeal set of teeth located in the throat, along with their regular teeth. Cichlids have spiny rays in the back parts of the anal, dorsal, pectoral, and pelvic fins to help discourage predators. The front part of these fins are soft and perfect for precise positions and effortless movements in the water as opposed to fast swimming.
Cichlids have one nostril on each side while other fish have 2 sets. To sense "smells" in the water, they suck water in and expel the water right back out after being "sampled" for a short or longer time, depending on how much the cichlid needs to "smell" the water. This feature is shared by saltwater damselfish and cichlids are thought to be closely related.
This fish is not picky when it comes to fish food. Flakes, live and frozen foods are taken with gusto. There are many fish foods (pellets, sticks) made especially for cichlids that can be a great source for most of the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients they need to thrive.
Credit :
http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/cichlid/firemouth.php
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firemouth_cichlid
https://www.fishlore.com/profile-firemouthcichlid.htm
https://www.aquariumfactory.com.au/product/firemouth-cichlid/
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