Juliedochromis is a genus of African Cichid native to Lake Tanganyika. There are five species and a number of types that are found in specific location in the lake. The genus are very similar with their needs and appearance. They are all cigar shaped with yellow and brown usually in a stripe or checkerboard pattern growing to three to four inches long. Some of the have blue line in the fins. They are cave spawners. They look for caves which can be ceramic or spaces under and between rocks in the aquarium. They are fairly easy to spawn in a home settings.

If you are wondering about the origin of the Latin name. Chromides is the old name for Cichlids which means color. Judini refer to the former name for marine wrasse.

Julidochromis dickfeldi this have a more checker pattern of stripes. They both vertical and horizontal stripes.

Julidochromis marlieri this has dark brown horizontal stripes with some vertical brown area connecting the stripes.

Julidochromis ornatus is the largest of the species. The body is usually mostly yellow with dark brown stripes. There is a albino form that is cream colored with orangish stripes. It is hard to find and more expensive because of the rarity.

Julidochromis regani These also have brown stripe but tend to continue further down the body than J. ornatus. There is a light and dark form depending on the overall ratio of yellow or brown.

Julidochromis transcriptus tends to have brown block pattern on their sides. It is hard to describe but if you study enough photos you will be able to identify species with practice.

Water: They prefer hard water. Chicago tap was is perfect because it is mineral rich from a large lake. I use to live in Chicago so know the water has 190 ppm of minerals hardness. If your water is from a similar source, you will have to do nothing. They are products out their to change your water but it is a challenge to be mixing up water every time you do a water change. You might consider not keeping these fish if you water is not correct for them.

Temperature: Lake Tanganyika is a very large tropical lake. The coldest place is 75 year round. These fish do best in 75 - 80 degree water.

Tank Size: One pair can be kept in a ten gallon tank and will spawn but there is not much room for the children. I would say that a twenty long is a better choice but they would do great in a better tank. The last time I was spawning them I had a pair in a 55 gallon. It was filling up with babies.

Tank furniture: These fish need to have hiding places for spawning and from each other. I have made cave with flat slate with two making the sides and large flat sheet for the top. The mated pair will usually lay the eggs on the roof of the cave. You can also use pc pipes which are less attractive but are cheaper. Also plants like Java Moss make a great place for the babies to hide and forage for small organism. Micro-organism are great for the newly hatched fry to feed on until big enough for other food.

Tank mates: These fish are usually kept in a species tank since a mated pair will attack any tankmates except their children. If you are keeping a single fish you might be able to kept them with a group of other African cichlids. It has been done.

Food: They will eat flake food. They will also eat Tetra tabimins which is a pill of very small flake food pieces. They also will eat live foods like Daphnia, bloodworms, brine shrimp, and grindal worms. Meaty food should be given in moderation. African cichlid can develop bloat from eating too much meaty food. Tank raised fish will be much easier to feed than wild captured one. They will also graze algae from the side of the tank. I recommend letting in grow on the side and back walls. The front can be kept clean for your  viewing pleasure.

Spawning: The males and females are very similar in appearance. Sometimes you can tell the female if she has spawned recently. The vent will be stretched from laying eggs and larger and thicker than normal. The easier way to get a pair is similar to the procedure with Angelfish. You buy a group of six or more and let them figure it out themselves. When a pair has formed they will chase all the other away from they spawning site. They other will be driven up the walls of the tank. It is best to remove them to another tank since they will be harass to death even in a large tank.

You will probably not see the spawning itself. They will lay the eggs in a private spot on the roof of the cave. From personal experience the eggs are olive green color and hatch in a few days. The fry will hang from ceiling and absorb their egg yolks which are the same color as the eggs. The first food for the fry are any micro-organism in the tank or brine shrimp. The fry are very slow growing. It is one of the reasons that the fish are so expensive in the store. Six month old fry might be one and half inches long. The parent will tolerance youngsters in the tank. Also the older siblings may tolerance the younger fry forming a colony in time. There will be all different size because the parents will have a small spawn of maybe twenty of so every couple of weeks.

The older fry can be sold to pet shops or on eBay. There is usually a market for tank raised fish. They are fast fish which can be hard to catch. You do not want to move the rocks around since it might disrupt the bond of the parents. Also you do not want to remove all the fry at once. I have be told that if all fry disappear the parents might fight and kill their mate. A trick to use to catch fish. Put some food inside a net and hang on the side of the tank. You might have a wait a while. I would check again in five or ten minutes. The fish will smell/taste the food in the water and look for it. Just pull the net when you have a fish. Also if you accident catch some fish too small to sell you can release them back into the tank.

Book: This book is out of print but you can find copies on eBay sometimes.

Complete Books of Dwarf Cichlids by Hans-Jochim Richter This is large hard cover that covers a large range of cichlid species