Uaru care
Uaru amphiacanthoides · Clear streams of the Amazon basin
The uaru is a large, disc-shaped Amazon cichlid, gold-brown with a big dark patch on its side shaped roughly like a triangle, which gives it its other name.
- Tank size
- 75 US gal or larger
- Temperature
- 79 to 86 °F (26 to 30 °C)
- Group size
- 2 or more
- Temperament
- Semi-aggressive
- Adult size
- 9.8 in (standard length, without the tail)
- pH
- 5.5 to 7
- Hardness (GH)
- 1 to 10 dGH
- Lifespan
- 8 to 12 years
- Diet
- Mostly plants
- Care level
- Moderate
In a 75 gallon
48½ × 18½ × 21⅛ in outsideHow to keep uarus
The uaru is a large, disc-shaped Amazon cichlid, gold-brown with a big dark patch on its side shaped roughly like a triangle, which gives it its other name. It grows to about 10 in without the tail and is sociable with its own kind, so keep two or more in a 75 gallon or larger tank of soft, warm water at 79 to 86 °F, with fish too big to swallow.
Diet: Mostly plants: vegetable-based cichlid pellets, blanched greens, some frozen foods. Fish food types compared · how often to feed.
Where they swim: Middle of the tank.
Uaru tank mates
Share the temperature and water, and neither side eats, nips or bullies the other. Check the full group in the stocking checker.
Elephantnose fish
9 in · 55+ gal · 77–82 °F
Gold nugget pleco
8.8 in · 75+ gal · 77–86 °F
Chinese algae eater
11 in · 75+ gal · 72–82 °F
Peacock eel
12 in · 55+ gal · 73–82 °F
Senegal bichir
14 in · 75+ gal · 75–84 °F
Ropefish
15 in · 55+ gal · 75–82 °F
Three-spot (blue) gourami
6 in · 29+ gal · 72–82 °F
Firemouth cichlid
6 in · 40+ gal · 75–84 °F
Keep apart
Cardinal tetra: Adult uarus eat fish under about 1.5 in; cardinal tetras grow to 1.2 in.
Green neon tetra: Adult uarus eat fish under about 1.5 in; green neon tetras grow to 1 in.
Ember tetra: Adult uarus eat fish under about 1.5 in; ember tetras grow to 1.2 in.
Chili rasbora: Adult uarus eat fish under about 1.5 in; chili rasboras grow to 0.8 in.
Celestial pearl danio: Adult uarus eat fish under about 1.5 in; celestial pearl danios grow to 1 in.
Zebra danio: No shared temperature: uarus need 79 to 86 °F, zebra danios 64 to 77 °F.
What an uaru tank needs
A tank of 75 US gallons or more (such as the 75 gallon) with a cover, and the equipment below.
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Aqueon QuietFlow Canister Filter 300
Rated by the maker for 55–75 US gal, which covers a 75 gallon uaru tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Marineland Penguin PRO 375
Rated by the maker for up to 75 US gal, which covers a 75 gallon uaru tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Aqueon Pro 200
Uarus need 79 to 86 °F; most homes run cooler, so a heater holds the temperature.
API Freshwater Master Test Kit
Tests ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the readings that matter most before and after adding uarus.
Seachem Prime 100 mL
Removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water at every water change.
Fluval Edge Thermometer
Shows the water temperature at a glance, so you know it stays within 79 to 86 °F.
More choices, each with the reason it is in or out: Filters for a 75 gallon tank · Heaters for a 75 gallon tank. We don’t list fish food: any good brand of the foods under Diet will do. Plan the whole tank's equipment →
Common uaru problems
- It eats soft plants down to the stem: feed vegetable-based food every day, and plant only tough ones such as java fern and anubias, or none.
- Small tetras and shrimp become food.
Test the water first whenever fish look unwell: see what your readings mean, then match the symptom. For disease, a vet who treats fish can diagnose it and advise treatment.
More to compare
Sources
Name, origin and adult size checked against Wikipedia: Uaru amphiacanthoides. Temperature, pH, hardness, group size, lifespan and minimum tank size are common hobby guidance, not figures from that article. Ranges are the range the species tolerates; aim for the middle. Minimum tank sizes are for an adult group. Drawings are our own; photo credits follow.
Photo credits
Real photographs from Wikimedia Commons, resized and cropped to fit; each is used under the license named.
- Uaru Brent Tibbats, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Elephantnose fish Jutta234, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Gold nugget pleco Anne Blindheim, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Chinese algae eater Pseudogastromyzon, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Peacock eel Zachary Randall, Florida Museum, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Senegal bichir Zhyla at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Ropefish Michał Zalewski, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Three-spot (blue) gourami Peter Jung, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Firemouth cichlid H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cardinal tetra CHUCAO, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Green neon tetra Sascha Biedermann, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
- Ember tetra Klaus Rudloff, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Chili rasbora JoKrimmel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Celestial pearl danio Cisamarc, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Zebra danio Roundish, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Angelfish Citron, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Discus Patrick Farrelly, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- German blue ram Eric Mengel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cockatoo dwarf cichlid William Kreijkes, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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