Yellow Lab Cichlid

The Electric Yellow Lab (Labidochromis caeruleus) is the most iconic and peaceful Mbuna cichlid from Lake Malawi. Its canary-yellow body contrasts sharply with a jet-black racing stripe along the dorsal, pelvic, and anal fins. Reaching 8–10 cm, it brings reef-like brilliance to rocky African cichlid tanks without the extreme territorial ferocity of larger Mbuna.

Requires at least a 150-liter aquarium landscaped with limestone/holey rock caves and aragonite or coral sand to buffer alkaline water (pH 7.8–8.6, GH 10–20, 24–28 °C). Keep in a harem (1 male to 3–4 females) or group of 5–8+ with heavy canister filtration turning over 8–10x tank volume per hour. See our African Cichlid Overstocking & Heavy Filtration Guide.

Omnivorous Aufwuchs picker: unlike strict herbivorous Mbuna, Yellow Labs glean tiny crustaceans and insect larvae from rock algae. Feed a 70% vegetable/spirulina cichlid pellet diet supplemented with 30% krill, mysis, daphnia, and blanched greens. Never feed bloodworms or mammalian meat, which trigger fatal Malawi Bloat.

Maternal mouthbrooder: after spawning over a flat rock, the female incubates 15–30 eggs in her buccal cavity for 21–24 days before releasing free-swimming, miniature yellow fry that hide among rock crevices.