Chekopa Mylochromis

Where they come from

Mylochromis chekopae is a Lake Malawi hap, and it really acts like one. In the wild they cruise open areas and sandy stretches, picking at small foods and moving around a lot more than the rock-hugging mbuna. That background helps explain why they get stressed in tiny, cluttered tanks and why they look their best with space to roam.

Setting up their tank

Give them a longer tank if you can. They are active, and the chasing (especially once a male colors up) is way easier to manage with length. I like sand as the main substrate, plus a few rock piles or sturdy caves to break line of sight. You do not need a whole reef wall like you would for mbuna.

• Tank size: I would start at 75 gallons for a group, bigger if you want multiple males or a busy mixed hap setup
• Substrate: sand or fine gravel (sand makes their natural behavior pop)
• Hardscape: a couple rock piles or caves spaced apart, leave open swimming lanes
• Filtration: heavy. Malawi fish are messy, and these guys eat like pigs once settled
• Water movement: moderate flow is plenty, but keep oxygen high

Water-wise, treat them like typical Malawi fish: hard, alkaline, and stable. If your tap is already on the harder side, you are probably fine with regular water changes. If your water is soft, you can buffer it, but stability matters more than chasing a magic number.

What to feed them

These are not strict herbivores like many mbuna, so you have more flexibility. Still, I would not slam them with super-rich foods all day. A good routine is a quality cichlid pellet as the staple, with frozen foods as a few-times-a-week add-on.

• Staple: medium-sized quality pellets or granules made for Malawi haps/peacocks
• Frozen treats: mysis, brine shrimp, krill (go easy), chopped prawn occasionally
• Extras: spirulina-based foods are fine in the rotation and help keep things balanced
• Avoid: feeding like a predator tank (too much fatty food, too often)

How they behave and who they get along with

Chekopae are classic haps: they are not usually out to murder everything, but males can be pushy, and they do a lot of dominance chasing. In my tanks they settled down best in groups where the attention gets spread out, or in a mixed hap/peacock community with similarly sized tankmates.

• Best setup: one male with several females (a small harem) if you want calm behavior
• Works with: other medium-large Malawi haps and peacocks that are not tiny or super timid
• Be careful with: very mild species, slow eaters, or anything much smaller
• Skip: mixing with aggressive mbuna unless you have a big tank and you already know what you are doing

If a male is relentlessly targeting one fish, it is usually a tank layout or stocking issue. Add a few more line-of-sight breaks, consider adding more females, or rethink the mix. Sometimes the simplest fix is removing the bullied fish before it gets worn down.

Breeding tips

They are maternal mouthbrooders like most Malawi haps. If you keep one male with a few females and feed well, you will probably see a female holding sooner or later. She will stop eating and carry the eggs/fry in her mouth for a few weeks.

• Spawning usually happens on sand or a cleared patch near a rock
• A holding female looks like she is chewing and often stays on the edges of the group
• You can let her hold in the main tank if the tank is calm and not overstocked
• If you strip or move her, do it gently and only if you already have a plan for the fry

Common problems to watch for

Most of the trouble I have seen with chekopae is not mysterious disease, it is stress. Stress from cramped tanks, nonstop chasing, or sloppy water quality shows up as faded color, clamped fins, and fish that hover in the top corners.

• Aggression injuries: torn fins and missing scales from dominance fights
• Malawi bloat: swelling, loss of appetite, stringy poop (often tied to stress + rich feeding)
• Ich outbreaks after big changes: temperature swings and new fish are common triggers
• Spooked fish: they can bolt hard, so use a tight-fitting lid and avoid sudden lights-on moments

If you keep their water clean, give them room, and stock them with tankmates that can handle a little attitude, they are a really rewarding Malawi hap to keep. The key is managing the social dynamics more than chasing fancy numbers.