The Midas Cichlid is native to slow-moving rivers and lakes of the San Juan basin of Costa Rica and Nicaragua.

They are stockily built, aggressive fish eating other fish, molluscs and vegetation. Adult males often develop a large head hump (that has been bred to excessive size in captivity). They often retain the hump permanently but it increases when breeding. They also have longer dorsal and anal fins. They reach a length of some 25-35cm.

Gold and yellow colours have also been developed in captivity, but do occur in the wild together with dull grey colouring - especially on females.

Like many cichlids, they bond in monogamous pairs and both parents protect the territory and tend to the eggs and fry.

The Blood-parrot fish is a strangely mis-shapen, large, red, hybrid cichlid created in aquaculture (captivity) in the Far East but now prevalent in aquaria worldwide. The parents of the hybrid are the Midas (further up this page) and a Vieja species, usually the Redhead Cichlid, V. synspila/melanura, with "Blood-parrot" offspring shown immediately above left and centre. Such a cross can also produce the male "Flowerhorn" ornamental hybrids with over-sized, spherical and patterned nuchal humps. Other similar vieja species can also be crossed with Midas. The fish above right is a rather flat-faced red Midas and may have some genes of the Tailbar V. hartwegi.