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Our Mission

  • To gather, organize, and disseminate knowledge of fish in the family Cichlidae;

  • To encourage and further the study and conservation of cichlids in their natural habitats, and in the hobby;

  • To encourage the study and preservation of cichlids by awarding grants for research and conservation;

  • To further the conservation of the natural habitat of cichlids;

  • To provide a means for individuals to acquire and distribute cichlids;

  • To promote fellowship amongst the members.

Under Water

Supporting Members & the Hobby

ACA Member Benefits

  • A subscription to our quarterly digital journal, Buntbarsche Bulletin

  • The quarterly ACA newsletter

  • Supporting international conservation efforts

  • Supporting cichlid research

  • Participation in ACA CARES

  • The camaraderie of like-minded cichlidophiles

  • Members-only website

    • Trading Post

    • Live video feeds on various topics

    • Members-only discussion group

Aquarium Club Benefits
Show sanctioning​

Through the ACA Show Sanctioning Program, shows held by local aquarium clubs are sanctioned by the ACA and provided with a medallion to be awarded to the best cichlid in the show. The hobbyist who accumulates the most medallions in a calendar year is honored with the prestigious Patrick Mahoney Award. This highly coveted award is announced at the annual ACA Convention Saturday evening banquet.

Speaker program sponsorship

The ACA, realizing the financial cost of bringing in an outside speaker, is proud to offer to our members the ACA Cichlid Speaker Program, sponsored by ZooMed Labs.

Breeder of the Year Program​​

The ACA encourages the keeping of cichlids in the hobby by promoting their captive propagation, which provides a steady supply of hard-to-find species, produces healthier fish with a lower risk of hybridization, and helps reduce pressure on wild populations. The Breeder of the Year Program, which recognizes individual hobbyists who breed cichlids and offers bragging rights to clubs whose members breed the most species. Working with local and regional aquarium societies, the American Cichlid Association highlights the achievements of active cichlid keepers and breeders, selects an ACA Cichlid Breeder of the Year from all participants, and honors clubs whose members collectively breed a wide range of species.

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