"If you love cichlids (and let's face it, you'd have to be deranged not to) you'll love the November issue", says Matt Clarke.
Like many fishkeepers, I've always had a bit of a thing for cichlids. There are few fish available with behaviour so fascinating, and to many people they really are fish with "character."
However, for all their good points, the feisty behaviour of these species does make them a little bit more challenging to keep. Indeed, controlling aggression and territoriality is a big part of success.
But if you're going to keep cichlids and have a large enough tank, then Central American cichlids have to be among the best choices.
They're inexpensive to buy, a doddle to keep and you can set up an outstanding biotope for them with comparative ease, and as this article shows, they're also breathtakingly beautiful.
If you've always fancied giving them a try, but didn't know how, check out the November issue of Practical Fishkeeping magazine (on sale September 29-October 27, 2010).
We've got a really informative and beautifully illustrated guide to these fishes, which should tell you pretty much everything you need to know in order to get started.
Written by cichlid expert Lee Nuttall (himself a regular on our forums) it's among the best introductions I've seen to keeping these brilliant fish, and it doesn't leave you inspired and dreaming of setting up a tank for them, nothing will.