Please read this post first entirely before responding.....
I've recently become quite enamored with the genus previously known as Vieja. This is in no small part thanx to Aquamojo and his stunning specimens and very skilled photography skills. The beauty of the genus which was captured in his photo's sparked my interest in this genus. I tried doing some research here on MFK as well as google and found info on certain fish in the genus hard to obtain. Some of this was caused by the different scientific names the species in the genus have been classified under, as it's changed quite a few times. For instance Vieja Zonatus has also been called Paratheraps Zonatus, Theraps Zonata, Cichlasoma Zonatum and most recently Paraneetroplus Zonatum and a google search will yield different amounts of info depending on the name you search. Also many vendors, LFS's and distributors will often use different scientific names to describe their stock which can cause confusion to a buyer whose unfamiliar with this genus. So the same fish may be called a Vieja by one vendor and a Theraps by another. So someone inexperienced may not realize both vendors are selling the same fish, they're just using different nomenclature's. The intention behind me writing this thread is to help newcomer's interested in the genus with some basic knowledge regarding basic husbandry of the genus. It's also to help retard any confusion regarding the prolific amount of synonyms for the various ex-Vieja's. This way when you look at a stock list no matter which nomenclature the vendor is using you'll know exactly what they're talking about. Let me also explain in advance the reason I used ex-Vieja as the title, it's because I believe it's the nomenclature most aquarist's presently associate with these species. I plan on writing a quick general profile for each fish starting with my favorite the Zonatum. I'll add new profile's when ever I get a chance it might not be everyday, but I'll get it done.
Note:
For the sake of the fluidity of the thread and to make it easy to follow please hold any comments till after I finish the profiles. Also if you see anything you think is wrong or missing please pm me and I'll see about asking a mod to help me edit the profile. I'd also like to thank in advance Aquamojo for the use of his stunning photo's and help with some of the info in this thread. I'd also like to give prop's to cichlid2006 who posted a awesome link to an article regarding the present classification of the genus previously referred to as Vieja in my first thread where I attempted to do this. Anyone else who helps will also be mentioned in my last post in this thread so you can get the props you will rightfully deserve.