BREEDING Egg Layer / Cave Spawner
Generally good parents
Kribensis
The
yellow cheeked krib is a beautiful relatively peaceful dwarf cichlid.
Peaceful enough to keep in a tropical community tank with other
tropical fish such as Tetra’s, Guppies, Whiteclouds, Cory’s, Loaches
and Bristlenose Catfish.
Their popularity is
overshadowed by their cousins the Pelvicachromis Pulcher Krib which is
more colourful, however they are much less aggressive and more hardier
than the Pulcher.
They can be shy when in an aquarium, so plenty of caves, driftwood
& plants are needed to make them feel more secure. Once they feel
secure, they can become the show-pony’s of the tank and won’t be afraid
to come to the front when their owners approach.
Females
are smaller than the males but show off a lot more colour especially
when preparing to breed. Females have brilliant red bellies with bright
yellow cheeks. Males tend to have a blue iridescence in their finage,
while the females can change their body colour from pale to extremely
dark black patches mixed with a deep red of their bellies.
They are an egg layer and will usually spawn in caves laying around 50
- 150 eggs. Both male & female are good parents, and look after
both eggs & fry from other fish in the tank. However, young pairs
may take a couple of spawns to get the parenting right.
It is when the
pair is caring for eggs & fry that they may become slightly
aggressive towards any other fish in the tank, but it is mostly bluff
than actual harm. Eggs will hatch in about 3 days.
There are two forms of Pelvicachromis subocellatus, the Moanda and the
Matadi, named from the places in which each was found. They look quite
similar but the females of each form can display obvious colour
differences.
Kribensis