A question for Krib owners

[chasgood]

I am new to Kribs and cichlids. Got a male Krib on Sept 19th and the female on the 25th. The first day I was afraid the male would not take to her as he seemed to be running her off even thou she was displaying for him. Her belly turned very red as soon as she seen him. The next day they looked like a pair.
The last few days she has not come out from the hiding spot to eat. Today I shined a flashlight in there and saw eggs on the underside of the fake driftwood. They are a dark cream color.
Is it normal for her to not eat while guarding the eggs?
Do they usually breed so quickly?

 

[Fruitbat]

chasgood...

Pelvicachromis pulcher, the 'kribensis' cichlid, is one of the easier cichlids to spawn. Sounds like yours are behaving in typical 'kribi' fashion. Yes...it is normal for her to not venture out of her hiding spot while she's guarding the eggs and it isn't all that unusual for them to breed pretty quickly if they're both 'in the mood'.

Congratulations!!

 

[webmoose]

çongrats on the kribs!

 

[chasgood]

Thanks. Glad to know her not eating is normal. If they hatch survive will I need to move them in a month or so (before the next breeding cycle)? I heard the parents can turn on the young when the next batch of eggs is laid.

 

[Menagerie]

Aside from removing the young, you may need to separate the male and female after awhile to let her rest. It takes a lot of energy to produce those eggs!

 

[novafishy]

make sure you get hold of some Microworms soon, so you can feed the fry once they are free-swimming.

You can also practise hatching baby brine shrimp to feed the newly hatched fry. you can find stacks of information on "do it yourself" brine shrimp hatching. just Google it.

all the best!

 

[Cafe Jeff]

How did it all turn out?
Kribs are lovely and some of my favourite fish. Jeff

 

[chasgood]

Today the eggs are gone. Dont see any fry either. The female has burrowed a hole under the fake driftwood. Hoping the young are in there. Did notice something I overlooked before. The fry would be very close to the filter inlet. Hope they didnt get sucked in. I will move that ornamate before the pair breeds again. Leaving it alone for now just in case.

I read the parents will crush food and spit it out for the young to eat. Will do more reading about it tonite.

 

[Menagerie]

You can always put a sponge on the intake tube. Since this was their first chance with young, they may have messed up--first time fish parents don't always get it right!

 

[Cafe Jeff]

It'll happen again, soon! Jeff

 

[chasgood]

There is a coarse sponge on the intake. No sign of them on the sponge or on the filter cartridge. The eggs were about 4 to 6 inches from the intake. The female is gaurding the hole she dug and the male is on the outside where the hole would come out. Still could be a few fry in there.

 

[rubysoho]

Reading this has made me very interested in Kribs. Are they good for community tanks or should it be species only?? I'm trying to put a list together for my 55 gal tank (another post in the general discussions forum). I think I'm going to try and research these guys some more. Good luck and keep us posted on if there are anymore babies!!

 

[Cafe Jeff]

It's a long while since I've kept Kribs, but I remember them going with almost any type of community friendly fish. I wouldn't trust them with an Oscar, but I did keep them with Discus. Jeff

 

[chasgood]

From what I read Kribs are fine in a community tank. Kribs are not very aggressive at all (for cichlids). They need at least a 20gal long if housed with others. They have been chasing off others that stray to close to the nest but hasnt harmed any fish. Not sure if that would be the same for bottom dwellers.
The 2 other cichlids that are in my other community tank (see sig) are good too. At least as long as they are single. If paired up they might terrorize the others.

Off to work. Will post tonight on how it is going.

 

[rubysoho]

awesome, thanks for the info and I can't wait to hear the update! (btw, I'll have a 55gal tank so that is enough room)

 

[Fruitbat]

Keep in mind that, like other cichlids, 'kribs' are very individual. I've had some that co-existed wonderfully with other dwarf cichlids, medium-sized barbs (Tiger Barbs) and even small gouramis. On the other hand, my daughter had a male that killed four females, two Tiger Barbs, two Corydoras and was basically hell on wheels!! Your experiences may vary!

Overall, I recommend Pelvicachromis pulcher very highly, especially with fish that can take care of themselves.

Oh....chasgood....don't count those eggs out just yet! It is normal for 'kribs' to keep their hatched fry in small depressions which they will guard just like yours are doing.

 

[chasgood]

The female has given up watch on the little hole she dug. The pair are now both in the fake log cave instead of the driftwood. Nothing seems to be in there with them. That is where I expected them to breed. Female just came out to eat.
Once I'm sure its safe I will switch the ornamates so the nest will be farther from the intake.

 

[Voodoo Chilli]

Although kribs are generally not aggressive- they do NOT make good community tankmates for the simple fact that they're HIGHLY protective of their eggs and fry (as all cichlids are)- to the point that they'll kill other tankmates during the defense of their young.

 

[chasgood]

I just got home from a 4 day getaway and see 15 to 20 fry swimming around. Momma had moved the fry to a back corner of the tank behind a big rock.

 

[Fruitbat]

Congrats chasgood! I had a sneaking suspicion that they were being moved around....typical of 'kribensis'. Now you get to watch the parental care behavior!