Breeding Kribensis

Posted February 24, 2009

The Kribensis cichlids (Pelvicachromis pulcher) is easy to keep and breed compared to many other small cichlids and will display the same entertaining parental behaviour that we recognize from so many other, more demanding African cichlids.

Before deciding to breed Kribensis cichlids it is important to remember that their devoted parental behaviour includes guarding the offspring from any real or perceived danger by any means necessary. Normally happy-go-lucky Kribensis cichlids that get along with everyone in the tank can therefore change temperament completely as they start to breed. You can prevent this guarding behaviour from turning into outright violence and harassment by making sure that the aquarium is large enough and contains natural territorial borders. There should also be plenty of hiding spots for other fish, and preferably no species that will compete for bottom supremacy with the Kribs.

Sexing

The female fish is more colourful than her male counterpart and during the breeding period her belly will display a beautiful cherry red colour. Albeit being considerably smaller than the male, her belly is plumper which can confuse the eye and make her appear to be the larger of the two. Male Kribensis cichlids can reach a length of 10 cm (4 in) while females typically stay smaller than 8 cm (3 in). Another difference between the two can be observed in the dorsal fin since it ends in a point in male specimens only.

Coaxing

Kribensis cichlids are known to frequently breed in aquariums without any coaxing from the aquarist, and being moved from the crowded display tank of a pet shop to a nice and roomy aquarium with a cave or two will often make a couple start courting each other within a week.

If your Kribensis cichlids refuse to spawn, check that you actually have one specimen of each sex. Make sure that you follow the guidelines for Kribensis cichlids when it comes to aquarium size, water quality, pH-value etcetera, and look for visible signs of poor health in the specimens. A substrate that allows for digging is recommended. Keep your fish on the same varied diet recommended for non-breeding Kribensis but give them a few extra servings of live meaty foods and increase the water temperature up to 27 ºC / 80 ºF. Despite being tolerant of a wide range of water parameters, Kribs are more inclined to spawn in soft and acidic water.

Providing your fish with suitable caves is also imperative; ideally give them a few different variants to choose among. You can for instance use coconut shells and upside down flowerpots. The entrance whole should be large enough for the plump female to barely squeeze herself through.

Spawning and egg care

After selecting a cave, the couple will spawn. A Kribensis female normally produces 50-300 eggs per batch and the eggs will usually be attached to the roof of the cave. Both parents exercise parental care; taking shifts to allow each other to feed.

Fry care

Raising Kribensis fry is actually quite easy because the parents will do most of the work for you. Roughly three days after being fertilized the eggs will hatch inside the cave and the offspring will be moved to a pit or some other safe spot by the parents. When they are large enough, they will be allowed out of the cage to forage but only under adult supervision. As soon as the adult fish senses any danger, they will usher the fry back into the safety of the cave. Also, the fry will not be allowed to stay outside when it’s dark, and before the female lets them out in the morning she will always check the aquarium for dangers first.

Kribensis fry usually stay with their parents for several weeks and you shouldn’t separate them from each other until the fry are at least 1.5 cm (0.6 in) long. Premature removal of the fry can result in the death of the female, because if the male wish to spawn again and she isn’t ready he may harass her until she dies from stress or injury.

It is not uncommon for Kribensis parents to eat the first few batches of eggs or fry, so don’t be too quick to label them unfit parents and move all the eggs to a separate tank. If you just let them engage in a few more trial runs, they will most likely get the hang of it eventually. An established couple will spawn over and over again so there is no need to be alarmed if a few batches end up as food to begin with.

Feeding Kribensis fry

Really small Kribensis fry feed on microscopic organisms in the aquarium, so keeping it overly clean and barren without any suitable homes for such creatures is not a good idea. As the fry grow larger, they will be able to devour powdered flakes and newly hatched brine shrimp. As they increase in size you simply feed them larger and larger brine shrimps and less and less finely grounded flakes.

Sex ratio
The sex ratio of Kribensis offspring is affected by the pH-value of the water, with acidic waters resulting in mostly female offspring whereas an alkaline environment shifts the sex ratio in the opposite direction. Kribensis breeders aiming for a reasonably balanced sex ratio typically keep the pH-value in the 6.8-7.2 range.

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The Kribensis cichlids (Pelvicachromis pulcher) is easy to keep and breed compared to many other small cichlids and will display the same entertaining parental behaviour that we recognize from so many other, more demanding African cichlids

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