KS
Info
Pseudochromis fridmani, Klausewitz, 1968
Pseudochromis fridmani, also known as King Solomon's Dwarf Perch, is a small fish that grows to about 8 cm in size and is found along the coasts of the Red Sea. The male grows slightly larger than the female. The basic coloration is strikingly purple to violet. It lives in depths to about 60 meters, this hidden on vertical rocks and under overhangs.
The attitude is quite problem-free, in the Red Sea the animals live mostly in groups, in the aquarium one maintains them best in pairs. Group keeping (3-5 pieces as harem) is possible in very large aquariums, important are many hiding places.
In the trade are regularly offsprings available and was also already successfully bred by some, not commercial aquarists.
Individually kept animals can be quite aggressive towards newly added fish.
Dwarf cichlids are bidirectional sex changers, i.e. the sex can be changed in any direction. From birth all fry are female, if two females are put together, then the stronger fish changes to male and changes species specific possibly the colors/fin shape. The sex change lasts from (w to m) 18-56 days. If a mating of two males takes place, then the sex change lasts 52-93 days and it can come over a longer period to massive fights. If there are color variations associated with the sexes, then in the case of two males, the reverted female will take on a cloudy coloration.
Scientifically the sex change is proven in Pseudochromis flavivertex, Pseudochromis aldabraensis and Pseudochromis cyanotaenia in experiments. It can be assumed that the sex change can take place in the same way in the remaining Pseudochromis species.
Sexually mature males have a "sword" on the lower part of the caudal fin (easily seen in the picture above). Therefore, the sexes are quite easy to distinguish.
Otherwise, the Fridman's Dwarf Perch will accept all food and is also not very susceptible to disease.
Breeding information.
The male lures the female into his cave by swimming up to her. After spawning, he guards the spawning clump**. If there are several females in the aquarium, then there are also several spawn balls in the cave.
Preferred are burrows with a diameter of 2 - 3 cm and a length of 8 - 12 cm, these are also easy to disperse.
The water temperature influences the spawning period (with a difference of 1°C, for example, the difference can be ± 2-3 days) and, in the case of gonochoristic (separate-sex) fish or shrimps, the sex. If the temperature is below the usual regional temperature, mainly female larvae will hatch from the clutch, above this temperature mainly male larvae will hatch. Furthermore, the aquarium conditions (e.g. light duration, density) can also influence the sex.
** The spawning size or the number of larvae depends on several factors - age and condition of the parent animals, water conditions, food quality, stress factors and the dissolved oxygen content.
Pseudochromis fridmani, also known as King Solomon's Dwarf Perch, is a small fish that grows to about 8 cm in size and is found along the coasts of the Red Sea. The male grows slightly larger than the female. The basic coloration is strikingly purple to violet. It lives in depths to about 60 meters, this hidden on vertical rocks and under overhangs.
The attitude is quite problem-free, in the Red Sea the animals live mostly in groups, in the aquarium one maintains them best in pairs. Group keeping (3-5 pieces as harem) is possible in very large aquariums, important are many hiding places.
In the trade are regularly offsprings available and was also already successfully bred by some, not commercial aquarists.
Individually kept animals can be quite aggressive towards newly added fish.
Dwarf cichlids are bidirectional sex changers, i.e. the sex can be changed in any direction. From birth all fry are female, if two females are put together, then the stronger fish changes to male and changes species specific possibly the colors/fin shape. The sex change lasts from (w to m) 18-56 days. If a mating of two males takes place, then the sex change lasts 52-93 days and it can come over a longer period to massive fights. If there are color variations associated with the sexes, then in the case of two males, the reverted female will take on a cloudy coloration.
Scientifically the sex change is proven in Pseudochromis flavivertex, Pseudochromis aldabraensis and Pseudochromis cyanotaenia in experiments. It can be assumed that the sex change can take place in the same way in the remaining Pseudochromis species.
Sexually mature males have a "sword" on the lower part of the caudal fin (easily seen in the picture above). Therefore, the sexes are quite easy to distinguish.
Otherwise, the Fridman's Dwarf Perch will accept all food and is also not very susceptible to disease.
Breeding information.
The male lures the female into his cave by swimming up to her. After spawning, he guards the spawning clump**. If there are several females in the aquarium, then there are also several spawn balls in the cave.
Preferred are burrows with a diameter of 2 - 3 cm and a length of 8 - 12 cm, these are also easy to disperse.
The water temperature influences the spawning period (with a difference of 1°C, for example, the difference can be ± 2-3 days) and, in the case of gonochoristic (separate-sex) fish or shrimps, the sex. If the temperature is below the usual regional temperature, mainly female larvae will hatch from the clutch, above this temperature mainly male larvae will hatch. Furthermore, the aquarium conditions (e.g. light duration, density) can also influence the sex.
** The spawning size or the number of larvae depends on several factors - age and condition of the parent animals, water conditions, food quality, stress factors and the dissolved oxygen content.
