Sexing

Mature females have a purple/red round bellies. Their bellies get a deeper coloration when they are ready to breed.  Males get bigger than females and have a pointed dorsal fin while that of the female is rounded.

Before you breed

You should note that kribs get protective – aggressive towards other tank mates – during breeding time. The female may attack other fish, including the male if the tank is large enough.

For one breeding pair, you may get away with a 35L(10g) tank with lots of caves but a 54L(15g) would be safer. The bigger the better.
Also, don’t worry if you lose the first couple batch of fry. It is common with cichlids.

The Breeding Pair

Kribs will form a pair before breeding. You can get a pair by buying a breeding pair(which can be expensive) or by  acquiring a small group of about six juvenile kribs. There are high chances you’ll get at least one pair. Choosing a pair from a group of adults in the Fish store is quite tricky as the fish will be drably colored.  Generally, the largest male will pair with the largest female. When you get your pair, you may move them to a separate breeding tank.

Effect Of pH On The Kribensis Fry

You should check your pH before attempting to breed the Pelvicachromis pulcher. Having acidic water(pH less than 7) will result in getting more females while having a pH above 7 will result in more males in the batch of fry. If you want roughly the same amount of males and females, your water should be neutral(pH = 7).

Conditioning The Pair To Breed

Feeding your kribensis live food will help to trigger breeding. Smaller portions but more regular feedings also helps. Be sure not to overfeed. Add some hiding places such as caves will make the fish more secure.

Breeding

If you conditioned your pair well, they will breed soon. If you see the female disappearing into a pot for some time or if she is guarding the pot’s entrance, it is a good sign. If you can peek into the pot, try to find orange eggs inside.

Note: If you have bred them in a small tank you better remove the male now leaving the female alone with the eggs.

In larger tanks, the life of the male is not threatened. The female will guard the eggs while the male protects the surrounding. It the kribs spawned in the community tank, the male will force other tank mates away from the nest.
The eggs hatch in three days and the fry continue to develop for about a week. The female will bring out a small shoal of fry from the spawning site about ten days after breeding.
It’s now time to jump to the Fry Care Article.

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