I have had great success hybridizing Flowerhorn males to a large (9 1/2 inch) Rose Queen. As the body morpholgies are similar and indeed Flowerhorns may have some Rose Queen genetics, the recognize each other as suitable mates very quickly, often excavating a nest within 2 days of introduction. In my experience they lay about 150 eggs on a flat rock, and once they hatch the female Rose Queen does not eat and protects the fry much more viciously than the Flowerhorn, and will attack fingers, nets, or anything else put in the water. The male Flowerhorn grows less protective of the fry once they reach 1 inch, but the female maintains full tank control for very extended time periods. Unfortunately my Rose Queen killed her mate by biting off his lower lip when he strayed from the nest. I am writing this article today as I put the mother Rose Queen back in with her babies boron on Christmas Day, and she is still protective of them after a 4 month absence. I am still not certain what the fry will grow up to look like. Like many young cichlids in this genus, they are grey-green but many show Rose patches on their bellies.
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