I just wanted to share a new experience I have been having with HRP's. I have owned many many Cichlids and non-C's alike over the past 15ish years. A few months ago I broke down and purchased some fish from Jeff Rapps. Among them were 8 HRP's. Of the 8, one died for no obvious reason but the others have flourished. I got to tell ya that these fish are REALLY awesome. In good lighting the colors are amazing and though they are small they still have all of the behaviors that we have come to love with cichlids. They are very convict like in their behaviors and are very owner responsive. I have always said that convicts are one of the truly underrated cichlids out their. And all the convicts that I have ever owned have not really had the owner responsiveness and "brains" that other fish I have owned (my dovi-jag's-oscars-etc). Well these little suckers have tons of personality. I hope that as these fish get more popular others in the hobby will give them a try.
Just Sharing-Hond. red points.
- Thread starter Darthsniper
- Start date
Fortunately, HRPs are nothing like convicts when they have spawned. They are one of the most peaceful cichlids ever. They do spawn though when ready and have tons of babies, but nothing like the convict in breeding behavior.
HRP's are awesome fish for sure. they are substantiall different in many ways from convicts, but in other ways they are very similar. they can be aggressive while spawning, but usually not as bad as convicts. typically their spawns are smaller also. while we wait for pics from Darthsniper, I'll post some pics of some of the ones I've had in the past. I currently have a very nice ~3.5" male but haven't gotten any good pics of him yet. the first pic is the best pic I've been able to get of him so far. the other pics are of a HRP pair I used to have. 
Nice pics, as usual, Jason! My breeding pair have spawned a few times with a previous bunch of juveniles still in the tank, which I would never expect with more aggressive fish. On the other hand, my male bit me 2 nights ago when I got too close to the pot he and his mate were evidently spawning in. Too funny! Totally harmless, but unexpected! These are some of my favorite fish, currently. 
i have a pair in with my umbees and festaes and they rule the tank hands down. mine are every bit as aggressive as any convicts i have owned. my male and female are both stunning in coloration though so i cant get myself to remove them so my other fish can get some peace. they are in a 90 and claim the WHOLE tank as theirs. well actually just the floor space as my other fish kick it near a hanging piece of african root wood and the umbees just chgase eachother around the middle areas and open space. in my eyes the hrp's are the most beautiful race of convicts and have all the same personality traits as the ones we've learned to love over the years. i know some say they are not as aggressive but i guess it may have to do with circumstance
Sry i couldn't reply sooner. I don't have a digital camera yet but I hope to this year.
I broke my back a while back in Iraq and have had 6 surgeries. Sometimes I get laid up for a week at a time. I swear though, the HRP's I got have even way more colors than the pics in this thread. It's unbelievable. And they do seem to be acting like convicts with each other but are rather tame with their tankmates. They are now in a 220 with hmm, 6 clown loaches, 8 bala sharks, 1 male rainbow & his two wives lol. two syno cats, a royal pleco, 4 electric blue jacks, and a huuuge leporinus (sp?).
I broke my back a while back in Iraq and have had 6 surgeries. Sometimes I get laid up for a week at a time. I swear though, the HRP's I got have even way more colors than the pics in this thread. It's unbelievable. And they do seem to be acting like convicts with each other but are rather tame with their tankmates. They are now in a 220 with hmm, 6 clown loaches, 8 bala sharks, 1 male rainbow & his two wives lol. two syno cats, a royal pleco, 4 electric blue jacks, and a huuuge leporinus (sp?).