True Parrots! - Hoplarchus Psittacus

[chuckrum]

Well, this is my 180g and my 3 parrots.. The two adults look to be male and female based on aggression, and as for the smaller one I haven't got a clue but "he" doesn't seem to be very aggressive. They are my favorite cichlid I have kept yet, including Cichla. Using filter peat and lots of driftwood, just recently started doing water changes more frequently as I understand these guys need pristine water quality to hopefully spawn one day. Pls share your experience if you have ever kept these guys before, sadly i've yet to meet a fellow keeper in person


the first pic is what I think is the male, and second is the female

 

[gutted]

Very nice! True parrots are on my wishlist! I love the way their's faces look. It's like they''re always mad. How's their personality? Are they shy or very active? Good luck breeding them!

Sent from my GT-P5113 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App

 

[baldtaxguy]

Here is a thread of when I kept them. Good luck with yours.

http://www.gcca.net/forumindex/4-south-american-cichlids/27570-hoplarchus-psittacus

 

[chuckrum]

Very nice! True parrots are on my wishlist! I love the way their's faces look. It's like they''re always mad. How's their personality? Are they shy or very active? Good luck breeding them!

Sent from my GT-P5113 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App

heck yeah! the red eyes contrasting the blue colour is what really does it for me.. They are not shy, once they get used to movement around the tank you can push your face right up to the glass and they will just stare at you lol, they are actually pretty bold. That being said, my "male" really does love his hiding spot and constantly stays there guarding his territory. Of course, as soon as you go up to the tank they are all out and begging food. Also, mine aren't that aggressive at all.. I would say they are like a territorial severum, very passive but when another fish enters their hide they surely defend it. My big one only chases the other big one around which is why I think they may be male and female, I have smaller fish in the tank and they are left alone.

 

[chuckrum]

Here is a thread of when I kept them. Good luck with yours.

http://www.gcca.net/forumindex/4-south-american-cichlids/27570-hoplarchus-psittacus

awesome, thanks!.. any tips you can give regarding them spawning?

 

[Azedenkae]

Very nice parrots!

I really want to get these guys but unfortunately they don't exist down here in the Aussielands. (

 

[UnstoppableJayD]

Awesome fish! I have one about ten inches now. Hes the boss of my tank but not to agressive as to hurt anyone just keeps everyone else incheck.

http://www.cichlidae.com/article.php?id=67

Herr is a good article on breeding them
And heres a pic of mine just cause threads need pictures!


Sent from my TC970 (Wi-Fi) using MonsterAquariaNetwork App

 

[NorCaliCichlids]

I have a 8" breeding pair that are usually separated due to male aggression. IME these fish can be VERY aggro. Good example...I have a 190, 10' long tank with a group of 7 Beani all the same size for the most part as the male Psittacus. EVERY tank he's been in he is the dominant fish and I had to move him yesterday to a new tank. They get BIG and are surprisingly mean for a fish not billed as overly aggressive. My previous pair the male was a solid 14" when I sold him. Watch out for the males aggression with the female.

 

[PDRed302]

Nice looking fish!

I only have one male myself:


He is fairly shy but still aggressive enough to take the "Alpha" hiding spot. Not a food begger like my other cichlids; I notice most of the time he eats more like a geo, cleaning the substrate vs grabbing floating food.

Good luck on breeding, from what I've read, it can be difficult to accomplish.

 

[baldtaxguy]

awesome, thanks!.. any tips you can give regarding them spawning?

I overstocked and packed about 15-18 psittacus into a 125g until they grew out to adult size and a pair started to take possession of one side of the tank. I quickly removed and sold off the others and allowed the pair the entire tank with no other tank mates. I suspected they spawned regularly but the eggs were not visible - they would guard a section of the substrate and organize the gravel as if there was a nest. I then introduced a 12" diameter flower pot and they began to spawn within it. The first batch fungused, and then one of our local club members suggested I pull the flower pot and add it to a separate tank or bucket of distilled water with meth blue added to allow the eggs to hatch. It worked, had about 4 batchs of fry that I grew out, but the interest for this fish locally was close to nil. They spawned much more rapidly than I could (or want to) pull the eggs. I moved all the fry and grow outs along and just sold the pair a few months ago.

Very, very aggressive fish, extremely similar to that of labiatus. Good luck with yours, hope you get them to pair off. Here are a couple pics of mine:

My hatching process: