▷ Purple Perch | Pelvicachromis pulcher | Information, keeping and breeding

Data sheet purple perch

German name:
Purple perch, purple cichlid

Origin:
Africa: Niger Delta

Size:
M 10 W 8 cm

Aquarium

Length:
60 cm

Contents:
54 liters

Lighting:
Light to shady

Furnishings:
Plants, stone structures, roots, hiding places, caves

water values

Temperature:
24-26ºC

PH value:
6.5 – 7.5

CH:
°dKH

GH:
8 – 12 °dGH

Behave

Number:
2

Area:
bottom, middle

propagation:
egglayer

Lining:
omnivore

Behave:
In pairs or 2-3 females per male

Difficulty level:
Beginner

Sources

Crimson Perch – Kept in pairs

© Niko Strieth‎

Purple perch, Pelvicachromis pulcher, are monogamous, ie a male is always kept as a pair with a female. Aggression between the male and female of a pair arises when the female is not yet ready to spawn. The female then retires to a hideout for a few days to rest.

If several females are placed with one male each, a pair is formed, which together suppresses the other females. The oppressed females are under constant stress. This stress ultimately leads to disease and death.

Before sexual maturity, the females do not see each other as competition and usually get along. Once sexual maturity occurs, that changes.

Multiple pairs can only be kept in very large aquariums. Even in a 260 liter aquarium, just 2 pairs can be kept.

Do purple perch burrow in the ground?

© Mirko Rosenau

Both gravel with a grain size of 3 to 5 millimeters and sand are suitable as soil.

Coral perch hardly dig in the ground. At most one breeding cave is excavated.

Under an upturned clay pot or half a coconut, they dig down to the ground. In front of the cave opening there is a mountain of pebbles or sand.

If necessary, a flat rock can be placed under the den so they don’t burrow all the way to the ground. The cavity should be just big enough for the female to fit in, turn around, and attach the eggs to.

What Crimson Perch eat

Coral perch tend to live on the bottom. They rarely come to the surface of the water to feed. They usually eat food that has fallen on the ground and sometimes rummage through the ground for dropped food. Sometimes algae and plants are nibbled on.

But plants are not really eaten. In the breeding season, a plant may get in the way, which is then simply dug up. This rarely happens.

Suitable feed types:

Flake food is sometimes taken reluctantly. It is then spat out or blown through the gills.

The gender differences

Males have a pointed dorsal fin, the caudal fin also tapers to a point. Both fins are rounded in females. The central rays of the caudal fin are elongated in males. The females are often more colorful.

The males are 12 – 15 centimeters long.

Is a 60’s pool big enough?

Source: Image on Wikimedia Commons License: Public domain Author: Irina.vargas

Coral perch are relatively peaceful. When caring for the brood, however, they require a territory of at least 40 x 40 centimeters. Because the area is almost as big as a 60 cm tank, such an aquarium represents the absolute lower limit for keeping a pair. They should not be kept in it with shoal fish. If only one Ancistrus or Peckoltia is added, the brood care can be operated undisturbed.

3 to 4 brightly colored platies are also suitable as companion fish. They are conspicuous enough to be considered predatory fish by the cichlids, but small enough for the tank.
A few predatory fish that are close to the surface are important because they allow the cichlids to vent the aggression they would otherwise vent to one another.

Without companion fish, purple perch easily become shy.

The decoration creates several areas that should not all be visible from one place. The inferior animal, usually the female, can then withdraw from the field of vision of the stronger. The animals then also have much more space to swim and to examine more. This is an important advantage for fish as intelligent as cichlids.
In addition, some half coconuts, flower pots or other caves are offered. Like all cichlids, purple cichlids are much more peaceful and social in cluttered tanks with lots of hiding places, even when breeding.

Purple perch with juveniles © Niko Strieth‎

In any case, another tank should be available so that the animals can be separated if necessary. If there are arguments about reproductive issues, even an 80’s tank may be undersized.

The behavior of the animals is so complex that it cannot be said with certainty whether a 60 tank is too small or sufficient.

Many aquarists successfully keep P. pulcher with other fish species in a 60 tank. Socialization is often made possible by the distribution of aggression. Consciously or unconsciously, the negative consequences of overstocking are taken into account. When caring for other cichlids, e.g. B. with Tropheusarten, this strategy is also often used. But perhaps that is also a reason for the often arising, different problems.

3 pairs can be kept in an aquarium with a capacity of 400 liters.

Notes on Breeding

Purple cichlids reproduce profusely and are a type of guppies among the cichlids.

An aquarium with a tank length of at least 60 centimeters is suitable for breeding. If there are other fish in the aquarium, the aquarium should be larger. At spawning time they can attack larger fish such as angelfish even in a 240 liter aquarium.
In such cases, moving the pair caring for the brood into a separate rearing tank should be considered. The rearing tank must also be at least 60 centimeters long. In the maintenance tank both probably stick together. After the transfer, disputes can arise between the male and the female.

In another case, purple perch and angelfish got along in a 180 liter tank and spawned several times at the same time. There were only threatening gestures or harmless mouth fights.

If there are many hiding places made of stones and roots close to the ground, the purple perch usually stay there when breeding. Fish in the upper water layers are not bothered.

Coral perch are cave breeders. Therefore z. B. placed an inverted flower pot with an entrance opening in the aquarium.

Instructions for rearing

Young purple perch Source: Image on Wikimedia Commons License: Public domain Author: Mike Dudek

The female guards and cares for the clutch and brood. The male defends the territory. The parents are so protective of the young that even in the community tank many young will survive if there are enough plants and hiding places for the young to swim into without being directly seen.

The young hatch after 2 to 3 days. After another 4 to 5 days they swim freely. The mother comes out of the cave with the boys. Before that, you can hardly see the boys. If the mother spends most of her time outside the den before about 8 days, the clutch has probably been lost.

After hatching, the larvae may be reburied daily. So they are often found in other caves.

The free-swimming young fish are led by their parents. The young feed on the yolk sac for about 36 hours. After that, the young fish can be easily reared with freshly hatched or frozen artemia nauplii, Cyclop-Eezee or finely ground flake food. The food can be injected directly into the school of young fish with a syringe.

If only dry food is given, the young will not grow very well.

© Natalie Schnattchen

Even without additional feeding, the young will find enough microorganisms to eat on the ground between algae etc.

The parents take care of the young for 12-15 weeks. The parents stay with the young as long as possible. Otherwise, the male will press the female too early, even though she has not yet started spawning. Coral perch also do not like it when they are separated. They then sit in the corner and eat poorly.

As a rule, a maximum of 20-30 young survive. The parents cannot cope with the number of young and reduce the population to such an extent that they can keep up with the control and supervision.

From about 3 cm, the males start to shoo each other. If there are many young, the aggression spreads. In an 80 tank, 20 3 – 4 cm young animals can be kept without any problems, without them fighting.

Appropriate water values

Coral perch are not demanding when it comes to the water parameters if the other conditions are right. They can be kept in, and will breed in, soft to hard water. The pH should be around 7.

Filtering through peat is not necessary.

Purple Perch Video :