Aquarium parrot fish: maintenance and care

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

The red parrot is an aquarium fish with a striking appearance and funny habits. It is a hybrid of several representatives of cichlases. An animal quickly loved by aquarists differs from its exotic relatives not only in its acceptable cost, but also in a number of other advantages, which you will learn about by reading this article.

History of Appearance

In 1991, after years of unsuccessful experiments, Taiwanese breeders succeeded in breeding Cichlasoma erythraeum, Cichlasoma citrinellum, Cichlasoma severum or Cichlasoma synspilum. It is not surprising that the creators carefully hide the exact information, calling it a trade secret.

Hybrid origin affected some aspects of the life of the animal. For example, fish have a violation of the regulation of the formation of internal organs. A mouth that opens vertically and at a slight angle, and an overly curved lower lip makes it difficult to eat, which sometimes leads to starvation of pets. Many representatives of hybrid parrots have a clear separation of the body from the head in the form of a hump on the dorsal side.

Appearance

Artificially bred fish has all the colors of the rainbow. Most often, juicy orange and red specimens are sold in pet stores. They also come in cream color. South Asian breeders claim that the fry have a gray-black coloration, which is replaced by bright colors within five months. Body length, as a rule, does not exceed 25 cm and depends on the size of the aquarium. There are also individuals painted with several colors at once, like natural cichlids.

The older the aquarium parrot fish, the photo of which is presented in the review, becomes, the duller its scales become. In order to slow down the process of fading, breeders recommend feeding your pet a special food with a lot of carotene. Also, bright lighting in the aquarium room can be the culprit for dull colors. It is advisable to purchase a light bulb with a power of 0.3-0.5 watts. There are about a dozen subspecies of parrotfish, which differ from each other in the shape of the fins and the color of the scales.

Sexual dimorphism in artificially obtained organisms is weakly expressed. It is possible to determine an aquarium parrot fish as a female only after waiting for the spawning period and the appearance of an external organ called the ovipositor (short and wide tube). Males, in turn, are endowed with a narrow and sharp spermatic tube.

Lifestyle

Despite the aboveanatomical deviations, in the hands of a sensitive and attentive owner, an aquarium parrot fish will become a unique treasure. Caring gives her immeasurable energy and lasting he alth. In decent conditions, a unique creature lives for about 10 years or longer.

Aquarium parrots have a playful and cheerful disposition. The fish joyfully react to the hand stuck in the water, which wants to stroke them. They are able to recognize the one who gives them food, and at the sight of their owner, they begin to spin in the aquarium closer to the person.

Reproduction

Aquarium parrotfish are sterile in most cases, like other interspecific hybrids. However, there is evidence of the successful fertilization of eggs by the male acara and the crossing of the female with Cichlasoma cyanoguttatum. Fish will only spawn if they are in good conditions.

The behavior of females and males is characterized by a sense of affection, thanks to which they form permanent pairs. The craving for mating and reproduction is manifested at an increased water temperature (slightly above 25 ° C). The process begins with red parrots intensively constructing nests by digging deep holes.

Preparing the aquarium

A mobile fish needs a wide space where it can easily swim. The aquarium must hold at least 200 liters of liquid. The presence of a current in the tank is desirable (it is created using a special pump), because cichlids live in running water.

Maintaining an aquarium parrot fish is impossible withoutcompressor or other device that can fully provide the animal with oxygen. Maintained water temperature should be 22-25 ° C with a pH hardness of 6.5-7.5. The owner of the fish must change approximately 50% of the liquid once a week. The water must be fresh. Floating parrots can easily jump out of aquariums of any size, so it is advisable to cover the container with a glass lid.

To the presence or absence of plants, the fish can be said to be indifferent. Representatives of this species love to build nests. As a building material, they will primarily use decorative flora. The aquarium should be equipped with a sufficient amount of soil in which the pet can dig holes of various depths, thereby significantly changing the relief. The soil should be chosen in a dark shade, since such a background will once again emphasize the unique appearance of the animal. The dwelling of the fish can be equipped using stones, non-sharp snags and various shelters. However, many aquarists share their successful cichlid experience with some plants, including Echinodorus, Anubias, and Cryptocoryne.

Care and maintenance

Aquarium parrot fish cannot be called gourmets, because the colorful pet can eat both live and dry food. Nevertheless, floating pellets and bloodworms are considered the main delicacies. Specialized he althy food Red Parrot (manufactured by Tetra) is created taking into account the anatomical individuality of the aquariumparrot fish (primarily for the oral cavity). Also, this food contains carotenoids that can preserve the color of the animal.

A balanced and varied diet is the key to a long and happy existence of fish. Some individuals have gastronomic preferences. For example, one red parrot needs plant foods, while the other needs protein.

Don't buy loose food. Before buying, you need to make sure of its freshness and shelf life. Caring aquarists prepare homemade food for their pets (mixes, minced meat, etc.). Specialized sources contain many useful and varied recipes.

The most common cichlid diseases

Aquarium parrotfish have stable immunity, but if an infection has occurred, it is quite difficult to diagnose and treat. The reason for the appearance of dark spots in most cases is due to low water quality (exceeding the norm of nitrate content) or a stressful condition that occurs due to the lack of shelters. Changing the fluid with the above points taken into account will gradually eliminate the problem.

The appearance of white grains, visually resembling semolina, is a sign of ichthyophthyroidism. In the fight against this disease, Sera costapur has proven to be the most effective remedy. To start therapy, you need to change 1/3 of the water, siphon the soil and clean the filter. Since Sera costapur tends to decompose in the light, it must be poured into aquarium water at night. Quantitymedication depends on the volume of the container. The agent must be infused daily, after changing 30% of the water, until the traces of ichthyophthyroidism completely disappear. On average, treatment lasts no more than a week. At this time, the amount of food consumed is slightly reduced.

If the aquarium parrot fish has neighbors, the treatment is carried out with half doses. This is especially true of rasboras, platidoras, cardinals, tetras and others. In this case, the duration of treatment is increased to two weeks.

Diseases that affect the digestive organs are effectively eliminated by metronidazole. When the swim bladder is broken, the fish turns upside down. The cause of the disease is most often malnutrition. Usually the problem is eliminated if red parrots are given shelled pea seeds for some time. Other less common parasites are skin flukes, worms, bacterial and fungal infections.

Aquarium neighbors

This species is endowed with peacefulness, so it will be able to get along with the same non-conflict brethren. However, it is not recommended to add individuals less than 5 cm to parrots (for example, gracilis, neon), which they can simply swallow, mistaking for food. Excellent compatibility of aquarium fish-parrots is observed with:

• large barbs;
• labeo;
• arovani;
• black knives;
• medium and large catfish (Siamese algae eater, ancistrus, thoracatum);
• South American cichlids;
• representatives of the haracin family.

Ocean Parrotfish

Bright representatives of this family live in areas with coral reefs and almost never leave their limits. The length of some individuals exceeds one meter. The body of large parrotfish can surprise with its bright and extremely colorful scales.

Their name justifies not only the coloration, but also the structure of the so-called beak. A large number of teeth are densely located on the outside of the jaw. Since parrot fish feed not only on mollusks, but also on coral polyps, this structure of the oral cavity allows them to scrape algae even from the surface of the stone. In the tropical zone of the Indian and Pacific Oceans are among the most common species of animals.