keeping the albino pelvicachromis pulcher

[Emeraldsea]

I recently received an albino Pelvicachromis pulcher male, donated by someone who was heading off to Italy and had no one to care for her fish. She thought he was a goldfish, just like the others in the tank - that's about the extent of her fish knowledge. The goldfish didn't make it, but this little guy was hiding in the corner, just waiting for a better life.

He's a real looker, even if he is albino. I've noticed his eyes can darken, but they're usually a beautiful shade of red. I'll be getting him an albino female companion in a couple of weeks, courtesy of a local store that sells them. For now, he's enjoying the fresh air and sunshine on my balcony in his spacious new tank.

I managed to snap a few photos, but had to temporarily move him to a smaller container - these cichlids can be quite shy, as you know. I've named him Sammy, and as you can see from the pictures, his eyes can change color. In a couple of the photos, they're almost black, but the top one shows off his stunning red eyes.

[Snout]

He's indeed a pretty boy, isn't he? Glad he ended up in good hands, which is yours.

[infold]

I've never had the pleasure of seeing an albino Kribensis, or Pelvicachromis pulcher as you correctly put it, but I've always affectionately referred to them as "kruhbinz" - that's just how it was pronounced back then. They're definitely one of my favorite dwarf cichlids. I truly hope you're able to find a suitable mate for Sammy, it would be wonderful to see him thrive with a companion.

[Emeraldsea]

He's indeed a pretty boy, isn't he? Glad he ended up in good hands, which is yours.

Honestly, I still refer to them as kribensis. Guess old habits die hard.

[wandg]

I'd love to know more about Sammy - what's his age and size?

[graye]

I had a go at breeding some fish that were supposed to be albino P subocellatus about 20 years ago. Luckily, more than half the fry turned out to have normal colouring, which made it clear they were actually pulcher. I ended up getting rid of the albinos through an auction, but kept some pairs of the normally coloured ones for a while. To be honest, they weren't the most impressive compared to other pulcher I'd seen - the colouring just wasn't that great once they developed it.

They're nice fish, though - aside from the mix-up over the name, that is. I mean, Pelvicachromis kribensis is a different species altogether, but I suppose the importers 70 years ago got it wrong. Still, pulcher are up there among my favourite aquarium fish, just behind the real kribensis.

[Emeraldsea]

I'd love to know more about Sammy - what's his age and size?

About 4 inches.

graye said:

I bred some that were sold to me as albino P subocellatus, probably 20 years ago. Luckily, over half the fry had regular colouration, so I could see they were pulcher. I got rid of the albinos in an auction and kept pairs of the regular ones for a while, but compared to other pulcher around, they were no beauties. It wasn't a nice colour morph, once it had colour.

Nice fish though, other than the name confusion (Pelvicachromis kribensis is a different species, but importers 70 years ago made a mistake). It's one of my favourite aquarium fish, not far behind the real krib.

Usually, I prefer wild colours, but there's something about this albino that I just can't help but like.

[Emeraldsea]

Just added some new pictures of Sammy.