# blood parrots



## Ronstopable

I recently bought some blood parrots to go in my 55 cause my fiance liked them and I wanted fish for my new tank that was at that time empty except for decorations. I then read that they are not really cichlids but hybrids. I'm very disappointed! I dont know what else to keep with them. I also have a 90 gal. that I am getting ready to stock with Tanganyika cichlids but am not sure if I could add bp's to gobies cyps and shellies. If you know of any good tankmates for juvenile BP's please let me know. I would hate to have to get rid of them since I just got them but I dont want a tank full of fish I'm not interested in keeping. If I could incorporate other cichlids into the tank I wouldnt mind having them though. thanks for the help guys.


----------



## Number6

Blood parrots are still cichlids... they are just malformed hybrid cichlids. They end up as these little balloon shaped "pet" cichlids that many people like. They are not descended from Malawi cichlids, so you are posting in the wrong section. They are descended from Central American cichlids.

If you are posting in this area of the forum because you are wondering about Malawi tank mates in the 55g tank, then yes... IMHO there are Malawi cichlids that can be mixed in with BPs. There are many who will not agree, so take my suggestion as that of a rule bender, not the normal recommendations. With that aside, I have seen many a "wet pet" setup of true yellow labs, BPs, and perhaps some other fish like giant Danios as dithers and movement. I say true yellow labs as you must be careful to avoid the many yellow lab-hybrids out there as they could prove to aggressive for BPs.

I hope that helps.


----------



## srook23

I used to keep BP's and they are not all that aggressive IMO and they have trouble eating due to their very small mouth. IMO most africans are far too aggressive for them.


----------



## liquid134

i have a red blood parrot mixed with african cichlids, firemouth, and pleco in a 30gallon long....


----------



## Number6

liquid134 said:


> i have a red blood parrot mixed with african cichlids, firemouth, and pleco in a 30gallon long....


 there are many reasons why that is not a good idea... my guess is that you have mostly juvenile cichlids...


----------



## liquid134

yea, there all juvenile's but i did get the parrot fish from my grandpa... and he has had this fish since it was little, with a couple other full size cichlids (africans) and a clown loach in a 30 tall.... and has no issues with dead fish or anything.


----------



## Ronstopable

Sorry thought this was just miscellaneous tank discussion. I wasnt sure where they were descended from that's why I posted it here. I was wondering about good African tank mates though. Could you tell me how to tell a true yellow lab from a hybrid? I'm new to keeping cichlids so it's not always the easiest thing for me to pick out the different species. I have 4 parrots now. 1 jumped out of the tank today while I was at work. And mine do seem to have a hard time eating. I'm feeding them baby sized pellets should I be feeding them something else? How other fish can I keep with 4 parrots in a 55? Should I still use the 1 inch per gallon rule? Thanks again and sorry about all the questions.


----------



## Ronstopable

or what about some Tanganyika fish like Xeno's or Gobies or Cyps since they are usually less agressive?


----------



## Number6

Ronstopable said:


> or what about some Tanganyika fish like Xeno's or Gobies or Cyps since they are usually less agressive?


 I can't decide whether it is just my taste that is cringing or if that is truly a bad idea... but I'll go with my gut and say no, that doesn't sound like a mix that would likely turn out to be compatible.


----------



## CutieSusieQ

Ronstopable said:


> Sorry thought this was just miscellaneous tank discussion. I wasnt sure where they were descended from that's why I posted it here. I was wondering about good African tank mates though. Could you tell me how to tell a true yellow lab from a hybrid? I'm new to keeping cichlids so it's not always the easiest thing for me to pick out the different species. I have 4 parrots now. 1 jumped out of the tank today while I was at work. And mine do seem to have a hard time eating. I'm feeding them baby sized pellets should I be feeding them something else? How other fish can I keep with 4 parrots in a 55? Should I still use the 1 inch per gallon rule? Thanks again and sorry about all the questions.


I used to have Blood Red Parrots in my 55 gallon a few years ago. I didn't know they were mistreated deformed hybrids until after I bought them and started researching what the best thing for them to eat was. Deformed or not, it didn't take long for me to fall in love with their shy behavior! ... But yeah, they do have a hard time eating b/c of the way their mouth is shaped. Plus, their mouths do not work; they chew in their throats like goldfish which I didn't know until after I owned them. I used to feed mine OSI Blood Red Parrot Pellets (but was told New Life Spectrum has something even better). Anything with similar ingredients will work just fine. Proteins high in B-carotene will promote good coloring http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/p ... atid=12144 I also fed them frozen shrimp or krill. I can't remember which one, but it's whichever one helps with their color (it was pinkish). They will eat from your hand!!! It's very cool! In fact, that's the ONLY way mine ever would eat! I had my spoiled, lol. I would soak the pellets in water for a few mins (they were medium size pellets) and then I'd stick a softened pellet to the tip of my index finger and they'd come to the top of the water and grab it off my fingertip. I also hand fed them the frozen food. Just throwing the food into the tank is not ideal for BRP b/c of their mouths.

4 parrots in a 55 gallon is almost maxing out your tank, b/c they can get rather big (some up to 10 inches when full grown). You do not want to add any fish that will pick your parrot fish to death b/c they can't really defend themselves that great. Some people say they are aggressive, but I 100% disagree. All of mine were very sweet and very easy to love. They are commonly kept with Severums and Firemouths. Large peaceful fish, such as Bala Sharks and Silver Dollars may work as well...but do not add anything small fish like Neons b/c your Parrots will think they are food!!. Parrots seem to like rocks and caves, so make sure you offer them some hiding places in your tank. And if you do add other fish in your Parrot tank, you will definitely have to hand feed them b/c they can't compete for food against other fish. I strongly discourage buying a common pleco (which is what a lot of people seem to do who own Parrots b/c of all the wasted food). A common pleco will outgrow that 55 gallon within a year!

What color is your Blood Parrots now?? Some of them are dyed when they are juvies to make them more attractive to buyers. If they are dyed, be warned this color will fade!! But feeding them the right food will turn them bright orange/red as they grow older. Here's some more info. http://cichlidresearch.com/parrot.html


----------



## Ronstopable

I wish I would have read your post a couple of hours earlier. I did buy a common pleco even though I wanted an albino BN because that's all my LFS had at the time and there was a lot of wasted food. Ohh well you live and you learn. I'm sure a lot of times in this hobby I'm going to have "learning experiences" at least with this one no fish were lost. Mine were dyed when I bought them but I knew they were dyed and was already expecting the color to fade/change. They are juveniles right now. only about one an a half inches long. I added 6 Giant Danio as well to the tank that are also maybe an inch and a half at the most. I know eventually all these fish will overstock this size tank but I have other that they can be moved to eventually. I wanted to try them as dither fish since the BP's are so shy. They do seem to be a little aggressive though, especially towards each other. I'm guessing this is for territory reasons. I can tell I will have to add a little more shelter since the four of them are fighting for three caves. Any other tips would be great. Also maybe some possible larger tankmates that would be good in a 125+ when they get full sized.


----------



## lloyd

you can best reduce fish fights by eliminating caves-adding caves only encourages them to bicker about them.


----------



## CutieSusieQ

Ronstopable said:


> I wish I would have read your post a couple of hours earlier. I did buy a common pleco even though I wanted an albino BN because that's all my LFS had at the time and there was a lot of wasted food. Ohh well you live and you learn. I'm sure a lot of times in this hobby I'm going to have "learning experiences" at least with this one no fish were lost. Mine were dyed when I bought them but I knew they were dyed and was already expecting the color to fade/change. They are juveniles right now. only about one an a half inches long. I added 6 Giant Danio as well to the tank that are also maybe an inch and a half at the most. I know eventually all these fish will overstock this size tank but I have other that they can be moved to eventually. I wanted to try them as dither fish since the BP's are so shy. They do seem to be a little aggressive though, especially towards each other. I'm guessing this is for territory reasons. I can tell I will have to add a little more shelter since the four of them are fighting for three caves. Any other tips would be great. Also maybe some possible larger tankmates that would be good in a 125+ when they get full sized.


It will be awhile before the Pleco outgrows the 55. You will know when he is getting too big b/c he will start making more of a mess than he cleans up. I know because I too used to have one in my 55 gallon. Live and learn is exactly right!! Check out these pics of a common pleco. Yours won't get THAT massive b/c it lives in a tank, but it will get rather large.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f1 ... 589-2.html

http://www.tetra-fish.com/forums/showthread.php?p=94870

The common pleco and Parrots would be cool in the 125 with some of the large peaceful fish I mentioned in my other posting. I know they are not African Cichlids like you were originally wanting, but the Severums are really cool fish. Some people keep their Parrots with Oscars. Oscars are very messy fish just the Pleco will be once it gets bigger, so you will need overkill on your filtration. Oscars can be cool to watch though.

My 55 gallon is now an African Cichlid tank and I do have an albino BN in it. I bought him as a baby, but I had to mail order him. He is now about 3 inches and has lots of spikes sticking off his nose. He's really cool, lol.


----------



## wiseoldowl

I have a blood red parrot thats about 3 years old and about 8" long. Never in the time I've had
it has it ever had trouble eating. It eats from the surface the bottom and everywere in between.
It will eat anything even tank mates. I woke up about a month ago and it was swiming around 
with 2 inches of a 5 inch Farlowella catfish sticking out of its mouth. Its not shy in fact it rules
the tank pushing around two 8" jacks. It also has the most personality of any fish I've ever owned. If you like them thats what matters. Kind of like hairless cats different strokes for different folks.


----------



## CutieSusieQ

wiseoldowl said:


> I have a blood red parrot thats about 3 years old and about 8" long. Never in the time I've had
> it has it ever had trouble eating. It eats from the surface the bottom and everywere in between.
> It will eat anything even tank mates. I woke up about a month ago and it was swiming around
> with 2 inches of a 5 inch Farlowella catfish sticking out of its mouth. Its not shy in fact it rules
> the tank pushing around two 8" jacks. It also has the most personality of any fish I've ever owned. If you like them thats what matters. Kind of like hairless cats different strokes for different folks.


That's wild about your Parrot eating that catfish!! I know the ones I've owned in the past had a real small mouth. It was as if their mouths never opened or closed; there was just a narrow round-like hole there that never moved. I've read that they can starve to death b/c of this deformity (that's another reason I hand fed mine).

A common suggestion is that BRPs were first made by breeding the Midas Cichlid (Cichlasoma citrinellum) and the Redhead Cichlid (Cichlasoma synspilum). However, below is a list of every pair that I have seen suggested (I got this list from another website).

Severum (Heros severus) and the Midas Cichlid (Amphilophus citrinellus) or the Red Devil (Amphilophus labiatus)

Gold Severum (Cichlasoma severum) and Red Devil (Cichlasoma erythraeum)

Midas Cichlid (Cichlasoma citrinellum) and the Redhead Cichlid (Cichlasoma synspilum)

Severum (Heros severus) with the Red Devil (Cichlasoma erythraeum)

Red Devil (Cichlasoma erythraeum) +Gold Severum (Cichlasoma severum)

Red Devil (Cichlasoma erythraeum)+Green Severum (Cichlasoma severum)

Red Devil (Cichlasoma erythraeum)+Quetzel (Cichlasoma synspilum)

I've also read that depending on what they are crossed with can affect their ability to breed. Some can't.... but some can. So this difference in cross breeding could play a role in how one Parrot's mouth could be different than another.... I dunno. I'm no pro. I'm just guessing. 

I'm starting to miss my Parrot fish now, lol :wink:


----------



## kazelkich03

Because there are so many different types of parrots, it is often difficult to identify what is the kind or type of that parrot. I owned parrots before so I thought it wasn't nice to try to catch it, I don't know what type of parrot it is, tried looking everywhere but had no success searching.


----------

