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Blood Parrot FishBloody Parrot ~ Blood Parrotfish ~ Jellybean Parrot
Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy Giannis Latest Reader Comment - See More I have 2 BP - Big Punk is a little over 8 years old and Meanie is 5 or 6. I used to have a school of 4 Angel Fish and the BP and Angel Fish co-existed very nicely... (more) Abril 2009-07-23 The Blood Parrot is just about the most curious result of cichlids interbreeding, and has created quite a stir in the aquarium hobby!It is not uncommon for cichlids to interbreed in a hobbyists aquarium. When they are in spawning mode, they will often respond to a fish of the opposite sex whether it is the same species or another fish of a closely related species. The Blood Parrot, also called the Bloody Parrot or Blood Parrotfish, are a unique hybrid fish. They do not occur in nature.
The Blood Parrots have a very small mouth and a roundish "balloon" shaped body. Perhaps they are called Parrotfish because their nose looks like a 'parrots' beak. They can be solid or have a "calico" patterning or blotching., are available in a variety of colors. They range from basic pale or bright yellows, to oranges and reds. Dyed fish sport purples, pinks, blues, and more colors. These are generally sold as the 'Jellybean Parrot' and 'Bumble Gum Parrot' though there are also names that describe them by their color such as 'Purple Parrot'. Then there are Blood Parrots described by their physical appearance such as the 'Love Heart Parrot' which has no tail fin. The Blood Parrots are a peaceful, shy fish that should not be kept with real aggressive tank mates. However, if you keep them in a community aquarium with similar sized fish, be aware that they can be territorial. They like an aquarium with lots of rock formations and caves for retreating and hiding. Plants are not essential though they do not harm them.
These fish should not be confused with the Parrot Cichlid Hoplarchus psittacus which is another freshwater cichlid from South American that is quite aggressive. There is also no relation to the saltwater Parrot Fish Callyodon fasciatus. For more Information on keeping this fish see:
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| Latest Comments |
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| I have 2 BP - Big Punk is a little over 8 years old and Meanie is 5 or 6. I used to have a school of 4 Angel Fish and the BP and Angel Fish co-existed very nicely (the last of the Angel died a few months ago, after about 7 years). Actually, the 6 of them banded together and attacked all new fish (I wasn't able to add any new fish except for catfish, whom they seem to leave alone). Big Punk is getting old and it's harder for him to eat now - my heart aches when I watch him trying to catch the food but miss - and Meanie would come and pushed him away as well. I wish there's something I can do to help him. Like many of you have pointed out, BP have great personalities and I never get bored of watching them - kissing, pushing, digging, moving gravels by the mouthful from one end of the tank to the other, etc. Amazing fish - I love them.
2009-07-23 |
| These fish are ace. They are just plain and simple funny shapes and have ace personalities, and are so cute. At the moment I have 2. Bubbles and peaches are in my 180 litre fluval vicenza aquarium with 2 festivum cichlids, 3 firemouth cichlids, 1 striped raphael catfish, and 2 plecos (1 gold spot and 1 large common). My tank has a mixture of live and fake plants and is well struted with driftwood, and I have a fluval 205 canister filter that is very good at keeping up with all the waste my big plec makes. My heater is kept constant at about 88 Fahrenheit and I have an airstone running all the time. Soon, probably this friday (10/7/09), I'm gonna add 1 or 2 more blood parrots, 3 kribensis cichlids, 2 keyhole cichlids, 2 angelfish, 1 gourami, and maybe maybe 2 discus and a few shoals of largish tetras or barbs (not tiger or tinfoils).
2009-07-07 |
| My parrot fish is guarding his cave, he is protecting eggs and won't come out to eat. The parrot fish will attack my hand.
2009-06-24 |
| I have had my blood parrot for over a year. We did a major change in the the tank over a month ago. All of our fish have adjusted well except my blood parrot. My blood parrot last week began laying on his side at the bottom of the tank. He still eats at every feeding but other than that he is lying at the bottom of the tank. Is there anything I can do to save him.
2009-06-09 |
| my office has two hybrid orange blood parrots. I feed them every day. They know exactly when I'm ready they even talk to me (joke). One of them appears to be sick not eating, not moving other than staying in a corner... whats up? If anyone know... it's kinda sad....
2009-06-03 |
| Some of the coolest comments: |
| I have two large blood parrots in a 75 gallon tank with 1 small gold nugget pleco. I have a bare bottom tank with lots of drift wood which they both love. I have 2 eheim 2217 filters with spong pre filters. I do 2 weekly 35 gallon water changes with the tap water filter. My ph- 6.5 gh- 35ppm dh- 35ppm. ammonia-0 nitrites-0 and nitrates-o. Temp-80 degrees. I ALSO USE CHEMI-PURE which I change once a month. I have dedicated this tank only to these two blood parrots. Its like having two dogs, they greet me when I come home from work, they are really cool. I feed them frozen blood worms, parrot pellets, discuss pellets, and some high protein flake. It would be cool if I had a male and female but I have never seen any eggs. The biggest secret is the water changes, filters only play a small part. joe h 2009-09-28 |
| Blood parrots do fine with larger community fish. Due to them not being able to bite to defend themselves, I would not put them in a tank with aggressive fish as they can not defend themselves. All they can do is a lot of pushing. Another mild cichlid should be OK such as the Severum, tho.
"Bubblegum" parrots are those that have been dyed. "Jellybean" parrots are the off- spring of your female blood parrot with a convict. Jellybeans are often mistakenly referred to as dyed which is incorrect information. Male blood parrots are infertile so if you have a pair of BP and they spawn, don't get exicted. The eggs will not live. The female can have fry with a few other male cichlids, tho.
Parrots can get Blood Spot Disease from poor water conditions. I do 50% water changes in all my fish tanks including that of my blood parrots. Some parrots also get black skin pigmentation so do not confuse this with the black spot disease. 2009-06-27 |
| Comments Dr Jungle REALLY Likes to Hear! |
| This web-site was most helpful in answering many questions I have had about my two blood red parrot fish. They, I can't tell which one, have been spawning, three times over the last several months, fiercely guarding the eggs and then eaten them. Our local pet store said I was nuts, that they didn't lay eggs or breed. I will research even further to learn what a non-hybrid is.
Thank you. 2008-02-23 |
| We have five Jelly Bean Parrots and One Sweet Heart Parrot fish. They range from about 3" to 6". We have had them for about two years and love them very much! The fish are part of the family and each have a specific mood that fits right in with us! They enjoy a 55 Gallon tank with plenty of logs and rocks to peek out of when our nephew stops by! This site has been very helpful in maintaining a clean and healthy environment for our little babys. Thanks for the great advice through the years!!!! 2007-11-09 |
| I have six, rapidly growing Parrots in my 55 gal. tank.
Two orange, one pink 'Candy' Parrot, one red 'Heart' Parrot (really is shaped like a Valentine) and two fellows that started out green with black that have "morphed" into peach-colored with touches of black.!
Very interested in seeing what they will eventually look like!
So far, no pairing noted..which is fine with me as I have 7 fancy veil-type juvenile Angels in another tank that I'm hoping will pair up and spawn.
THANKS for this site..There is so much to learn about these fish..and so little information out there! 2006-10-09 |
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