Krib Maturity?

[krib_chick]

Hi again. My teenage kribs I guess I could call them are about 5 months old and I have them in a 55 gal. I have noticed pairs starting to form. What age will they start to breed? When I got the parents back in February I had no clue how old they were but they were almost full size and laid their first batch about 2 weeks after I got them. I am just concerned that I may have pairs laying eggs with all the other kribs in the tank. I have the parents in their own 10 gal and they do ok but I have approx 50 baby kribs in the 55 gal plus some cats and a pleco. Thanks!

Shari

[Cichlid Jeans]

I've had variable experience with kribs: some bred at about 1 1/2 inches in length, some not until they reached about 2 1/2 inches. Male development seems delayed compared to females: males didn't show much interest in fatherhood until 2 inches.

If your kribs are an inch or so, I suspect your LFS will be delighted to get them. Since kribs can be added to reasonably sized community tanks, they sell well.

Who knows, you may recover as much as a tenth of what you've put into room and board for them. :roll: