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Python Island – Pundamilia Nyererei

python_island

Common name: Python Island

Scientific name: Pundamilia Nyererei

Average Adult Fish Size: 7.5cm / 3 inches, but other color variants may reach 12cm / 5 inches

Place of Origin: Lake Victoria

Typical Tank setup: Rocky Victoria tank

Recommended Minimum Aquarium Capacity: 120 litre /  30 gallon

Compatibility: Mildly aggressive. Best kept with other Victorians of the same size.

Temperature:  24-26 Deg C  / 74-78 Deg F

Water chemistry: pH 7.2 – 8.6

Feeding: Carnivorous and feed mainly on insects and zooplankton in the wild. Feed spirulina-based flake food or the appropriate sized pellet. Frozen or fresh brine shrimp can be fed regularly.

Sexing: Males are definitely more colorful and almost always larger than females, but sub-dominant juvenile males can be confused with females. Males will have the brilliant reds, yellows, and sometimes blues with black barring from head to tail. Females are much less attractive as they have very little color in their bodies. I have seen where there is just a little yellow tint in the fins and the bodies are a dull shade of gray with the barring. To accurately sex them venting is best.

Breeding: Substrate spawner. Similar breeding characteristics to most other African Cichlid mouthbrooders.  Fry readily accept finely crushed flake food or baby brine shrimp (bbs) and will quickly grow to 2.5cm / 1 inch in size if properly fed and water parameters are kept correct.

Additional Information: One of the most colorful of all Victorian Lake cichlids.