Orange chromide
| Orange chromide | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Orange chromide from the Bharathapuzha River, India | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Cichlidae |
| Subfamily: | Etroplinae |
| Genus: |
Pseudetroplus Bleeker, 1862 |
| Species: | P. maculatus |
| Binomial name | |
|
Pseudetroplus maculatus (Bloch, 1795) |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Etroplus maculatus Bloch, 1795 |
|
Etroplus maculatus Bloch, 1795
The orange chromide (Pseudetroplus maculatus, syn. Etroplus maculatus) is a species of cichlid fish that is endemic to freshwater and brackish streams, lagoons and estuaries in southern India and Sri Lanka. It is also known as pallathi (Malayalam: പള്ളത്തി) in Malayalam. The species is popular with fishkeeping hobbyists, and is kept frequently in aquariums. The species is part of the family Cichlidae and is included in subfamily Etroplinae. The orange chromide reaches a length of up to 8 cm (3.1 in).
The species co-occurs throughout its range with the green chromide (Etroplus suratensis). Orange chromides prey on the eggs and larvae of the green chromide and also act as a "cleaner fish" removing parasites from the larger green chromides in a cleaning symbiosis. The species also feeds on zooplankton and algae.
Young orange chromides feed on mucous coating of their parents; this is essential for the small fry survival. During the feeding period, the parent fish mucous glands increase 34%.
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