Flowerhorn cichlid

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Flowerhorn cichlids are ornamental aquarium fish noted for their vivid colors and the distinctively shaped heads for which they are named. Their head protuberance, or kok, is formally termed a "nuchal hump." Like blood parrot cichlids, they are man-made hybrids that do not exist in nature. First developed in Malaysia and Taiwan, they are now kept by fish hobbyists worldwide. Some critics have questioned the impact of flowerhorn breeding programs.

Types of Flowerhorns By Karen Frisch, eHow Contributor

An exotic fish, the flowerhorn is a hybrid engineered by man in the early 1990s. Originating in Malaysia and Taiwan, flowerhorns were created by cross-breeding cichlids from Central America. The four main types are Zhen Zhu, Golden Monkey, Kamfa, and Golden Base or Faders. Various strains exist within these types. Cross-breeding has made flowerhorns available worldwide.

Zhen Zhu

Identification

Zhen Zhou or pearl flowerhorns are the most common breed of Flowerhorn available in the US. The Zhen Zhu name and breed has served as sort of a 'catch-all' breed name used for identifying Flowerhorns. In order to review the Zhen Zhu breed effectively there are several factors that need to be kept in mind to further narrow this wide category and appropriatley so as different strains of Zhen Zhu differ in appearance greatly. Two important factors are country of origin and timeline. ZZs from different countries can vary greatly as well as modern strains differing from classic strains greatly.