Albino Dragon Blood Peacock Cichlid (Aulonocara sp.)

Choose a man-made peacock strain with a soft coral glow

The Albino Dragon Blood Peacock is a colour strain of peacock cichlid that people have created in aquariums. It has a pale peach-pink body with a fine pearly sheen on every scale, a stronger coral-orange flush over the face and gill covers, a red eye, and long fins washed with lavender-blue and edged in orange. If you want a pale, glowing centrepiece for a hard-water Malawi aquarium, the Albino Dragon Blood Peacock is one of the softest-coloured peacocks available.

It is important to know what you are buying. This is a man-made strain, not a wild fish from Lake Malawi. Aquarium Glaser records that Dragon Blood, Fire Fish, O and OB peacocks were all created by cross-breeding peacock cichlids with other Lake Malawi cichlids, and that there are now countless lines under as many names. For that reason the fish is sold as Aulonocara sp., with no species name. Its care follows the wild peacocks it was bred from: Seriously Fish profiles eight Aulonocara, every one of them endemic to Lake Malawi in East Africa.

Understand the name on the label

Browse our wider range of Aulonocara peacock cichlids to compare wild-type peacocks with the aquarium strains.

Know exactly what you receive

One purchase supplies one live Albino Dragon Blood Peacock at 4–5 cm. That is a young fish, well short of the adult size, and its colour will strengthen as it grows; the Maidenhead Aquatics database notes that hybrid peacock colour improves with age. Sex is not chosen or guaranteed. Adult males grow larger, carry more colour and develop longer, more pointed dorsal and anal fins.

The photographs show the strain, not the individual you will receive. Aquarium Glaser points out that hardly any two of these hybrid peacocks look exactly the same, so expect some difference in the depth of pink, the amount of orange on the face and the colour of the fins.

Plan the group before you order

• Peacock-style harem: Seriously Fish advises one male with four to six females for Aulonocara in most aquariums.
• Mixed Malawi community: OATA recommends groups of at least 15 Malawi cichlids, slightly overcrowded, with more females than males of each kind, to spread aggression.
• Growing on: buying several 4–5 cm fish together lets them settle as a group and gives you a better chance of a balanced mix of sexes.

Before you order, read our delivery and Live Arrival Guarantee information and make sure the aquarium is fully matured.

Plan the aquarium around a 12–15 cm adult

Sources give similar adult sizes. Aquarium Glaser says Dragon Blood-type peacocks grow 10–15 cm, the Maidenhead Aquatics database gives 12 cm for hybrid peacocks, and Practical Fishkeeping gives about 12.5 cm for males of a pink-eyed strain. Plan for a solid fish of 12–15 cm.

For the aquarium, Seriously Fish recommends a base of at least 120 × 45 cm, about 243 litres, for Aulonocara stuartgranti, a typical peacock of the same size. Practical Fishkeeping recommends 120 cm and 240 litres for pink-eyed peacocks, and OATA advises at least 200 litres for a reasonable Malawi community, adding that larger tanks are more stable. A 120 cm tank of around 240 litres is therefore the starting point.

Run a three-step space check

1. Measure the base: at least 120 cm long and 45 cm from front to back.
2. Count the adults: add up every fish at its adult size, not its sale size. Our stocking calculator helps you see whether the plan fits.
3. Check the long-term group: one male per peacock colour, and plenty of females or a full Malawi community around him.

Place the aquarium away from draughts, radiators, direct sunlight and constant noise or vibration, as OATA advises, and run a heater all year.

Build a sand-and-rock layout with open feeding ground

Peacocks feed over sand. Seriously Fish describes wild Aulonocara living where rocky shores give way to open sand with scattered rocks, and advises fine sand with rock piles that leave open spaces. Coarse gravel or pebbles can stop them feeding naturally, may damage their gill filaments and can be swallowed.

OATA recommends coral sand or a similar substrate, because it helps to buffer the water, and complex rockwork that creates territories and breaks up lines of sight. The Maidenhead Aquatics database adds that rockwork must stay stable if the fish dig, and that peacocks show better colour over a darker substrate. Only the hardiest plants, fixed to rock or wood, are likely to survive the digging.

Divide the floor by function

Set the rocks on the glass before adding the sand, so digging cannot undermine them. Our cichlid care guide covers layouts for African cichlids in more detail.

Keep hard, alkaline water steady

Malawi cichlids need hard, alkaline water. OATA gives 23–27°C, pH 8.0–8.6, general hardness of 12–18 dGH and carbonate hardness of 10–15 dKH for Malawi cichlids. The Maidenhead Aquatics database gives 22–26°C and pH 7.5–8.5 for hybrid peacocks, and Seriously Fish gives 23–29°C, pH 7.5–9.0 and 10–25 dGH for A. stuartgranti. The values that satisfy all three are shown below.

Match your tap water to the range

Water hardness varies across the UK, so check your water company's postcode report before you start. Where the supply is soft, coral sand in the substrate or a mesh bag of coral sand or aragonite in the filter, as the Maidenhead Aquatics database suggests, helps hold the pH and hardness up. Treat every water change with a tap water conditioner to remove chlorine or chloramine. Our water matcher compares your readings with this range, and our water chemistry guide explains each test.

Filter heavily and change water every week

Seriously Fish describes Aulonocara as very sensitive to falling water quality and to sudden chemical changes, and recommends heavy filtration in a biologically mature aquarium. OATA recommends an oversized filter and strong aeration to keep oxygen levels up. Our guide to aquarium filtration helps you choose one.

Follow a weekly routine

1. Test ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH before any maintenance.
2. Change part of the water: OATA gives at least 25% once a week, while Seriously Fish recommends 30–50% weekly for peacocks. Choose a figure in that range and keep to it.
3. Match the new water to the aquarium temperature and hardness before it goes in, to avoid sudden changes.
4. Siphon waste from the open sand.
5. Rinse filter media only in water removed from the tank, never under the tap.

Feed a sand-sifter small meals it can find

Peacocks are bottom feeders. Seriously Fish explains that they take mouthfuls of sand, sift out anything edible and pass the rest out through the gills, and that they also hover just above the bottom, detecting tiny movements with enlarged sensory pores on the head. FishBase records wild peacocks eating sand-dwelling invertebrates. The pink-eyed form needs extra thought, because Practical Fishkeeping notes that pink-eyed fish have impaired vision and must be given enough food.

Build one measured meal

• Staple: a fine, good-quality sinking cichlid pellet or granule.
• Plant content: some dried food containing vegetable matter such as spirulina, as Seriously Fish recommends.
• Frozen foods: thawed bloodworm, brine shrimp or mysis a few times a week.
• Placement: scatter food over the open sand in more than one spot so this fish can find its share.
• Portion: only what the fish clear within a few minutes, as OATA advises.

Sources differ on how often: OATA suggests feeding twice a day, while Seriously Fish prefers three or four smaller portions a day to one large meal. Either works if each portion is small and nothing is left to rot.

Introduce it calmly to a mature aquarium

Only add the fish when ammonia and nitrite read zero. OATA's method is to switch off the aquarium lights, float the sealed bag for 10 minutes, add small amounts of aquarium water to the bag over up to 20 minutes, then release the fish with as little bag water as possible. Our guide on how to acclimatise new fish takes you through each step. OATA also notes that rearranging the rockwork can help to reduce aggression when new fish go in.

Use a first-week checkpoint plan

Choose calm Malawi companions it can compete with

Seriously Fish describes peacocks as relatively peaceful, but males are aggressive towards fish with a similar colour pattern, most mbuna are too boisterous for them, and most Aulonocara can hybridise. OATA recommends keeping Malawi cichlids only with other Malawi cichlids or with Synodontis catfish, which also live in the lake. Aquarium Glaser warns that Dragon Blood-type hybrids can develop a lot of temperament, and Practical Fishkeeping advises against aggressive tank mates for pink-eyed peacocks, suggesting Placidochromis electra or a group of its own kind.

Screen each companion

If you like this colour, compare it with the deeper red Red Albino Peacock Cichlid, the Albino Firefish Peacock Cichlid and the Red Dragon Peacock Cichlid, but choose only one male of each similar colour. Check a planned mix with our tank mates tool, read our Lake Malawi cichlid buying guide, or browse all Malawi cichlids and the Lake Malawi and Victoria cichlids category.

Watch its health and act early

OATA lists the signs of a healthy Malawi cichlid: clear, bright eyes, undamaged fins, intact scales with no ulcers or lumps, normal swimming and steady breathing. A red eye is normal for this fish; cloudiness or swelling is not.

Pair each sign with an action

Breed it responsibly

Peacocks are maternal mouthbrooders. Seriously Fish describes the female taking the eggs into her mouth and brooding for up to four weeks, usually without eating; OATA gives 21–40 days for Malawi cichlids in general. Once the fry are released and have used their yolk, Seriously Fish suggests newly hatched brine shrimp; young peacocks can usually be sexed at around four months. Practical Fishkeeping discourages cross-breeding because it muddies the genetics of wild species, so keep this strain away from pure Aulonocara species and never pass its young on as a wild peacock.

Answer Albino Dragon Blood Peacock buying questions

What is an Albino Dragon Blood Peacock?

It is a man-made colour strain of peacock cichlid, not a wild species. Dragon Blood peacocks were created in captivity by cross-breeding peacocks with other Lake Malawi cichlids, so the fish is sold as Aulonocara sp. without a species name. The albino form has red eyes and a pale peach-pink body with a coral-orange face. It does not occur in Lake Malawi.

Is it a true albino?

Not strictly. Practical Fishkeeping explains that pink-eyed peacocks which still carry pink or red colour in the body are better described as erythristic. The trade calls them albino because of the red eye, and we keep the trade name so you can find the fish.

How big does an Albino Dragon Blood Peacock grow?

Plan for a fish of 12–15 cm. Aquarium Glaser gives 10–15 cm for Dragon Blood-type peacocks, the Maidenhead Aquatics fish database gives 12 cm for hybrid peacocks and Practical Fishkeeping gives about 12.5 cm for males of a pink-eyed strain. Males grow larger than females.

What size aquarium does it need?

A tank with a base of at least 120 × 45 cm, which is about 240 litres. Seriously Fish gives that base for Aulonocara stuartgranti, Practical Fishkeeping recommends 120 cm and 240 litres for pink-eyed peacocks, and OATA advises at least 200 litres for a Malawi community.

What water does it need?

Hard, alkaline, very clean water. The range that satisfies OATA, Seriously Fish and the Maidenhead Aquatics database together is 23–26°C, pH 8.0–8.5 and 12–18 dGH, with ammonia and nitrite at zero and nitrate no more than 20 mg/l above your tap water.

Can it live with other peacock cichlids?

With care. Seriously Fish notes that peacock males chase fish with a similar colour pattern, so avoid a second pale or pink peacock male. Most Aulonocara can hybridise, so do not keep it with a pure species you plan to breed.

Does the red eye affect how it lives?

Practical Fishkeeping says pink-eyed fish have impaired vision. Make sure it gets its share at feeding time, spread sinking food over the sand and avoid aggressive or very fast tank mates.

How many fish come with one purchase?

One live Albino Dragon Blood Peacock at 4–5 cm. Sex is not chosen or guaranteed, and the full colour develops as the fish grows.

Consult the care references

• Practical Fishkeeping: New Aulonocara, a man-made hybrid? — man-made pink-eyed peacocks: why they are erythristic rather than true albinos, their vision and suitable company.
• Aquarium Glaser: Aulonocara 'Dragon Blood' — how Dragon Blood, Fire Fish, O and OB peacocks were created, their size and their variable temperament.
• Maidenhead Aquatics fish database (fishkeeper.co.uk): Hybrid Peacock — hybrid peacock strains (strawberry, calico/OB, red): origin, size, water, group structure, diet and breeding.
• Seriously Fish: Aulonocara stuartgranti — size, aquarium base, water range, sand substrate, feeding behaviour, compatibility, sexing and mouthbrooding.
• Seriously Fish: genus Aulonocara — the Aulonocara species profiled, their trade names and the enlarged sensory canals that give the genus its name.
• FishBase: Aulonocara stuartgranti — maximum length, temperature, distribution, wild diet and conservation status of a typical peacock.
• OATA: How to look after African Malawi cichlids — UK guidance on Malawi cichlid water values, group size, tank size, filtration, feeding, acclimatisation and health signs.
• Tropical Fish Co delivery policy — current dispatch days and Live Arrival Guarantee terms.