Orchid Fridmani
Pseudochromis fridmani
| Stock | Variations | Price | Quantity |
|---|
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Full guarantee terms →Ships Monday – Thursday for next-day arrival at your nearest FedEx Hold location — typically ready by 9 AM. We monitor every delivery.
Shipping details →
Monday – Friday 8 AM – 9 PM
Saturday 12 PM – 4 PM
Sunday 12 PM – 9 PM
Healthy, stable animals from vetted suppliers — inspected before packing, shipped overnight. Decades of experience built this model so we can deliver premium livestock at 30%+ less than you'd pay elsewhere.
| Care Level | Easy |
|---|---|
| Temperament | Semi-Aggressive |
| Reef Safe | Yes |
| Functional Benefit | Pest Control |
| Diet Type | Carnivore |
| Mininum Tank Size | 30 gallons |
| Max Size | 3 inches |
| Temperature | 72–78°F |
| pH Range | 8.1–8.4 |
| Specific Gravity | 1.022–1.025 |
The Orchid Fridmani (Pseudochromis fridmani) is a small Red Sea dottyback known for its solid lavender-purple body and a fine dark line through the eye.
It naturally works rockwork and overhangs and may help reduce nuisance hitchhikers such as small bristleworms.
What You’ll Observe:
- Short, quick dashes from a favorite cave to grab food from the water column
- Regular “patrol loops” along the same section of rockwork and ledges
- More open swimming once it has settled in and learned the tank’s routine
- Fast, accurate strikes at meaty foods at feeding time
Provide a rockscape with multiple tight caves so it can choose a home base and still have alternate retreats.
Offer small meaty foods like mysis, finely chopped seafood, and quality frozen blends, and supplement with sinking pellets once it recognizes them as food.
If you plan to keep more than one dottyback, introduce them together so they can establish shelters from day one.
Is it normal for an Orchid Fridmani to hide for several days after introduction?
Yes—many spend the first stretch staying deep in the rockwork, then show up more consistently once they’ve chosen a sleeping spot and learned your feeding schedule.
Can it be kept as a pair?
Often, yes. Many hobbyists have the best results when both are introduced at the same time and given plenty of separate caves to choose from.
Will it coexist with a Royal Gramma or other purple cave-dwelling fish?
It depends on the individual fish and the tank layout. In many setups, keeping only one “purple cave fish” per area (or providing clearly separated cave zones) leads to smoother day-to-day behavior.
Do Orchid Fridmani jump?
They can when startled or during sudden changes, so a well-fitted lid or screen top helps keep them in the aquarium.
Why can they be hard to net once they’ve picked a cave?
They learn the rockwork quickly and retreat into tight crevices. Planning ahead with a fish trap (or temporarily removing a single “home” rock) is often more effective than chasing with a net.
Shipped with pure oxygen and temperature control so it arrives stress-free and ready to eat.
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