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Contents
Overview
The jewel cichlid comes from rivers and lakes in West Africa and is known for its looks: a deep red body sprinkled with electric-blue spots that glows even brighter when a pair gets ready to spawn. It is usually sold as Hemichromis bimaculatus, but many store fish are actually close relatives such as H. lifalili or H. guttatus, which need virtually the same care.
Jewels are smart, bold and show some of the most impressive parenting in the hobby. They are not community fish, though. Once they pair up they become seriously aggressive and will take on fish much larger than themselves. They suit keepers who want a tank built around one pair and enjoy watching real cichlid behavior.
Care and tank setup
Plan on roughly 55 gallons (200 liters) for a pair, with at least 40 inches (100 cm) of length. Floor space matters more than height because they claim territories. Water chemistry is flexible, from slightly acidic to slightly alkaline, but it must be clean and well filtered, since jewels dig and are messy eaters.
- Aquascape: fine sand, sturdy rocks set directly on the bottom glass, and driftwood forming caves and sight breaks.
- Plants: they uproot anything planted; use anubias and Java fern tied to decor.
- Tankmates: a single pair on its own is best. If you add others, choose robust, fast fish of similar size, never small tetras or shrimp.
- Common mistakes: keeping two males together, adding them to a small community tank, or rearranging rocks while they guard eggs.
A cycled tank, a heater and weekly 25-30% water changes are essential.
Feeding
Jewel cichlids are omnivores and easy to feed. Use a quality cichlid pellet as the staple and add frozen foods such as brine shrimp, mysis or bloodworms two or three times a week, plus some plant matter like spirulina flakes. Offer small portions once or twice a day that are eaten within a couple of minutes; leftovers foul the water quickly.
Breeding
Breeding is easy once you have a bonded pair, best obtained by raising a group of juveniles together. They lay hundreds of eggs on a cleaned flat stone, and both parents guard them devotedly before herding the free-swimming fry around the tank. Fry take newly hatched brine shrimp. While raising young the parents attack every other fish, so spawning in a shared tank usually ends in trouble.
Compatible tank mates
Species from our database that share water parameters, size and temperament with the Jewel cichlid. Calculated from the data in each profile.
Nerite snail Neritina natalensis 5 gal (20 L) · 72–82 °F (22–28 °C) 
Horned nerite snail Clithon corona 5 gal (20 L) · 72–82 °F (22–28 °C) 
Assassin snail Anentome helena 5 gal (20 L) · 72–82 °F (22–28 °C) 
Bladder snail Physella acuta 3 gal (10 L) · 59–82 °F (15–28 °C) 
Ramshorn snail (great ramshorn) Planorbarius corneus 5 gal (20 L) · 59–77 °F (15–25 °C) 
Malaysian trumpet snail Melanoides tuberculata 5 gal (20 L) · 68–86 °F (20–30 °C) 
Rabbit snail (Tylomelania) Tylomelania sp. 16 gal (60 L) · 79–86 °F (26–30 °C) Check the compatibility of your whole tank →
What not to keep it with
Popular species you shouldn’t house with the Jewel cichlid, and why.
- Bristlenose pleco: incompatible temperaments
- Cherry barb: incompatible temperaments
- Common goldfish: incompatible temperaments
- Bronze cory: incompatible temperaments
- Panda cory: one may eat the other due to size, incompatible temperaments
- Zebra danio: incompatible temperaments
- Discus: incompatible temperatures, incompatible temperaments
- Guppy: incompatible temperaments
Recommended equipment
What you need to keep the Jewel cichlid healthy, checked against Amazon stock.
Frequently asked questions
How many liters does a Jewel cichlid need?
At least about 200 liters. More space always helps keep the water stable.
What water temperature does the Jewel cichlid need?
Between 22 and 28 °C, with a pH of 6.5 to 8.
What fish can live with the Jewel cichlid?
Based on water, size and temperament, it fits with species such as Nerite snail, Horned nerite snail, Assassin snail, Bladder snail and Ramshorn snail (great ramshorn). Use our compatibility calculator to check your whole tank.
Can the Jewel cichlid be kept with shrimp?
Not recommended: because of its size or instinct, it will eat shrimp.
