African Jewel Fish

As with all fish keeping, in order to keep African Jewel Fish successfully you will need to replicate their natural habitat as far as possible. So water temperature needs to be between 75F (24C) to 82F (28C) and the pH range needs to be between 6.5 - 7.5. Jewel Fish are notoriously aggressive, particularly when they are ready for breeding, so they are definitely not community fishes. They generally grow to a size of around 4 inches, so you will need to bear that in mind when choosing a suitable aquarium. They will need a good selection of aquarium plants, but bear in mind that they will probably dig them up!

Feeding African Jewel Fish is straightforward. They accept most flake and frozen foods, so it is worth offering some pieces of shrimp or fish. Because they tend a eat a lot and can be quite messy you will need a good power filter to ensure continued good water conditions.

The African Jewel Fish lays its eggs in a large mass on flat surface on the bottom of the tank, and will aggressively defend its spawn and fry. When ready for breeding the fishes colors become particularly intense. You will find that following these colors appearing the behavior will change to one of intense digging and re-arranging of rocks. There is no point worrying about plants at this point as they will be almost immediately dug up anyway. Once the pair are ready to breed they will become exceptionally aggressive and will allow nothing else in the tank with them.