Jewel Fish

The Jewelfish, also known as Jewel Cichlid or JewlFish, is from the family cichliade, and can grow up to 6 inches long. The origin for the African Jewelfish is in the Nile river, Niger , Congo river. It's originally from Africa and is the most beautiful, bellicose, aggressive and eager to fight, of the cichlids. There are lot of different species of the Jewelfish. All different species behave the same and have the same conditions. The Jewelfish is not a community fish (they are ferocious) and cannot have any other fish in a tank with them. Due to them being so beautiful many people like to have them as pets. They grow upto to 5 inch and live for a maximim of 8 years.



Environment
The are found in very high numbers in the rivers of west Africa, but have also spread to areas of the middle east, and also to parts of South America. Just recently, they where discovered in areas of North America around the Gulf Coast, in states such as Florida. Also they can be found in creeks, streams, lakes, and rivers. Since they are from Africa, it needs soft and a bit more acidic water in order to stay alive in captivity. They live in water that is partly salt water and partly fresh water and is in a tropical location because it prefers a water temperature of 75 to 85 degrees. When in captivity, the African Jewelfish must be kept alone, as it is a very aggressive fish and will feed on another fish of its kind. Need to provide lot of hiding place for them to safety.



Breeding
They will turn a deep red color to let the male know (When the African Jewelfish is ready to breed). The male and female will bond or jawlock and the male will release sperm on the eggs. The female will then lay the eggs on a flat surface - usually a dugout in the back of the aquarium, although you can provide flat rocks to encourage them. The female will protect her eggs and will kill anything that comes in close proximity. In a couple of days the eggs will hatch and the female will still protect them. The female can reproduce every three weeks.



Food
The Jewelfish are carnivorous. They feed on insects and Caridina. Caridina are associated with shrimps and prawns. They can also eat some plants, such as algae and other weeds, as well as debris. During captivity, African Jewelfish can live by you feeding them varied diet of frozen, live, flakes and pellets as they usually accept mostly all forms of fish food. The also eat algae wafers and shrimp pellets. They can be easily compared to the bottom feeding fish in an aquarium, as they like to eat the algae and other depris that forms in the tank. Jewelfish are also known to eat their own young because they are carnivorous.



Color Strains
Turquoise jewels definitely sport a different color. Is it turquoise? Perhaps. They seem to blotch out the jewel’s regular sparklies and make them less red (or blue) and more of what some call turquoise. The colors in the turquoise below exist in the regular jewels. When the two strains cross, we’ll see more variations. Not in the betta, platy, or guppy rainbows but definitely more colors. They are also found in green and red color, which are very common.



Highlight
“Jewel” refers to the little iridescent sparklies (the maculatus or “spot” in their scientific name) that cover their bodies -- not their colors, and certainly not their personalities.