South American Cichlid | Red Devil

Scientific Name: Amphilophus labiatus

Common Name: Red Devil Cichlid

Adult Size: 15 inches

Life Expectancy: 8-10 years

Habitat: Central America

Minimum Tank Size: 55 gallons

Ideal Tank Conditions:

• pH : 7.0-8.0
• Temperature : 78°F
• Water Hardness : 6° to 25°

Temperament:  Red Devils are known for their aggressiveness, thus the name Red Devil. They are very territorial and are occasionally very rude toward the same as well as other species. They can be kept with other aggressive fish in a very large aquarium when growing up, but as adults they simply don't like any other occupants in their tank. The only known way to successfully and safely keep Red Devils with other fish is to have them in a very large aquarium with plenty of caves, hiding places, and natural tank divisions to create defensible territories. Unfortunately, this still doesn't guarantee that the Red Devil won't attack to gain more territory and is no guarantee you can keep them with other fish. 

Diet/Nutrition: Since they are omnivores, the Red Devil Cichlid will generally eat all kinds of live, fresh, and flake foods. To keep a good balance give them a high quality flake food or pellet everyday. Feed high quality cichlid pellets, krill, frozen bloodworms, earthworms, night crawlers, crickets, spirulina based foods, and carotene enhanced supplements.

Be careful when feeding your cichlid warm blooded mammal meats (e.g. red meat, beef heart, chicken, etc) as these meats have amounts and types of proteins and fats not normally found in a cichlid's diet. These foods can therefore cause intestinal blockages and organ degradation in cichlids. If you find your fish enjoys these types of foods, be sure to only feed them as an occasional treat, not as a dietary staple. 

Breeding: Unlike a lot of their relatives, the mellow nature of this fish plays a big part in the high success rate that breeders have with them. Once these fish have reached the 4-5 inch mark in their growth they’re able to breed. Use this length as the benchmark when determining mating viability. Also, mates stay together for life which means you won’t be able to mix and match once the breeding process is finished.

Gender:  The male Red Devil grows larger than the female and has a pointed genital papilla, while the female's is blunt. The males in captivity will grow a permanent nuchal hump which is only present during breeding in the wild.

Compatible Tank Mates: See Compatibility Chart