fish · Cichlidae
Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus)
Hemichromis bimaculatus
Wild range: Westernmost Africa (Upper Guinea): Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia as restricted by Loiselle (1979) and FishBase Ref. 52307; type locality not recorded, probably Liberia (holotype USNM 4097). Older records across much of West Africa, coastal Cameroon, the Congo and the Nile are mostly misidentified congeners (FishBase; Aquarist Atlas). (Africa)
At a glance: Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus) care
Compiled reference information. Review the care notes and original sources below.
What temperature is listed for Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus)?
The compiled profile lists 22.0–26.0 °C for Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus) (Hemichromis bimaculatus). Check the original sources below for context and differing recommendations.
What tank size is listed for Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus)?
The profile lists a minimum tank volume of 30.0 US gallons (114.0 liters). Volume alone does not establish suitability; consider dimensions, group size and other inhabitants alongside the full care notes.
What pH is listed for Jewel cichlid (bimaculatus)?
The compiled profile lists a pH of 6.5–7.5. Review the cited care sources alongside the other water parameters in this profile.
Natural habitat
The 'true' jewel cichlid: a slender, small-to-medium West African cichlid with three black blotches on each side (gill cover, mid-flank and caudal-fin base). Breeding and dominant fish flush scarlet on the head, breast and belly but carry far less iridescent blue-green spangling than the heavily 'jewelled' fish usually sold under this name. Territorial digger and devoted biparental parent, notably aggressive when spawning.
Where they are found
Catalog primary Hemichromis bimaculatus Gill, 1862 (no parentheses: described in Hemichromis) — valid in ITIS (TSN 169806, author Gill, 1862) and accepted in the GBIF backbone (2371368, Hemichromis bimaculatus Gill, 1862); IUCN assessment (Dankwa, Azeroual & Lalèyè 2020, Least Concern) also uses Hemichromis bimaculatus. Newer combination: Rubricatochromis bimaculatus (Gill, 1862), after Lamboj & Koblmüller 2022 (Hydrobiologia) moved the small red jewel cichlids into the new genus Rubricatochromis; FishBase (SpecCode 2389), NCBI Taxonomy and Aquarist Atlas (citing the Catalog of Fishes) now use it. It goes in aliases under Scott's naming rule (trade/ITIS primary kept). Synonymy is in flux: FishBase and GBIF still list Hemichromis fugax Payne & Trewavas, 1976 and Hemichromis cristatus Loiselle, 1979 as junior synonyms, but Lamboj & Koblmüller treat R. cristatus as valid (2022) and revalidated R. fugax (2026, Fishes 11(9):531; reported via Aquarist Atlas from the Catalog of Fishes update of 21 Sep 2026; CoF itself not consulted this run). Those two are recorded here but deliberately not added as aliases, so search does not send other valid species to this page. FishBase also lists misapplied uses of H. guttatus, H. cerasogaster, H. paynei and H. stellifer. Lookalike / misidentification caution (row identity is clear, no deferral): most fish sold as 'jewel cichlid' or labelled H. bimaculatus are H./R. guttatus, R. stellifer (long sold as H. lifalili; this catalog's jewel-cichlid row), R. cristatus, 'Neon' jewels or hybrids. Loiselle (1979) showed that nearly all pre-1979 'H. bimaculatus' literature refers to H. guttatus. True H. bimaculatus has three flank blotches, including a caudal-peduncle spot that H. lifalili lacks, and sparse iridescent spangling. The invasive Florida 'jewel cichlid' populations, once reported as H. bimaculatus, are H. letourneuxi (Scale & Stem). Trade names: Jewelfish, African jewelfish, Jewel cichlid, Two-spot jewel cichlid, Two-spotted jewelfish (ITIS; GBIF; Scale & Stem; Tankora).
Aquarium care
Plan at least a 30 US gallon (~114 L) tank for a bonded pair, ideally with a 120 cm (48 in) footprint: Seriously Fish gives 120×30×30 cm (~108 L), Aqua-Fish and Aquariadise ~30 gal / 115 L per pair, Fishkeeping.co.uk 120 L, and FishBase a minimum 100 cm tank. Go to 55 gal / ~200 L or more to grow out a group of juveniles or to add robust tankmates (Aquariadise; Aqua-Fish; Tankora; Aquarist Atlas). Temperature 22–26°C for maintenance: the hobby tolerance band is 22–28°C (Seriously Fish, Aqua-Fish, Aquariadise, Scale & Stem, Tankora), AquaInfo gives 21–25, FishBase and Aquarist Atlas give a cooler 21–23 for wild habitat, and Tankora calls 24–26 ideal. Raise to 26–28°C only to trigger spawning. pH 6.5–7.5 (FishBase, Aquarist Atlas, Tankora practical; tolerates 6.0–7.8 per Seriously Fish and Aqua-Fish; AquaInfo 7.0–7.5). GH 4–16 dGH (FishBase dH 4–16; Seriously Fish and Aqua-Fish 4–18; Fishkeeping.co.uk 5–15; AquaInfo 8–12). Use a sand or fine substrate, with caves, flowerpots, rockwork and driftwood to break up sight lines, plus at least one flat spawning stone. They dig, so plants must be very robust, potted, or epiphytes such as Anubias and Java fern. Strong, well-oxygenated filtration with moderate flow (Fishkeeping.co.uk moderate–fast; AquaInfo likes current; Scale & Stem moderate). Keep a lid on (Scale & Stem notes jumping). Intermediate difficulty: hardy, but not a beginner or general community fish despite often being sold as one (Seriously Fish).
Feeding
Wild diet is mainly small invertebrates (aquatic insects and larvae, crustaceans, worms), with some small fish and incidental plant matter (FishBase; Aquarist Atlas). In the aquarium it is an easy omnivore that takes almost anything (Seriously Fish; AquaInfo; Fishkeeping.co.uk; Scale & Stem). Feed quality cichlid pellets or flake plus regular live/frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp, mysis, daphnia and blackworm. Add some vegetable matter, such as spirulina flake or blanched spinach or zucchini (Seriously Fish; Aqua-Fish). Varied, carotenoid-rich foods intensify the red; dry-only diets give duller fish (Scale & Stem). Feed 1–2 times daily in modest portions.
Compatibility
Territorial, and very aggressive when spawning. Not community-safe with small, slow or long-finned fish (Seriously Fish; FishBase 'aggressive, in pairs'; Scale & Stem; Aquarist Atlas). It is best kept as a pair in a species tank. In a large tank outside breeding, it can live with robust fish such as Congo tetras and larger alestiids, Synodontis, sturdy loricariids, and in big tanks other West/Central African cichlids such as Steatocranus (Seriously Fish; Fishkeeping.co.uk). Expect that arrangement to fail once the pair spawns. Do not mix with other Hemichromis/Rubricatochromis: they hybridise, and the trade is already confused about IDs. This row covers H. bimaculatus; the catalog's separate jewel-cichlid row is H. lifalili. Do not conflate the two.
Breeding
Relatively easy to breed once a true pair forms. Adults are hard to pair, so raise 5–6 juveniles together and let a pair choose each other. Remove the others, because a mismatched or unready partner can be harried to death (Seriously Fish; Fishkeeping.co.uk; Aquarist Atlas). Condition on live foods in slightly soft water at pH ~6.5–7.0 and 24–28°C (Seriously Fish; Aqua-Fish; Aquariadise). The pair cleans a flat stone, pot or the glass and lays up to ~500–600 eggs, which hatch in about 2–3 days. Fry are moved among dug pits and free-swim after a further 1–4 days. Feed microworm or Artemia nauplii. Parents guard fiercely for about a month and will attack hands and kill tankmates. Remove the fry after about 4 weeks, as the pair may spawn again (Seriously Fish; Scale & Stem; Fishkeeping.co.uk). Sexing is difficult: males have a more pointed dorsal fin and reticulated blue patterning in the middle of the caudal fin; ripe females are rounder and redder (Seriously Fish; Aquarist Atlas).
Sources
Compiled from multiple independent care sheets — not copied from a single site.