The Jack Dempsey Cichlid (Rocio octofasciata) is one of the most interesting and beautiful American cichlids to keep in aquariums. The species got its name due to the fact that it’s extremely aggressive towards other fish. Due to his aggressiveness, he ended up earning the name “Jack Dempsey”, in honor of the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion of the same name in 1919.
Overall, the Jack Dempsey is an easy fish to care and can even be raised by beginners, but requires large tanks to be feel comfortable and secure.
Below, check out a complete Jack Dempsey Cichlid care guide. Learn about water parameters, food and feeding, appearance, behavior, tank mates, reproduction and aquarium setup.
Jack Dempsey Cichlid – Care Guide
Technical Details
Name: Jack Dempsey Cichlid;
Scientific Name: Rocio octofasciata (Regan, 1903);
Family: Cichlidae;
Species Origin: North and Central America (Southern Mexico, Guatemala, Yucatán and Honduras);
Length: Up to 9 inches;
Life Span: 5 years;
Care Level: Easy;
Water Parameters
pH: 7.0 – 8.0;
Water Hardness: Between 9 – 20;
Temperature: Must be kept between 22 – 30°C;
Distribution / Habitat
In nature, the Jack Dempsey is found in North and Central America, more specifically in southern Mexico, Guatemala, Yucatan and Honduras.
It usually inhabits swamps with warm, slow-flowing waters, living between areas covered with vegetation and substrate or muddy bottoms. This fish feeds on worms, crustaceans, insects, as well as small fish.
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Description
The Jack Dempsey Cichlid is considered a very large fish, reaching up to 9,84 inches in length. The adult fish has a striking coloration with a gray-purple background contrasting with bright blue, green and gold spots.
In addition, males have pointed anal and dorsal fins with a red band, but some of them also develop round black spots in the center of the body and at the base of the tail.
Foods and Feeding
Omnivorous. The Jack Dempsey accepts all types of food including live, fresh and flake or pellet feed. He’s a pretty big fish, so he should be fed high quality food and small pieces of meat or fish every now and then.
Be careful not to overfeed them meat from warm-blooded animals (beef or chicken), as the types of proteins and fats contained in these foods can be harmful to fish.
Temperament / Behavior
The Jack Dempsey is considered a very territorial and aggressive fish and, therefore, should be kept alone in the aquarium.
You can even keep young specimens together, but they usually start to show signs of aggression as they become sexually mature.
If a pair forms in the tank, they will be peaceful with each other, but hostile with any other fish that are in the same environment.
This species of fish usually swims in all tank regions.
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Tank Mates
As we mentioned above, you should keep the Jack Dempsey alone in the tank. However, if you want to keep it accompanied by others of its kind, the groups and the tank will have to be big to hold all of them.
Sexual Differences
The male has a longer and more pointed dorsal fin than the female. In addition, the male also develops a round black spot in the center of the body and at the base of the tail.
The female has fewer spots than the male, but may have a small dark spot on the dorsal fin or on the lower edge of the gill cover.
Reproduction
The Jack Dempsey reproduction is considered easy, but the problem is getting a pair. You must mix several young fish and wait for them to form pairs. With a pair formed, you can separate them and add to a breeding tank.
Pairs become very territorial and therefore will not tolerate any other fish in the tank with them. Therefore, avoid adding any species together with a Jack Dempsey couple.
During the spawning process, the female will lay between 500 – 800 eggs on rocks previously cleaned by the male. They form large families and, therefore, the parents take care of the young and keep them in places protected from other fish.
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Aquarium Setup
The fish tank needs to be at least 52 gallons for a single specimen, although larger aquariums are recommended for keeping several fish together.
The Jack Dempsey prefers well-oxygenated environments along with powerful, efficient filtration. In addition, you can add a substrate of fine sand and form hiding places with rocks and logs.
Also try to add floating plants to the aquarium for these fish. If you’re thinking about adding some kind of plant inside the aquarium, try to anchor them on the sides between the rocks, as the Jack Dempsey loves to turn over the substrate.
Finally, although this fish can tolerate a wide range of water conditions, higher temperatures can make it even more aggressive. Therefore, try to keep it in environments with temperatures around 26°C.
References
Schmitter-Soto, J.J., 2007. A systematic revision of the genus Archocentrus (Perciformes: Cichlidae), with the description of two new genera and six new species. Zootaxa 1603:1-78. (Ref. 74403);
George Zurlo, David Schleser, Cichlids (Complete Pet Owner’s Manual), Barron’s Edu Series, 2005;
Richard F. Stratton, The Guide to Owning Central American Cichlids, T.F.H. Publications, Inc., 2001;
