Red Devil Cichlid

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Contributed by: Cheryl»2

On: October 28, 2006, 5:26 pm

I have a red devil, named tuff guy. I changed the water like I have may times before; this time he isn't eating. It has been one week, I'm feeding him every day but still, he doesn’t eat. He has not eaten before but only like one day during a week. Then he is OK. Will he eat when he needs? I have had him for a long time and don't want anything to happen to him. Thank you.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: October 29, 2006, 12:09 am

Hello Cheryl,

How old is your Red devil? Which food do you use for feeding him? In my opinion, you could try something like different types of live food or small fish (guppies, platy and so on).

Generally, there are a few things which may cause the eating problems the most:

1) re-arranged aquarium decoration and environment changes (including substrate changes)
2) very heavy changes to the water chemistry
3) stress

Introducing small fish should keep him active, since he's able to eat them.

I hope that your Tuff guy will do well:) and that he’ll be OK soon.

Contributed by: Tee»2

On: October 30, 2006, 12:11 am

Hi, I have a Red devil which I bought in August. I have to keep changing the water in the tank because it keeps getting cloudy like a mist movement clouds in my aquarium which make the water turn a lite green. I have changed the filter cleaned all the decorations including the gravel very good. Can you please tell me what the problem could be.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: October 30, 2006, 1:59 am

Hello Tee,

What exactly do you have in the tank? How big is it? Do you keep other fish there? What kind of filter do you have?

In my experience, 99% of all causes of misty looking water are the result of excrements and unsuitable filtration. I would keep on changing the water until it turns to good. When I started my aquariums, I had to change about 10% of water each week, because they were getting polluted too. After 3 months, they became very stable and I don’t need to change the water anymore.

It’s good to install very strong filter, which will be capable to clean the entire tank. Place some rocks or driftwood in front of such filter, so it will not make very strong water current and fish will feel fine.

Contributed by: Billy Bob Thorton»2

On: November 16, 2006, 3:47 pm

I’m just adding something about the problems with the light green colored water; I had the same problem in my red devils tank, I tried doing 20% changes in the water and that didn’t help. Then I put in phosphate [ask about at your local pet store (they’ll have it)] and after a couple days it was fine. Then I just kept it there a month after that and took it out, and I haven’t had that problem since.

P.S. Is it true that the Red Devil is the smartest breed of freshwater fish in the world?

Contributed by: Heather»3

On: November 24, 2006, 10:12 am

I’ve had a wonderful red devil for about 5 years now. His pleco died a couple of months ago. I replaced it, but he hasn’t been the same since. He seemed to mellow, and have decreased appetite. But the last few days, he’s not eating at all, and I’m not sure he can see. He’s not reacting to anything except being physically touched by me. He’s running into the rocks and glass. He’s just kind of hanging in the middle of the tank most of the time. If he can get into his den, he’ll stay there awhile. The motor on my filter quite awhile back, and it was a week before I could replace it. There was an alternate source for oxygen and water circulation, and the tank didn’t gunk up. Could a lower oxygen level have caused him damage? We are all very fond of Diablo, I’ve had him since he was a 5 inch long juvenile. He is a member of the family. I don’t want him to suffer, and this is really hard for me. Can anyone help with what may be wrong?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: November 24, 2006, 1:57 pm

Hello Heather,

1) Lower oxygen level might cause heavy damages not only to the fish’s sight. Long time ago, I kept gouramis and one of them jumped out from the tank. Even though I moved it to the aquarium immediatelly after I found it on the floor, he died next morning.

2) Fish live with their tankmates and they rely on each other sometimes. Some time ago, I kept Angel Fish. One of them died because of some hidden illness. OK, I thought it wasn’t anything bizarre. Next day, I found another Angel Fish dead:(. Even though the second one was looking well, even though he was eating and swimming normally, he died. In my opinion, some fish have more feelings than people expect from them. I had another 30-40 fish in that tank and no other fish died (the first fish died after 2 years since those days).

I feel very sorry to hear about your Red devil:(.

I think you could try complete clean-up of your tank.

and/or

If you didn’t, try live food (worms or small fish).

Contributed by: Charlotte»2

On: December 3, 2006, 5:20 am

Hi, I want to know if the Red devil and other ciclids are of the same family? Also, is it possible to keep more of them in one tank at the same time?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: December 4, 2006, 6:39 am

The Red devil is of family Cichlidae, subfamily Cichlasomatinae. Not every cichlid is of the same subfamily (e.g. Pseudocrenilabrinae and so on).

It’s possible to keep more Cichlids on one tank, however you should bear in mind their aggressivity. Some aren’t aggressive (like Angel fish), some are (like Jack dempsey cichlid). Check the records in our database, so you’ll choose the right fish for your aquarium.

Contributed by: Satish»2

On: December 5, 2006, 9:29 pm

Hi, I have a Red Devil which is 4" in size. I have kept it in a 24" * 9" *18" tank. Is this a suitable tank for my Red Devil ?

Can You give me the name of any other fish from the cichlid family as his comanion? It has white color with little orange shades on it. Is it it’s original color or will it change?

Waiting for your answer!

Thanks and Regards,

Satish

Contributed by: admin»665

On: December 5, 2006, 11:42 pm

Hello Satish,

1) Your tanks is very small for the Red devil cichlid. You should consider some large tank of at least 300 Litres (79.25 US Gallons, 65.99 UK Gallons).

2) Companion tips: Another Red devil (for example, you can keep the male and female together in a large tank) and basically any other fish of a similar size. No small fish, since they will eat them.

3) Juvenile cichlids of this species are coloured differently than the adult ones. Probably, it’s colour will change how time goes by.

Contributed by: Satish»2

On: December 6, 2006, 1:14 am

Hi,

First thanks for your kind reply to my qeuries.

I would like to know the difference between the Flowerhorn and Red devil. Will they stay with each other?

Thanks and Regards,

Satish

Contributed by: admin»665

On: December 6, 2006, 2:23 am

I’d like to cite flowerhorn.co.uk (flowerhorn.co.uk).

The Flowerhorn fish does not exist in the wild. It is a hybrid created in Malaysia during the last years of the 20th century. Exactly which species that were combined in order to form the Flowerhorn fish is still unknown, but it was several different South American cichlids.

Unlike Flowerhorn, Red devil cichlid (Amphilophus labiatus) is of family Cichlidae (Cichlids) and subfamily Cichlasomatinae. Originally, they come from Central America, lakes Nicaragua and Managua.

RE keeping Flowerhorn and Red devil: Both of these species are peaceful when they’re young. However, if they have enough space for each other’s territory when reached their maturity, they will stay mostly peaceful. Please, bear in mind thay you will need a really large tank for this purpose.

Please, point all questions on Flowerhorn here. All comments related to Flowerhorns only were moved there.

Contributed by: C»1

On: January 1, 2007, 4:11 pm

How long does it take for a devil to reach its full size? Mine is about 2 years old and only about 5 inches. It still looks like the juveniles on other web sites.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 2, 2007, 1:24 am

Every fish grows during it’s lifespan continuously. Naturally, growth speed is faster in juvenile age than in adult age. Red devils’ average lifespan is about 14 years, so they should grow to their adult size during first 3.5-5 years. Adult specimens have a bump on top of their heads.

However, it all depends on feeding, tank size, and lighting too. A lot of food, space and light will result in fast growing (and shortened lifespan).

Contributed by: Linda»3

On: January 2, 2007, 2:23 am

Hi! I have had my red devil fish for 6 years and about 3 weeks ago the nitrate levels were very high in my tank and my fish started to swim on his side and generally lie on the bottom, I have treated him with tetracycline antibiotic and this has not helped much? All levels - nitrate, pH are all fine but I have run out of ideas. I am wondering if you have any other solutions as he can get up off the bottom but just flips around, upside down anything but the right way up and he can't get to the top of the tank and hasn't eaten for 1 1/2 weeks.

Thanks
Linda:(

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 2, 2007, 2:58 am

Hi Linda,

Try this:

1) lower the pH level below 7 (below 6.7 would be great),
2) change about 40% of water,
3) reduce feeding,
4) neutralize the ammonia even if they’re at low level.

In my opinion, your fish suffers from Ammonia Poisoning:(. I’ll publish article on this illness and it’s treatment soon.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 14, 2007, 12:41 pm

Question regarding keeping tankmates with Red devils by Nikita Nain was moved to our forum here. Thanks for understanding.

Contributed by: Vic Houston»1

On: January 15, 2007, 9:01 pm

I have a juvenile red devil. I have a 30 gallon tank, is that enought room for it to grow. It’s very healthy and growing at a good rate, but very agressive. It killed the other red devil that was living with it though. Now I know it’s better off by itself. I also would like to know if I can feed it carrots.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 16, 2007, 12:16 am

Hello Vic Houston,

Of course, 30 gallon tank is enough for 1 fish. Anyway, 50 gallons or more would be better.

RE feeding: Basically, you can give your fish anything what it can eat including vegetable, or fruit. It all depends if the fish is willing to eat it. Old fish don’t change their meal habits easily.

Contributed by: Cassie»1

On: January 27, 2007, 7:22 pm

Hi, I have a Red devil... for about 4 months. It's still small but kind of agressive, but when I got it, it was kept with a Flowerhorn so I got the Flowerhorn too. I watch them almost every night before I sleep just to see what they do. And every time since they bite each other's tail... I guess they do that for fun, because they don't fight to death. Any suggestions?

Contributed by: Kuam»7

On: February 12, 2007, 8:37 am

I have a Red devil that I bought two weeks ago. It's colour is yellow and some orange. It has a long black marking on it's forhead. I was just wondering if the black will stay or fade away? I hope it doesn't fade away because I bought a Red devil back then and it's black faded.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 12, 2007, 11:51 am

Hello Kuam. It depends on your fish’ age. If it’s juvenile, it’s colour might change. However, this is not 100%-ly guaranteed. If your fish is an adult one, it’s colour should not change.

Colour changes are very specific and probably no-one can tell you if they will change or not.

Contributed by: Kuam»7

On: February 13, 2007, 6:47 pm

Hi Admin. I have another question to ask you. My white Midas has some brownish marking on both sides of her scales. I was just wondering if it's infected or sick? I believe that it’s not because her color is changing. Do you know what I can do to cure or fix the problem? Thanks.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 14, 2007, 1:52 pm

Hello Kuam, Your question was answered before. However, it was moved to the Midas Cichlid profile, since Midas cichlid and Red devil aren't the same species even though many people think so.

Contributed by: Kuam»7

On: February 15, 2007, 8:24 am

Thanks again Admin.

Contributed by: Dan»2

On: February 23, 2007, 3:36 am

We have Red devils and they’ve just had babies. We have separated them, but the babies are getting through to the adults and are getting eatin. What should we do?

Contributed by: Jan»19

On: February 24, 2007, 12:57 pm

Use glass as the divider, or move parents to another tank. If you don’t have any empty tank, use as much glass as required in order to separate newborns.

Contributed by: Steve»2

On: February 25, 2007, 11:46 am

Hello it’s about time I found out what kind of fish I had. When I bought him they said he was a gaint grom. But I couldn’t find a pic on him he was about 4" long when I got him. He is about 18" long 9" high and 4" thick. I have him in a 100 gal by himself because doesn’t get along with any other fish we put in with him. We had to buy another tank to put our Convics and Parots in. Is there any other fish that get along with him? He loves crickets and shrimp cook shrimp frozen kind. We walk by his tank and he wants to ram it like a bottle nose dophin on a attack. We are scared that he is going to break the tank. And when we put some decoration in he will rip them up. Oh, he also likes to eat zuccinni too. Please help us out. We like big red alot and we don't want to give him away, how can we make him more calm and get along with other fish?

TY,

Steve

Contributed by: JT»2

On: February 26, 2007, 6:26 pm

How do the devils spawn?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 27, 2007, 2:36 pm

The Red devil cichlid is a substrate spawner. They lay eggs on a stone which is cleaned before eggs are laid. You should await about 80-120 newborns if everything goes fine.

Contributed by: Jim»1

On: February 28, 2007, 2:58 am

How long should you leave the fry with the parents?

Contributed by: Jan»19

On: February 28, 2007, 4:10 am

The Red devils are good parents. There shouldn’t be any problem leaving fry and parents together. Except small tanks, poor water quality.

If you still want to move parents to another tank, do it once they give up guarding the fry.

Contributed by: Amy»5

On: March 1, 2007, 10:25 pm

Hi, I have a red devil that is approximately 3yrs old and is about 6-7 inches. He is in a very large tank and very well cared for, we have never had any problems with him. However recently I have noticed around his face what looks to be like holes forming. Is this normal? Could he have a parasite? Can cichlids get ich? What could it be and what should I do? Please help, thank you.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 2, 2007, 1:38 am

Hi Amy,

Looks like the hole-in-head disease. This illness is characteristic for Cichlids especially.

If so, you should consider food change. The hole-in-head disease follows as the result of unbalanced feeding; absence of some vitamins and minerals exactly. Because there are not enough minerals, fish’s organism takes them from cartilage fibres which are mostly present on the head.

You should feed your fish foods which are full of minerals and should stop feeding beef, heart, and generally all beaf immediately.

In order to maximize the treatment effect, make sure your water is hard enough, keep adding vitamins and minerals each day no matter if illness disappears.

Just for sure, you can use some preventive medicaments in order to avoid potential complications.

If your problem are parasites, you should visit the nearest shop and buy medicaments. Every skilled shop assistant should give you an advice which product to buy. I would use SERA products.

Contributed by: Sarah»4

On: March 5, 2007, 9:12 pm

I've had my Red Devil for about 1 month now and when I got it it was a very pretty orange, now it is turning black. Is it sick? Also what is a good diet for it? It seems hungry all the time and when I feed it feeder fish it eats all them at once. It's in a very small tank and I intend to upgrade soon will it be okay?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 6, 2007, 1:22 am

Hi Sarah,

Colours changes follow as the result of feeding, stress, or other changes. I don’t count it is an illness, however you should consider changes in feeding.

Feed it various snails, earthworms, and preferably insects. Use plants based food too (you can use lettuce, etc.). For more details about food, visit this article. It’s important to avoid overfeeding. Fish like to eat and nearly all species will keep eating as you keep feeding them. But this doesn’t mean they are hungry all the time. Fish can become fat too, which usually lead to diseases.

Moving the fish into a larger tank would help. 100 Gallons should be fine.

Contributed by: Kaum»2

On: March 16, 2007, 7:33 am

I just bought a yellow red devil from Fairmount Aquarium. It has black all over its body and the part where it isn't black, it's yellow. What do you think will happen? Do you think all the black will fade and it'll turn all yellow? The color of it's tail is black also, I hope the tails stays black and the body changes to yellow.

Contributed by: Jan»19

On: March 16, 2007, 2:07 pm

Hi Kaum. The colours will not turn to yellow in my opinion. The reason is that your fish is probably a "mix" between black and ordinary yellow specimens. Even though the black coloured Devils are rare, they exist.

But if your fish is a juvenile only, there is a great chance to become yellow as time goes by. How old is he/she?

Contributed by: Brandon»2

On: March 17, 2007, 12:11 pm

I own a Red devil cichlid. I had it for 2 1/2 weeks. He is about 3in. He is in a 55gal. aquarium, with an algae eater for right now. He tends to stay at the bottom, leaning against the glass, and sits on the rocks. It is an unusual thing. He’s been doing this for the last couple of days (about 3 now). Is it sick? He will not swim at all. The only time he will swim is when I tap the tank right where he is at, and apparently when he gets hungry. Yes he does eat but not all of his food. I only give him 5-6 petite pellets at a time, and he starts to eat half of them now.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 17, 2007, 1:53 pm

Hi Brandon. Looks like he’s sick. However, you haven’t mentioned any physical symptom. Is there any? There are only 2 possible reasons which I know:

1) Skin/bowel bacteria,
2) Inappropriate conditions such as lighting, water chemistry, food.

The first case can be solved easily by some basic medicaments and using lots of vitamins within the food. The second case describes what could be the problem. I hope you’ll solve it asap and your Red Devil will feel better:).

Contributed by: Brandon Peoples»1

On: March 17, 2007, 3:20 pm

He swims apatic when he does swim, and just lays there. The food I feed he is called Wardley Cichlid Floating Pellets (Small Petit Pellets).

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 18, 2007, 1:49 am

The food looks fine. Maybe you could try something else in order to check if he doesn’t prefer different food. What food did he eat before introducing into your tank? If foods differ, you could try feeding him the old kind of food.

Anyway, your Red devil is a juvenile what means he could be sick when you got him, or he is experiencing acclimatization problems. Especially acclimatization problems are the most common problems regarding new fish in tank no matter if they live first days/weeks without any significant behaviour changes. Acclimatization usually lasts from 1 day up to 30 days.

Contributed by: Kiki»1

On: March 21, 2007, 12:14 pm

I have 2 red devils and my husband put them both in one tank. Well, the bigger one beat the other pretty bad, he’s still breathing. But will he recover, or die?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 21, 2007, 2:27 pm

Hello Kiki, use our forums for such questions please. Anyway, here’s the answer: The beaten one should survive if he still lives. It also depends on injuries.

However, you should avoid further fights and keep both Devils in different tanks. It will be the best for both of them.

Contributed by: Phillip»1

On: March 22, 2007, 8:56 pm

My red devil and parrot sleep together at night. When you turn the light on, one's on top of the other both (asleep). Is this normal? I have heard that parrots do this together. Is this a red devil's trait since parrots are part devil?

Contributed by: Thomas and April»1

On: April 8, 2007, 12:53 pm

I NEED HELP!! I have a red devil I adopted from a friend that pased away and his family was going to throw him out. We have had him for almost 3 years and he has been with the pleco friend he had previously.

The last week he has had a terrible time swimmimg. He is having problems staying at the bottom of the tank. He ends up floating to the top and staying on his side when he is tired. When we approach he swims throught the tank and then ends up floating too the top again. Our fish supply store " Big Al’s in Toronto has said it might be a bladder infection. We have medicated the tank with a product called "Lifeguard" which is an non antibiotic treatment. The active ingredient is 1-chloro-2,2,5,5-tetraamethyl-4-imidazolidinone. He is supposed to be treated for the whole week and we are on the last day of dosage. He is not getting any better. What else can we do? We guess he is about 12-15 years old, he is about 12" in length. What can we do to help him or make his last days better.

Contributed by: Kat Williams»1

On: April 10, 2007, 2:35 pm

We have a red devil who we bought in 2000. Her name is Frannie and she is extremly aggressive. We have tried her in a tank with all sorts of other fish over the last 7 years and she kills every single one of them, eating their eyes first and then biting their flesh. Over the last 18 months there has been a catfish in her tank which has lived under a pile of rocky caves we built to stop Frannie from getting it. Over the last week I’ve noticed Frannie has been getting really slow and lethargic. She used to race us the length of the tank (4 foot) and play aggressive games with us at the glass and even try to attack our dog! But now she hasn’t. Last night she was "swimming" with her face down, tail up, won’t eat and is pure white in colour (normally quite orangey gold), and she is quite bloated. We also found the catfish, obviously another one of Frannies victims (no eyes, bite marks etc) which has been dead for a while (yuck!). My hubby changed the water and cranked up the heat, but I’m really worried about her. Over the night her colour has improved slightly, but she’s still unresponsive and "swimming" the way she was last night. Can you please help me save Frannie! What can I do???

Contributed by: admin»665

On: April 11, 2007, 3:06 am

Reply to first question (Thomas and April):

Possible diseases:

1) Ascites,
2) Saddle infection,
3) Skin worms,
4) Bacterial skin infection
5) Guts bacterial infection.

Bear in mind that your Red devil is very old and older fish are not as immune as juveniles are. This applies to all species.

Reply to second question (Kat Williams):

You should monitor your Red devil for a few days. You didn’t mention his usual diet. Almost every behaviour and health change roots in lack of one, or more vitamins, minerals, etc in food.

Try to feed him vitamins-rich food. You can use multivitamin tablets for this purpose. If things don’t get better after 2-3 days, go to shop and buy some medicaments. Check the answer for Thomas and April, maybe your Frannie is the same case like their fish.

Contributed by: thomas and April (again)»1

On: April 12, 2007, 7:27 am

Thank you for the response.

Our Red Devil called Yam is still not great!! He is developing what seems to be a bloat on one side of his body. Do you think there is anything we can do for him? We do not want him to suffer. Please help. Thx.

Tom and April

Contributed by: admin»665

On: April 12, 2007, 1:33 pm

Looks like ascites the most. Here in Slovakia we use Sera Baktopur Direct for treating this illness. In this stage, it’s necessary to keep him alone in the tank, without other fish. I think he’s not kept with others anyway.

But if Yam has sick saddle only, it’s probably the latest stage before death:(.

I’m really sorry. I keep fish and everytime some dies, it’s very sad. Sometimes it’s not possible to cure them at all.

Contributed by: Kim»2

On: May 10, 2007, 5:21 am

I came across this site when looking for the expected lifespan of the red devil. Very informative reading.

Apparently these guys live 14-16 years? If looked after.

Ours was supposed to be a fire mouth. He has always been very nasty toward other fish. Its interesting noting that a lot of you have pleccy’s with your devils. We did too until he died a week or so ago. "Fat" sulked for quite a few days.

Anyway, back to the point. "if looked after" what does this mean? We don’t have a heater - he destroys them quicker than quick so we gave up on that idea. In 8 yrs he has probably had 4 full water changes, we only use water ager, nothing else. He has great orange colour, the best personality, even comes up for kisses. Does he sound like he needs something else that we aren’t giving him? All advice greatfully received. Thanks

Contributed by: admin»665

On: May 11, 2007, 1:55 am

Hi Kim. If your Red devil feels fine there’s nothing to improve. I don’t keep this species, but there’s no heater in my tanks, I don’t do water changes and my fish breed, are healthy and live for long years though.

And lifespan... Yeah, 15 or 16 years can be achieved, but there is no rule in my opinion.

I wouldn’t do any change if I was you. Looks like the care, tank, feeding are sufficient, so why change anything what works well?:)

Contributed by: Kim»2

On: May 11, 2007, 7:42 am

Thanks for that, its nice to get that 2nd opinion.

Contributed by: Maggy»1

On: May 15, 2007, 9:26 am

I Have a Red Devil whose name is Arthur, he is one year old and approximately 8 inches. His color is peach with a few small orange spots on his fins. I was wondering if I put him out in the pond, will the sun enhance his colorings to perhaps a deeper shade? And if this is the right thing to do, for how long of a duration will it be until he develops more of a color? Thank you.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: May 16, 2007, 12:09 am

Hello Maggy,

There is no guarantee that fish becomes more coloured after being introduced into the pond. Colouration depends on diet the most.

Anyway you can try it (and let us know what happens). If it happens, colours should change after 2+ weeks.

Bear in mind that colours changes are based on following things:

1) Water chemistry (my personal experience),
2) Water temperature,
3) Water current (this will also affect the body structure),
4) Diet (my personal experience),
5) Lighting (my personal experience),
6) ... (maybe I forgot something).

Contributed by: infexious»1

On: June 10, 2007, 1:30 pm

My red devil fish has black patches on its tail and maybe soon its body. I was told it was a half breed flower horn and half red devil? Is it possible?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: June 11, 2007, 12:15 am

Yes, cross-breeding is possible. Especially American cichlids species tend to breed between each other. Cross-breeding is usually achieved in laboratories, but happens in shops and home aquariums as well.

Contributed by: Patty»3

On: June 15, 2007, 5:27 am

Hi, my son got a red devil about a month ago and he was a pretty orange with some white spots and now he is turning white. He doesn't act sick, he's just turning white and what can I do to get his color back?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: June 15, 2007, 11:55 pm

Hi Patty,

If your Red devil is juvenile, there is nothing what you can do in order to make his colours come back. It is an ordinary progress. If he is an adult specimen, then consider changing water chemistry values (pH, water hardness, temperature, filtration) but also feeding habits (minerals and vitamins!). Try to find food which he was eating before you bought him.

Contributed by: Briana»1

On: June 17, 2007, 9:49 am

Hi,

My female red devil fish just laid eggs. She laid them by herself with no male fish. I read on some websites that the eggs should be orange or a reddish color. But her eggs seem to be a milky white. And she just laid them the night before. Is that normal?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: June 18, 2007, 1:04 pm

Hello Briana. If a female lays eggs without a male, they will definitely turn to fungus - this is why they’re white.

Many species do such thing just because females can’t carry eggs for months. Once she is full, she lays them on rocks or anywhere possible. This also happened to my Angelfish (females, of course) few years ago. It is normal.

Contributed by: TinaMarie»1

On: July 3, 2007, 5:07 pm

Hello,

I have a female Red Devil, she is approx. 4 years old quite large. She has breed in the past but with a White Devil which is no longer in the same tank as her. The tank size is 100 gallons with 9 large fish in it. I know, I have a BuddaCofry and it comes from another lake, how do I determine it’s sex? Now the female Red Devil is acting strange. She lays on the bottom of the tank for weeks, seems that the Buddacofry is in her cave and she allows this which she has never done before. Then she just plopps herself around the tank and swims funny. When the Buddacofry goes to the top and other side of the tank she follows. Then she just plopps back down on the bottom of the tank again. The two swim next to eachother but there is no fighting. What’s happening I am concerned. Please Reply!

Contributed by: Alex»2

On: July 13, 2007, 12:08 pm

Hey, I have a general question. I have a female red devil, could you give me names of species that can create a breeding paid with her?

Can I put the male severum fish with her? Will they create a couple? Thanks.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: July 15, 2007, 1:31 pm

Hi Alex.

There is no general list which contains species willing to crossbreed with the red devils. However, you should try central American cichlids which are of similar size like devils. Just open this search and find them.

Anyway, here are just few;)...

Gold Severum, Green Severum, Cichlasoma synspilum and Heros severus:).

Contributed by: Christina»2

On: July 27, 2007, 11:06 am

Howdy. I read the other Qs and As about color changes in their fish. My young red devil is yellow and she just started to get these black spots on her tail and top fin, she also got one big spot on her nose. My local pet shop told me that it was her diet and she eats healthy. She eats peas, bloodworms, hikari pellets, and shrimp cubes. The color started to appear a few days after I started to feed her feeder guppies and minnows. Should i stop feeding her the feeders she loves or should I let her eat them and let the color change? I also did some reading and I thought her color would brighten up by feeding her the minnows not give her black spots? Or maybe do you think the timing was ironic and shes just maturing into her natural colors?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: July 27, 2007, 1:50 pm

Hi Christina,

Well, I think that your fish is maturing. On the other hand, colour change isn’t anything bad if the fish is still healthy.

If you search Google for images of Red Devil, you’ll find many coloured specimens (while dots, white places, black dots, black lines). Before anyone can give you 100% accurate answer, you should tell us if it’s crossbred specimen or if it’s pure Devil. Sometimes it’s difficult to differentiate it.

Anyway, if you want to be sure, stop feeding her feeder Guppies and Minnows. Then you’ll see. It usually takes 2-3 weeks until it takes some effect.

Contributed by: Eddie»1

On: August 31, 2007, 3:39 am

I just got a new red devil 2 weeks ago. Before I had bought him I had a bunch of other various smaller fish die on me. I went and tested the water at the fish store and in their multiple tests they found nothing in the water. The fish doesn't really seem too agressive. I put some feeder fish in there and surprisingly he only ate like 2 out of the 5 I had in his tank. I did notice though that some of the goldfish died and when they died their eyes turned gray and puffy. My red devil just lays on its side on the bottom of the tank and doesn't really move around unless I tap on the glass next to him. I'm fairly new to these fish. Any idea of what could be wrong with my fish?

Contributed by: Derrick»1

On: September 8, 2007, 6:03 pm

Can a red devil surive in a 20 gallon tank? He is about 3 inches now and I had it for about a week. He's always hidding under my rocks, is that good or bad?

Thank you!

Contributed by: admin»665

On: September 9, 2007, 7:16 am

Your fish may survive, however it is not recommended to keep a cichlid reaching 20-27 cm in the adult age in such aquarium. 40 G tank is minimal.

Regarding rocks and hiding: It is not usual. Your Red Devil feels stressed probably.

Suggestion: Buy a large aquarium or give your fish to someone who can offer more space.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: September 11, 2007, 8:20 am

Since it belongs to the Oscars instead of the Red Devil's page, Jay's question was moved here.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: September 20, 2007, 6:20 am

Kevin’s questions was moved to another page; here since it is related to Goldfish.

Contributed by: Kevin»5

On: September 22, 2007, 9:03 am

Hello, I got a red devil which is about 4" and chases out other fishes. Does it mean that they are in a breeding stage and can you tell me when does the red devil start to spawn, I mean how big they should be?

And I have a texas cichlid which has already spawn and the fry is 2 weeks old. How can I take good care of them and what is the best food for them at this time?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: September 25, 2007, 6:35 am

Hi Kevin,

The Red Devil cichlid is be able to breed when it reaches 8" and sexual maturity. This means at least 2 years of age, but it might be earlier in some cases.

Regarding your second question, the best food is Artemia Salina. And the care is not difficult at all, just keep them far away from other hungry fish.

Contributed by: Debbie »3

On: October 1, 2007, 6:24 pm

Hi there,

I have 2 red devils just over 2 years old, in a 4 foot tank.

My female has beaten up my male and is covered in bruises, and now floats at the top of the tank. He is swollen on 1 side where his wounds are. I have seperated the fish, swam him in epson salts for 15 minutes, put rock salt in his tank. He seems happy enough but he pushes himself down trying to swim, then pops back up totally upside down. His diet is pallets but hasn't eaten much. This is my baby boy and I don't want to lose him, please give me some helpful tips to cure this problem, thanking you very much.

Deb

Contributed by: Gary»5

On: October 17, 2007, 1:37 pm

Hi,

I have two red devils and five red parrots and today my female red parrot has laid eggs for the male red devil. I think he has fertilised the eggs as it looked that way to me, do you think these eggs will hatch and what will be the outcome red parrots or red devils? As I know the red parrot is half red devil?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: October 18, 2007, 3:52 am

Hi Gary,

Naturally, eggs may hatch if they were fertilised. You’re right that the Red Parrot Cichlid is a half Red Devil.

Basically, the final result will be a new combination in your aquarium. However, such combinations aren’t rare worldwide because these cichlids are breeding a lot in aquatic shops.

Contributed by: Nathan»10

On: October 24, 2007, 8:35 pm

Hello from Griffith, Australia.

I have a red devil named Terror whom I have had for around 12 months now. He has grown fast to about 7 inches so I am moving him from his 25 gallon tank to a new 80 gallon which is the largest I can fit and afford. Firstly do you think this tank is big enough for him for a long term? And secondly how should I move him? The main problem I have is that I can not have both tanks set up at once so the new tank will not have a chance to cycle before he goes in. Any help you can give me would be great as I love the little bloke and don’t want to kill him during the move.

Cheers,

Nathan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: October 25, 2007, 2:15 pm

Hi Nathan,

1) Your new 80 G aquarium will be large enough:).

2) My answer might sound weird, but anyway... You can use bathtub for this purpose. Just make sure that the temperature is nearly the same like in the old aquarium before you move him into the bathtub. I am sure that he’ll be able to survive there until you set-up a new aquarium. Of course, if you do it in 2-3 hours, it’s going to be the best for your Terror;). Also, don’t forget to clean the bathtub with a clean clout before you introduce him there.

Contributed by: Nathan»10

On: October 30, 2007, 2:18 am

Hi admin,

Thanks heaps for your reply! I will use the bath to house him during the move. I may sound silly, but, I do not know what a clean clout is and my pet store (I live in country NSW) does not know either. If I wash it down with soft water conditioner a couple of times will this be OK?

Also, any ideas on natural tank materials that I can use would be great. We have a river called the Murrumbidgee close to us which is fresh water and I can get lots of water logged wood, rocks and sand from it. Is this OK and how should I prepare it? Also is river sand better than gravel? Thanks again for your help!!!

Nathan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: October 31, 2007, 8:38 am

Hi Nathan,

A clout = some part of old clothes. Maybe I misspelled it. If I did so, then accept my apology. If you use some which is white it will be the best because you can see if the bathtub is clean enough.

Water conditioner should be OK:).

Regarding the materials from the river: Firstly make sure that there are living fishes in such river. I don’t know anything about the Murrumbidgee but it looks like there are fish anyway:).

Secondly, I recommend you to do basic test with rocks: Just spill some vinegar on them and if it won’t bubble, it’s calcium-safe for tank usage. Driftwood should be OK, but make sure that it’s not in the process of decomposition.

Sand: Basically, the sand from river should be OK for usage in your aquarium as well.

Here is one important tip before you put anything from river into your aquarium: Boil everything in a slightly salt water. You will destroy all potentially harmful bacteria and organisms.

Contributed by: Nathan»10

On: October 31, 2007, 7:21 pm

Thanks Guys, I will do all of the above and let you know how it turns out. It is great to have access to such great advice. Cheers!

Contributed by: Penny»1

On: November 4, 2007, 1:26 pm

I have 22 red devils and one jewel cichlid who is not being bullied by them in a 190 gallon tank. I bought an albino oscar earlier today and they don’t stop biting it and trying to kill him so I had to put it into a breeding tank. Could you give me some tips on it and please tell me what other fish you can put in the tank with them which they won’t kill, please please please ?!!!

Contributed by: admin»665

On: November 5, 2007, 12:53 pm

Penny, why do you want to keep them with other species? I personally would give some Red Devils away because your aquarium will not be big enough for them once they become adult.

Contributed by: Melinda»5

On: November 19, 2007, 2:34 pm

Hi,

Bubba, my red devil, is about 3-4 years old. He has gone through numorous problems in his life. We had him in a 35 gal tank for 1 year with a oscar, mudsucker, and a convict. During that year Bubba lived in a lava rock and barely ever ate unless food happened to fall into the rock (our Oscar would have eaten him had he swam out). Oscar grew too big and we bought a 55 gal tank and moved all the fish to that one. Bubba grew nearly twice his size in about 2 months... he outgrew the Oscar by about an inch in height/length. He killed our convict, and stressed our Oscar nearly to death. Long story short we moved him out of the 55 gal and put him by himself in the 35 gal. Bubba got very sick, floated at the top like he was dead. We put the two tanks right next to each other (thinking that bubba was lonely), Bubba came back quickly, and now him and the Oscar ’fight’ each other through the glass; they are both happy.

About 6 months later Bubba got ’hole in the head’ which caused him to do cartwheels or backflips all day. We changed his water, gave him wider food variety (he is very picky and for the most part won’t eat anything except bloodworms), and treated him with a number of products. He seems to love the water conditioner most.

Now, it’s been at least 1.5 years since he was sick. We put 10 feeder fish in each tank for each fish. Oscar and Bubba each ate 7 fish... and then they left the remaining three. It’s been about 6 months now and the feeders are large (about 2 inches in length). Oscar plays with his feeders, Bubba doesn’t. Bubba now lays on his right side at the bottom of the tank behind a red lava rock. He hasn’t eaten (at least from what I’ve seen) for over 3 months. He had a cloudy eye for about a week in the beginning of his sickness. The clouding has ceased. He was a bright/dark orange before... now he is a light pastel color of orange. He barely breathes. His eyes seem a little pushed out or bulgey. He doesn’t react at all to anything. Sometimes after rapping on the glass he will look at me. I gave him some new water conditioner (lots of it, which he used to love). He is now trying his darndest to swim towards me... you can see him struggle to swim. But he can’t seem to find the energy to move.

There are no other physical problems other than the color fade (which I am guessing is from the lack of food), and just laying all day/night.

I know everyone is saying he’s going to die, but in all reality, he’s a trooper, and I know he’s been much worse than this & bounced back. Not only that but he seems to want to live... and he does try, but he seems to lack the energy.

I was thinking about treating him for Popeye... but I wasn’t sure. I was also thinking I might want to take the feeders out, but he seems to watch them all day...

Any advice?? I have pics/video too if anyone needs to watch his behavior in order to understand properly.

Contributed by: Deb Burns»2

On: November 23, 2007, 12:02 pm

Is there any way that I can view Melinda’s pics & video’s?

I am IN LOVE with my Red Devil, and came to this site because he isn’t eating. My Red Devil enjoys being played with (literally), petted, hugged & held. Weird I know.

Also, my Devil whom I’ve had for about 6 months, and is approx. 5 years old has went into a color change. He seemed to fade from his color orange to a very pale (almost white) color. He had been eating fine, & everything has been good. Until he stopped eating about a week ago. THEN....almost over night, he changed colors into the most beautiful orange again.

We noticed a bump on his head (not his buldge..btw, he is a male). This bump is red, and very hard to the touch. My husband seems to think that this bump is from a run in he had with the filter.
We have Red in a 100 gallon tank along with 1 angel, 1 silver barb, a african suncat, 2 algies, and 3 small black tip sharks. My Big Red doesn’t harm anyone. He loves his fish mates.

Would you suggest us buying some antibiotics or w/e it is that they sell for sickness’?
Thank you soooooooo much for having this site. If I could help in any way, I would.

Deborah Burns

Contributed by: admin»665

On: November 24, 2007, 10:28 am

Hi Deb,

I sent Melinda an email regarding the video and pictures. We will see how it goes.

Regarding your Red Devil: One such disease is called Erythrodermatitis but it usually attacks Koi Carps. The second option is a bacterial infection/deep bruise which is more likely this case. Antibiotics from Sera (my personal experience) are good treatment. You should find products from other manufacturers as well:).

Contributed by: Deb Burns»2

On: November 24, 2007, 11:34 pm

Thanks so much for the speedy reply. You guys are great & fantastic all rolled into one!! :)
I will take your advise and try the meds. I am concerned over him not eating, but moreso over this bump on his head.
I will shoot a video of BIG RED as soon as my camera is returned and share it with you guys - I think you’ll be surprised at my guy. He is the greatest, and like many of your readers have said; .. "He’s part of the family".
Thank You again.
The Burns Clan

Contributed by: ST Lee»1

On: November 27, 2007, 7:51 am

Hi from Singapore,

I have a red devil cichlid of about 3 yrs. Recently it ate some fishes that was caught from some ponds. And it's fins and tail seem to be "dissolving" away, and it kept floating to the top of the water on one side.

I bought sera baktopur and applied as per the instructions. Now the fin and tail condition seem to have been contained (though it's fins and tail have not really recovered). But it’s still floating on 1 side, and tomorrow the 2nd application of sera baktopur is due. It has not eaten for the past 3 days and seems to be quite weak (I fed it bloodworms but it didn’t have the strength to swim to the bottom of the tank to feed plus its "aim" is off).

How can i treat this floating to 1 side condition? And any suggestion on how to help it to feed?

Please help!

Contributed by: Melinda»5

On: November 28, 2007, 8:26 pm

To update everyone on Bubba:

I treated him with a "cure all" treatment for dropsy, fin rot, popeye, etc. Myacin 2 I think it was called (5 day treatment). He tried to swim a little more than normal. Still isn’t eating at all. Moved him around a little (flipped him over onto his right side). His color seemed to have gotten better.

Then I cleaned the tank (replaced about 75% of the water). He’s seeming worse now. I did some research and I think he has "Wasting Disease" or fish TB. I know most treatments require him eating... but the only other option is to put this black iodine (antibiotic) looking stuff in the water. I bought it online tonight and it’s due to come here this week. If I see any difference I will update again, but it looks grim for Bubba.

And as for the video... my camera happened to die over the Thanksgiving weekend (too many pictures/video I suppose). Thanks for the support!!

Contributed by: Deborah Burns»2

On: December 3, 2007, 10:26 pm

A copy of my last letter. I don’t think it went through because I didn’t put my name down. For precautions (and help), I am resending my comment.
Not trying to be a pest.
Hugs, -Deb Burns-

Hi Again,

I am beginning to freak out. I wrote earlier saying my male Red Devil had a bump on his head, (1 inch above the mouth.. just below big hump), color changing issues, as well as feeding problems. We thought he got his bump from hitting sometghing in the tank. It is about the size of a quarter, but pertrudes out the size of a large grape. At the end it appears to be like a white blister (which just appeared) and it has skin (like) hanging from the blistered area. Very red around this lump. He does have 3 holes on each side of his face. 2 appear to be like nostrils on each side, while the others look like freckles. Each of these ’holes’ are the SAME on each side. They look normal.

This all began approx a week ago, and although his color is back, and his eating has returned to normal, I just don’t know about this nasty lump. Tonight my husband went to the fish store and purchased antibiotics, vitamins, and even a test kit so we could test all of our nitrates, PH, amonia etc. Nitrate level is between 0.3 & <0.3.....amonia is off the charts & somewhere between 1.5 & 3.0!! <--according to the leaflet from test kit, this is a high danger zone, even deadly.

OK, so we know we have to do a water change tomorrow. We have given antibiotics & vitamins. Since coming BACK HERE & reading every single comment and even going to your additional links, I’ve learned that we should immediately change his food, keep up the anti’s, & vitamins (even after this is cleared), change the water, & so on. Now my husband had added some ’bacteria’ to the water just a little over a week ago, and we’re wondering if you think this could have caused this. Also does this sound like that hole in the head problem to you, and do you think we are on the right track here?

I am literally scared to death, and wont even go near his tank. My husband is having to do it all, because I am too emotionally attached to this fish.

At this point I am just looking for your suggestions or comments. Taking ANYTHING I can get at this point, and you guys have proved to be the most helpful so far. If it wasn’t for this site, don’t know where we’d be at right now.

Thanks from the bottom of our hearts (& fish tank). LoL

We’re keeping Bubba in our thoughts as well.

Hope to hear from you soon.
The Burns Clan once again.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: December 4, 2007, 2:11 pm

@Deb: Firstly, comments are not saved if no name is provided, so it’s good that you posted it again:).

I suppose that the hole-in-head is the right diagnosis here. One comment on this page dated as March 2, 2007, 9:38 am talks about this disease.

I am not sure about what ’bacteria’ is exactly, however I count on that more time is required for such scenario. You know, 1 or 2 weeks are not enough for making the water unstable and for developing a such disease. Of course, it can be the final trigger, but more aspects play their role in the problem.

Now when you know what’s the primary problem (ammonia), keep doing water changes until it gets to reasonable borders. I experienced a similar problem in my aquariums too and I had to change the water every 2 days for about 2 weeks until the ammonia level lowered to acceptable values. My fish feel better since I finished these necessary actions.

BTW, curing the hole-in-head disease needs a few months in general. I’d like to recommend you Sera Mineral Salt and Sera Fishtamin. I have been using the second product myself (for my fish , naturally :D ) and it helped them to be healthy. Let me know if you need more details, please.

Contributed by: Deborah Burns»2

On: December 4, 2007, 7:06 pm

Hugs - hugs & more hugs!
Off to test the water once again. Will keep you posted, and as always you guys are the best, and we just can’ttttt thank you enough.
The Burns Clan (& big Red)

Contributed by: Melinda»5

On: December 20, 2007, 12:36 am

So to keep everyone posted on Bubba... It’s now December 19th and he’s still not eating... It’s had to have been over 3 months now with no food and not swimming. Is this something fish do? His color goes from almost white and no activity to being bright orange and healthy (still sunkin’ in belly though) and he’ll move a little more...

Treated him with erythromycin drops in the tank twice a day and I bought him some water treatment for healthy bacterias and promoting slim coating.

He’s not really progressing or getting worse... he’s still just laying there... same position all day, never moving.

Any advice?? I have no clue where to go from here.

Thanks!
-Mel

Contributed by: Melinda»5

On: January 12, 2008, 10:07 pm

Hi,

So I have been treating Bubba for a couple months now, and he just lays there all day... sometimes he swims a little (sideways and never really leaves the rocks, just kinda slides across the tank). I feed him now, I’ve noticed as long as I put the food up to his mouth he’ll eat, but he won’t go get it on his own.

I upped his temp to 82 degrees (Farenheit). I change about 20% of his water every 10 days or so. I put in water conditioner (the aloe vera stuff to help his slime coating and it has vitamins for him). I give him the antibiotic still (I’ll continue until I finish the bottle). But I have run out of ideas... he isn’t getting any better, but he’s not getting worse either. It’s been at least 4-5 months. Any advice?? Maybe I’ve overlooked something??

Thanks,
Mel

Contributed by: Marcello Tosti»1

On: January 13, 2008, 8:30 am

Hi, I have 3 small red devils in a 30 gallon tank but they seem to be scared and hide between the rocks.

What should I do?

Contributed by: Nathan»10

On: January 23, 2008, 8:24 pm

Hello again from Australia!
Just wanted to thank you guys for your advice back in November about how to move my fish from one tank to the other. The bath tub idea worked really well and I recommend it to anyone wanting to move their fish. "Terror" (my red devil) was more than happy to wait in there and was very calm the whole time. I do have another question for you. I want to know if you think it would be a good idea to try feeding him small yabbies (fresh water crayfish)? I often feed him shrimp (like prawns) from the river which he loves and these small yabbies often turn up in the shrimp nets. The thing is that the yabbies have very powerful claws and even a 4cm one can give quite a nip. It is usual practice to use yabbies as bait for our native fish (murray cod, golden perch etc.) and a 30cm golden perch can easily swallow a 10cm yabbie, hook and all. Do you think a red devil (terror is around 8 inches now) would eat them or is there nothing like them in his natural environment? If you could let me know what you think it would be great as any supplement to his normal diet of pellets, meal worms etc. is obviously good, especially when it is free!
cheers
Nathan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 25, 2008, 12:30 am

Hi Nathan, I am glad to hear from you again:). Regarding yabbies; it’s not a good idea in my opinion. However, you could try this... Try to kill some yabbie before you put him into the fish tank. Then check your Terror’s behaviour and if he starts eating him very fast, then go ahead and try live yabbies as well. But be careful; I have seen small crayfish which injured bigger fishes.

I’d say it’s similar to Puffers and the common feeling that they eat Ramshorns; They eat Ramshorn snails, but only a few times a day. Man can never say what will happen and when it will happen.

Contributed by: nathan»10

On: January 25, 2008, 4:47 pm

Hi guys,
Thanks for the reply! Your advice turned out to be very good. I fed him a dead yabbie which he sucked up and chewed on for a second but then spat out again. Had it been alive it could have nipped him and that would have been bad. Thank you. An interesting thing happened when I put my arm into the water to get the yabbie out again, Terror actually made a half hearted attack at my arm. He did not actually bite me but swam at my arm shaking his head and then retreated and sat looking at my arm with all of his fins flared out. I guess this is because he is getting bigger and is a territorial thing but it does make me nervous about cleaning the tank. Is there any way to make him calmer when I do this or is it just a case of being careful? Thanks again for your time.
Regards
Nathan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 26, 2008, 12:51 pm

@Nathan: Glad to hear that the advice helped you:).

Regarding controlling aggression: There are a few things which could help. Turn off the lights, feed him before cleaning, do cleaning during afternoon hours when the fish is not as active as in the beginning of the day. However, it also depends on the fish’ personality.

Contributed by: nathan»10

On: January 27, 2008, 12:12 am

Thanks, I will try these things and see what happens.
Cheers!

Contributed by: ryukin84»1

On: January 27, 2008, 10:42 pm

Hey.. Am I allowed to keep 2 red devils together even though they are males?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 28, 2008, 3:21 am

@ryukin84: Yes. However, your aquarium should be big enough. People usually raise fish in aquariums of inappropriate sizes and no wonder that fish kept in such tanks are more aggressive than they should be.

Contributed by: byte1278»1

On: February 6, 2008, 11:24 pm

HI guys. I ordered a red devil from my pet store and when I pick it up it is of a grey colour with white stripes and a couple of black dots. I keep reading about orange and yellow fish but no grey. I haven’t had one before so do I have the right fish?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 7, 2008, 12:06 am

@byte1278: Don’t worry about colours. If the body is the same, then it should be a Red Devil cichlid.

For example, open google’s images search and type this phrase into the search box: "Amphilophus labiatus". You should see mostly the red specimens, however there are yellow ones, even one is white/grey.

Colours can be a result of breeding for commercial purposes.

Contributed by: Nathan»10

On: February 19, 2008, 1:33 am

Hello again!
Well I do not know what to do, my red devil "terror" wants to kill me!!! I have tried all the above advice but things are getting worse. He is now almost 10 inches long and growing fast and has actually started biting me. Every time I put my hand in the tank to remove excess food scraps or to clean and vacuum he will attack me. His attacks are extremely aggressive and he removes skin from my hand every time. He is not even afraid of me flicking my fingers or the vacuum tube at him. I want to try wearing some sort of glove but am not sure what will be safe for him. Will a material glove cause digestive problems for him if he swallows some? Will a chain glove hurt his teeth if he bites it? Don’t get me wrong I think it is cool that he is such an aggressive predatory fish and know that this is his nature but it is not much fun being bitten all the time! Do most people have this problem or is it rare?

Cheers guys, love your work!

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 19, 2008, 3:04 pm

Hi again Nathan:), sorry to hear about these problems.

I’d definitely use the chain glove (very good idea)! It won’t damage your fish’ teeth for sure. Regarding your second question, I think it’s rare. But it’s just my opinion.

Contributed by: knm5077»1

On: March 9, 2008, 11:07 pm

I got a red devil not too long ago... I/my mom feed it regularly... However, the back sides of his eyes used to be a gorgeous red, now they are almost entirely black. Also, the weirdest thing happened.. I went away last night, and I come home today and noticed it's lips were a teeny bit black, nothing really at all. So I did my normal routine, and when I went back in my room late at night his entire bottom lip was covered! The little white spot on the bottom of his back fin is turning black and the tip of his top and bottom fin are getting black. He also appears to be getting a black stripe thing down his side. It happened very fast and it worries me. I know people say young fish can have color changes but do they come on this fast? A couple hours? Also, I did google pictures of red devil cichlids... And I may be blind but I saw NONE with black in them. This is freaking me out! Is my fish OK?

Contributed by: adam»3

On: April 2, 2008, 5:34 am

Hi,
I have a red devil and for the last 2 days he’s just been lying on it’s side. He doesn’t move. He’s looking fine and he’s breathing normally but he just can’t move himself. Before he got like this he ate quite a few feeder fish, more than normal. Could he just be really full or is it something else?
Please help, I’m very worried.
Thanks!

Contributed by: tom»3

On: June 15, 2008, 9:40 am

Hi, I have an 9 inch red devil. And just recently ran into a new problem... He bites me. When I try to do water changes and need to put my hand in the tank, he attacks. Just now he bit through the skin. What can I do? I want to continue to do water changes, but don’t want to get bitten.

Contributed by: Wulfgar Oira»1

On: July 8, 2008, 3:56 am

I have Five adult Red Devils at my pond, and dozens of smaller red devils. I like to watch them, they come together in group. Every morning I watch them and they all come to stare at me. My female red devil is more aggressive than the male ones. She keeps on eating every now and then. Every two months she keeps on breeding. And I'm happy for that because my smaller fry are joyful.

Contributed by: Avanthi»1

On: July 13, 2008, 9:34 pm

Hi, I have a female red devil who contantly keeps laying eggs. Unfortunately everytime we put another fish in there she eats him.. do you think it’s a good idea to possibly find a male red devil close to her size? We’ve had her for about 5 years or so so she’s pretty big and really hard to find a male that size. Also, she has just laid eggs and she repeatedly went to the surface of the water near the filter tries to catch some bubbles (i think..) and then brings them to her eggs. I’m not exactly sure what she is doing, do you have any idea? Is this healthy behavior?

Contributed by: Anonymous»70

On: August 31, 2008, 12:19 pm

HELP ME! I have a 10 year old 12 inch red devil that is sick. I was told she had HITH disease. I’ve tried melaflex, maracyn, and now she’s on metronidazole. She doesn’t seem to be getting better. I’ve been doing 25 % water changes every three days and tried giving her a better variety of food but she’ll only eat Hirarki pellets. What else can I do?

Contributed by: Sapna»1

On: November 18, 2008, 2:40 pm

My red devil cichild has red rashes on the body suddenly. Can you please help me understand the reason? I also noticed somehow the heater has set the temperature to 84 degree. We had it set to 78 degree. May be the fish moved the heater and the setting is changed. Could this be the reason for rashes? Please help!

Contributed by: admin»665

On: November 18, 2008, 4:40 pm

@Sapna: If rashes were caused by increased temperature (which seems weird to me, but assume that it could happen), then everything should become OK after a few days in normal temperature.

Otherwise it’s only Erythrodermatitis which seems possible to me. See Bala Shark’s profile where I already wrote about this disease. I think that every fish store should sell medicaments to cure this.

Contributed by: Kentucky »1

On: January 12, 2009, 9:29 pm

Hello, My Red Eyed Devil is a very busy fish. He constantly picks up gravel and makes piles in the front of his tank. He has dug a cave under some rocks and goes inside to hide. He also moves plants around in the tank. Is this normal behavior for him or is he unhappy with his tank?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 14, 2009, 6:17 am

@Kentucky: It is very normal :) . You should be happy that you keep such an active fish ;) . Not all fish keepers can say this as their fish do not move too much and they’re not active at all. Moving objects, digging, playing... It’s all OK!

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: January 18, 2009, 5:40 pm

I have totally enjoyed reading all the questions and answers on this page... Here is my predicament... I am buying a 30 gallon tank but the catch is that I take the Red Devil that comes along with it... I just wanted to get back into a community tank but the people I am buying the tank from says the fish has to go along with it... My sister had a Red Devil years ago and she loved that fish with all her heart so I know what they are capable of. The good the bad and the ugly. I know 30 gallons isn't exactly what this fish needs but for the moment it has to do. I will try to give it a chance. I need to know basic set up for this tank, can I just fill the tank with lukewarm water and put the fish inside? I need BASIC TANK 101. The tank comes with a filter and a heater and hood, etc. and plants which BETTER be plastic. Do I need any special conditioners of any kind? Do I do anything special to get this fish off to a descent start here? Thanks for the wonderful info you provide. When my sister lost her fish 25 years ago till this day we still talk about him. She really never got over losing him.

Shotzyyy From Michigan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 18, 2009, 6:28 pm

@Shotzyyy:

1) As it’s mentioned at the top, the water must be between 22 and 28 degrees Celsius. Well.. at least it should be. So using a thermometer is wise and recommended. Long time ago I, by mistake, put fish into cold water and they got shocked. All survived, but it wasn’t a nice sight (they fell down to the bottom like rocks).

2) A filter and heater along with hood is good, basically you don’t need anything else. Plastic plants are good decision too.

I personally think that the most important aspect of acclimatization is food as long as water is of normal conditions. Make sure that you feed him (or her, assume it’s him) various foods of top quality. Always bear in mind that this species is a carnivore.

Especially in the beginning you’ll need test kits in order to know what is the fish swimming in. Many times people ignore Carbonate Hardness. Try to keep this value at 2 at least, preferably 4 or 5. I know it’s hard sometimes, but with plastic plants and 1 fish inside it isn’t impossible (the more fish or the more plants are in the tank, the more carbon they "consume").

Maybe someone has different suggestions :) .

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: January 19, 2009, 7:58 am

Thanks for the information and so quickly. I am picking up my new red devil on this week. I did find out that the filter the man has going it very good. He says it can filter even a 200 gal tank with no problem so I imagine it will be great with a small 30. I finally got to see this fish in person. He is still a juvenile and his "hump" is just now starting to show up so this fish cant be that old. I do believe he will be fine in this 30 gal for awhile so I am relieved. He's a absolutely stunning fish, so orange like a fireball and his fins and body are in excellent condition. He will be housed alone I have no desire to watch him tear up anything but goldfish at this time lol. I am very excited and when I get him all set up I will send a picture along so you can see him. I will see his attitude and personality and I will name him in a week. I sure hope I don't end up with Hitler name or Terminator. Lol. Wish me luck all and I will keep checking on those hardness levels. The man who has him now has him in a very dark gravel and a black background. Totally manly and that has to change! I told my sister I will get him a nice yellow gravel and a nice background like coral reef and she said the poor fish will need sunglasses from the Redecorating. I will send a picture when I get him situated. I am sure I will need help along the way so thank god I have this website in my favs. Keep posting all I need all the info I can get. Shotzyyy In Michigan

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: January 22, 2009, 3:55 pm

I just wanted to say I did get my red devil and his tank is all set up and he’s inside! I have everything tested and complete and I am relieved that this fish ate tonight just before I checked on his temperature before I heading to bed. One thing I do want to know that nobody has touched on here......Bubbles! I did NOT get an aerator pump so I went out and purchased one and I have the bubbles coming up from the bottom of the tank behind some plastic plants. Do red devils need a lot of aeration? Nobody has seemed to mention that. Anyway I have no name for my fish yet but I will wait until a week passes and then will decide what his personality dictates. I pray I have good luck with this fish he has already captured my heart. He comes to the glass and backs up and puffs up and blows towards me lmao I had to laugh out loud. Thanks for listening to my drooling. Wish me luck all. I have pictures, can I post them anywhere?

Shotzyy In Michigan

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 23, 2009, 9:44 pm

@Shotzyyy: Aeration is always a thing to consider. Usually, if you keep only one fish in the tank, you don’t need to aerate the water too much. The opposite is if the fish tank is overcrowded, if fish produce plenty of excrements, and so on.

Basically if your fish isn’t only at the top trying to breathe the atmospheric air, then everything is OK. Bear in mind that the oxygen concentration depends on nitrates, water flow and such factors.

Regarding pictures: See the picture at the top of this page. You can see another image besides saying "Upload pictures of your fish...". Click on it, upload pictures (max. 8MB at once) and don’t forget to check your mail inbox to verify the upload - without verification the upload will not be reviewed ever).

Good luck, BTW:).

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: January 28, 2009, 2:07 pm

Oh I need advise!!!! I have had my red devil now about a week now and I am in love with him already. He is thriving and eating pellets and I give goldfish only as a treat. The tank is newly set up with new gravel etc. I have a new filter in this tank as well. I have a problem and that is cloudy water!!!! I have added those drops that clear the water and they works beautiful for one day only then the tank clouds up again. It’s only been a week am I asking for too much having nice clear water going maybe it's to soon. I am positive the tank filter is running correctly. I am not over feeding. What else can I do to get this water to clear up here? Maybe I am pushing it to much since it's only been a week. Temperature is 78 and stays there always. Please, give me some advise. I have spent so much money already I had to keep buying different products. Thanks; Shotz in Michigan.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: January 28, 2009, 10:25 pm

@Shotzyyy: The only thing that helps is changing water on a daily basis. You don’t need chemicals. The fish won’t be too happy that you change water each day, but it’s necessary. Also visit the article which is linked as cloudy water, please.

Cloudy water is normal, you don’t need to worry. Just keep changing the water until it stabilises. In my aquariums I don’t change water usually... I just add what has evaporated. Your aquarium can behave similarly, just give it time and water changes:).

Contributed by: vnillacoffee»1

On: January 31, 2009, 11:13 am

I googled the problem I’m having with my red devil and found this page. I was reading about Melinda’s fish, poor Bubba! What rang a bell with me was that my fish has not eaten in months either! I don’t know how he’s surviving! I never did see any replies to Melinda on Bubba’s not eating, but I’m hoping I get one.

Contributed by: Sidu»1

On: February 1, 2009, 10:29 pm

Hi,
Today morning when I noticed my red devil, it had some black lines on its dorsal fins and also it has some black spots nears its mouth. Is this a disease? If som how do I treat that?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 7, 2009, 3:56 am

@vnillacoffee: No-one answered Melinda because it’s very rare to see a fish which doesn’t eat for so long. I can’t understand it too (why some fish doesn’t eat for a few weeks/months).

@Sidu: This can be a disease, but not always. You should keep monitoring the fish and if other symptoms are noticed, you should change the water (100%) and you should visit the nearest aquatic store and buy some medicaments. I know only two diseases which cause dark spots; Pleistophora and problems with nerves. But it’s also possible that your fish is healthy and that the colour change was just temporary or it was normal.

Contributed by: JulieSC»1

On: February 11, 2009, 7:49 am

My red devil has recently (within the past week) developed "sores" that resemble "zits" for lack of a better descriptive word. I discontinued feeders at least a year ago so not related to that. She’s in a 100-gallon tank with a pleco, clown knife, red oscar & jack dempsy. No one is a new tenant, they have all cohabitated since I added the jack a year ago. Also no one else has these "sores". I’m assuming it’s a parasite but have no idea wich one. Please help! Thanks, JulieSC

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 11, 2009, 4:49 pm

@JulieSC: Erythrodermatitis, Fish leech. Nothing else comes to my mind at the moment. Medicaments can be probably bought in any shop, just mention these diseases. Search for "Erythrodermatitis" on this page, it has been mentioned a few times already.

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: February 13, 2009, 2:25 am

Hello again, just a report to let you know my tank DID clear up and I didn't have to use chemicals at all. I have to report my fish and tank are doing wonderful (cross fingers here). I also have a question about the comment above the gal stopping feeder fish. Is this something I should be doing as well? I only give a few as treats and not the main source of food but if feeders are the main trouble for parasites then should I stop given them to Humpty? Also I have to report that my fish is not the Hitler that everyone says they turn into. Actually my fish after only three weeks allows me to feed him Krill by hand. He looks for me and demands my attention with his wiggling. Also one more question. What else can I feed him? So far I do KRILL/BLOODWORMS/HAKARI CICHLID FOOD/FEEDERS but now I am afraid. Also somebody mentioned Beef; what sort of beef and do I give it raw? These fish eat steak lmao. With the cutbacks I have had in my grocery bills due to the economy if my husbands sees me feeding my fish Steak I think I will see Humpty floating and it won't be in his tank! Thanks again for help and I hope the gal gets her fish skin thing fixed. Shotzyyy In Michigan.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: February 13, 2009, 4:14 pm

@Shotzyyy:

1) Feeder fish, just like any other kind of live food, can be a source of parasites and diseases. If your Red Devil has been eating fish of which you know that are healthy (for instance, you have two tanks; in one is the Red Devil, in another you keep Guppies which breed and which become Red Devil’s food someday), then you don’t need to worry. But if you’re buying feeder fish, then the chance of introducing some disease is higher. Keep the feeder fish healthy, and your Red Devil will be healthy too.

2) Your Humpty’s diet doesn’t need any modification in my opinion.

3) Regarding beef: In (aquatic) shops you can buy frozen beef heart for instance. This is meant as beef in general. However, you can always buy (just like you did) the meat from "ordinary shops for people". Anyway... This can be, just like feeder fish, a source of diseases. If you want to feed your Red Devil beef heart, you should bear in mind that this can cause illness. On the other hand, this fish isn’t Tetra which can happily accept flakes or dried food every day.

If I had to make a choice, I’d keep Guppies in one tank (or other livebearers which reproduce very fast... Mollies, or so) and I’d feed the Flowerhorn these fish. Naturally, combined with bloodworms and other foods that you already mentioned.

And the last thing... Even though I’ve been feeding my fish frozen food or beef heart, they haven’t been sick. The chance of introducing some disease is very low, but it still exists.

Contributed by: Kita»1

On: February 28, 2009, 11:01 am

Hi,

My I have had my red devil steward for about 7 years since he was as little as a gold fish. Now he is about 8 inches and is in a 35 gallon tank. His water kept getting green and filled with algae so I would take about 15% of it every week, then I changed filter brands a couple of times. Finally I took a sample of his water to the pet store, the guy checked it and said that he was healthy and there really wasn't nothing he could do. But try some algaefix. I took his water out, cleaned his rocks and castles and put the algaefix in. His water is really clean and has stayed clean but steward has been moving around he looks like he's going to die. HELP, what's wrong with him?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 4, 2009, 7:03 am

@Kita: Chemicals that kill algae usually kill all bacteria in the tank too. So, what happened is that probably all nitrification bacteria have been killed and the level of poisonous chemicals has became very high. Nitrification bacteria help to eliminate these dangerous substances. If you kill them, then you start the aquarium from zero.

There are "bacteria starter kits" available in shops and you should buy some. However, before you do so, make sure that the ammonia level (and related chemicals) has exceeded acceptable values. Firstly buy test kits, and only if you’re sure that nitrification bacteria are missing, add bacteria starter kits into the water.

If it’s not about bacteria, then you should watch symptoms (since it’d be a disease in such a case) and start treatment as soon as possible.

Contributed by: sHOTZYYY»7

On: March 24, 2009, 6:57 am

Help! My Humpty has been doing fantastic since my posts above. Just today I looked in his tank and noticed that he has a white small dot on his tail in the middle. It's not ick, I don't think because the rest of his body is fine. He is eating fine and I am doing water changes and all is going good here. This spot is one small circle like a grain of salt or a little bigger. Fish is in excellent health except for this little spot I see now. Should I treat with ick medicine or is it a fingal thing? Just in case I put my temperature up to 80 and just treated the tank for ick. Please, respond also how high water temperature can a red devil handle? I check him daily and this popped up overnight. Thanks as always.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 27, 2009, 5:11 am

@sHOTZYYY: You shouldn’t treat him for ich unless you’re sure it’s the white spot disease. Sometimes as fish get older, white spots appear on their bodies; My own fish do have them too (only the oldest specimens). I was worried when I spotted the thing for the first time, but then I realised that it’s nothing special. It comes with age.

On the other hand... if you treat for the possible disease, the you can’t lose (except for the bacteria which are usually killed by medicaments). Keep monitoring the fish. If the white spots appear on the entire body, it’s ich for sure. If these white spots turn to bloody injuries, then it’s some parasite.

If the white spots don’t appear on other parts of the fish, then you can let it be.

PS: Next time don’t submit CAPITALISED comments, please :) . It will speed up publishing and answering.

Contributed by: Shotzyyy»7

On: March 28, 2009, 12:26 pm

Sorry for the caps I didn't realize at the time. First thanks for the great information. I did do a three day ick treatment and I don't think it was ick at all. I am still doing to do the water changes because the tank is still new and it's still getting its sea legs. My fish is doing just fine and hasn't been bothered by this tiny white seed thing that has suddenly showed up on his tail fin ( middle area of the fin). Also I am having trouble with the website here. I have a purple list that is showing up now that I can't X out and I can't see the questions and answers completely. It starts with Main and goes down and it's covering the entire area of the forum here. I am duped as to how to get rid of it. Actually as I type I can't see once it goes behind the list.. Help if you can I love this site and I love to read all the information I learn here. I always go back through the Q and A. Thanks again and I am watching that white spot and not panicking again. Shotzyyy

Contributed by: null»1

On: March 30, 2009, 3:50 am

Hello, I had baby red devils this weeks, lots of them. I took the other two who aren't their parents out and now it's just family. My question is, at what time can I put my jack, oscar, and two other red devils back inside?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: March 31, 2009, 7:47 pm

@Shotzyyy: Hopefully your fish does fine. Regarding the menu: There are a few things you can do; Firstly make sure that you’re using an up-to-date internet browser. The best browser is Firefox or Opera; Not Microsoft Internet Explorer. Secondly, make sure that your screen resolution is at least 1024x768 (the bigger, the better). Lower resolutions aren’t supported because only about 3%-4% of visitors do use it. The design has been changed because of this. Sorry for these problems.

Soon it will be possible to close the menu, give me some time :) . Thanks!

PS: Sorry for overdue in answering, I’ve got a new dog from pound ; she needs a lot of time as she’s very shy.

@null: This depends on how big other fish are. In general, "safe size" of newborns is 6-7 cm. However, bear in mind that I don't know how aggressive your fish are. So instead, I would recommend you placing a divider into the tank.

Contributed by: Ericka»1

On: April 7, 2009, 8:39 pm

Hi, I have a Red Devil, he is about 4 inches long, he got really big really fast. I had it in with other cichlids which was a mistake. He would fight all of them keeping them in one side of the tank or kill them. So I moved him and a Texas Cichlid to another tank. I'm not sure if texas cichlid is the real name of the other fish since I haven't found a picture of a fish that looks exactly like mine but that's the name they gave me at the store. They are both the same size but I notice that the Red Devil would pick on the other one so now I put a separator in the middle of the tank, the Red Devil cleared the bottom of the tank in one spot and stays around there, he also doesn't eat much. Any suggestions? I thought it might be a female wanting to lay eggs but I don't have a male and can't so it's sad.... But then I don't know?

Contributed by: Dexx»1

On: April 25, 2009, 8:42 pm

Hello,

My Red Devil was completely orange and in the past week developed several black smudged areas around his mouth and head. The first black areas appeared around his mouth so I thought that he got dirty from moving the rocks and logs around the tank (he was doing some major redecoration that week). Now I see that he also now has black striping on his tail and fins. Is this normal? I have read about Red Devils changing colors during maturation but have never witnessed it before.

Contributed by: admin»665

On: April 30, 2009, 2:01 am

@Dexx: Colours may change because of a several reasons; Including poisoning, stress, maturation. You don’t need to worry if fish eats and if the water is of good quality.

Additionally you can upload the pictures, so people (and I) will be able to help you a little better.

Contributed by: Josy»1

On: May 15, 2009, 10:58 am

I have an African cichlid tank. I just bought a baby red devil today and I am afraid to put him in with the bigger Africans. I know that he is an south American fish, but the people at the fish store told me it would be okay, but I am still worried. I have a lot of rocks in the tank. What should I do?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: May 19, 2009, 5:54 pm

@Josy: You should be ready to use a divider. Introduce the fish into the aquarium in the morning and keep monitoring the situation.

Usually, when a fish is put into the tank, others may be aggressive toward newcomer, but it shouldn’t end up as death. It is important to understand this process.

Contributed by: Jen B»2

On: May 31, 2009, 2:33 pm

Our Red Devil Franky, seems a bit moody lately. Yesterday and today, he’s "Playing Dead" lying on his side on the bottom of the tank motionless. As soon as you go to get up or walk near, it’s like his ears prick up and starts swimming round normally again. He’s still eating normally, and coming up for his head scratches and pats, it’s just when he plays dead that freaks us out. The place where we got him said he could be Bored or Sulking, and to put a smallish ball in the tank to keep him amused or some other fish to keep him active. I’ve had a large goldfish in there before so I put him and another one in with Franky. Since then, he’s only played dead once... Has anyone else experienced this or can shed some light?

Contributed by: admin»665

On: June 5, 2009, 4:42 am

@Jen B: It’s normal. Fish need entertainment too. Even though I haven’t experienced this behaviour with Red Devils, I see my dog behaving in a similar way; she’s sleeping when at home, she doesn’t play too much with toys. But when we’re out and meet some other dog, she wants to play all the time. Humans should act similarly too. It’s all about socialisation.

Contributed by: Jen B»2

On: June 9, 2009, 8:29 pm

Re: Franky he’s since gotten worse. We got him a Plecostomus. I think it is as a friend, and he was all in love and happy, and after 2 days, he’s now at the bottom ALL the time again and now won’t budge if you tap the glass. He’s stopped eating at all, and just lays on his side still, and like he’s gasping for air. He came up for pats and scratches last night but today ... nothing. I’ve noticed inside his mouth ( his gums I would guess ) that they’re quite red. I’m not sure is they were like this before, but I don’t think it was. He used to eat blood worm, and a fair bit too. Now, nothing. We’re really worried. We’ve done water changes, and put some wood in the tank so he can " nest " but he’s not having a bar of it. He’s about 12 inches, so a big boy, and we bought him about 3 months ago. I know this is gross but I’ve watched him Poo, and it’s nothing like it used to be...... I’m worried he may have a parasite or worms or something of the like.

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Red devil cichlid - Amphilophus labiatus