Peacock Bass (Butterfly Cichla)
Cichla ocellaris
The Amazon's Explosive Pursuit Predator (60-75 cm / 24-30 inches). Despite the misleading name, it is not a bass but rather one of the largest, fastest, and most spectacular predatory Cichlids on earth. Legendary in the sport-fishing world for its violent strikes, in the aquarium, it is a stunning centerpiece. Sporting dazzling olive greens, brilliant golds, and iconic black 'peacock' eye spots, it is an incredibly active, visually-hunting predator. It reaches massive sizes, requiring 1,000+ gallon tanks, industrial filtration, and an incredibly expensive, strictly meaty diet of raw fish to prevent fatal organ failure.
Température de l’eau
24 - 29 °C
Valeur du pH
6 - 7.5
Type d'eau
Eau douce
Niveau dans le bac
Tous les niveaux
Taille adulte
70 cm
Volume minimal du bac
>= 500 L
Groupe minimal
>= 1
GH
4 - 15 dGH
KH
2 - 7 dKH
TDS
80 - 295 ppm
Conductivité
125 - 461 uS/cm
Description de l'espèce
Geographical Origin and Habitat: Original Amazon Basin (Guanabara in Brazil, Suriname, Guyana). Populates the margins of large rivers, calm bodies of water, lagoons and flooded forests in search of schools of prey.
Taxonomy and Morphology: Peacock Bass (Cichla ocellaris). One of the most iconic and largest cichlids (and game fish). Comfortably reaches 60-70 cm (24-28 inches) and several kilos in weight. Torpedo body with a massive notched dorsal fin.
Social Behavior: Alpha pack hunter in youth, more solitary and aggressive adult. Pounces on fish with blindingly fast dashes.
Coloration and Sexual Dimorphism: Olive green/golden background with 3 blurred vertical bands, scattered spotting and, the distinctive trait, a large black ocellus circled in yellow (resembling a peacock's eye) at the base of the tail to disorient prey. Adult males with a conspicuous red nuchal hump.
Soins, reproduction et cohabitation
Aquarium Setup: Strictly a Monster Tank or public aquarium species (minimum 250-300 cm / 8-10 feet in length and 1000+ liters / 260+ gallons). Free water to swim, very sturdy wood to break up the territory. They do not ruin plants, but uproot them with movement.
Diet and Feeding: Ravenous piscivore. Will eat enormous amounts of whole prawns, fish fillets (tilapia, cod), earthworms and fleshy XXL floating or sinking pellets. Gets used to eating from hands immediately (watch your fingers).
Water Quality: Needs high temperatures (26-29°C / 79-84°F) to keep the immune system healthy and digest rapidly. Low or medium hardness. Essential to change 40% of the water weekly given the diet.
Compatibility and Cohabitation: Will devour anyone thin or short enough to fit in their massive extendable mouth. Can only live with giants: large Arowanas, freshwater stingrays, huge Pacu or Datnioides.
Aquarium Breeding: Possible in mammoth volumes (indoor pools). They lay thousands of eggs on flat rocks cleaned by the male. Parents unleash hell on anything that approaches, including stones or the aquarist's siphon.
Risks and Diseases: If purchased as juveniles, they suffer terribly from confinement in commercial aquariums and starvation. "Hole in the Head" is lethal and endemic in aquariums with nitrates over 40ppm or incorrect diets.
Origine et répartition géographiques
Original Amazon Basin (Guanabara in Brazil, Suriname, Guyana). Populates the margins of large rivers, calm bodies of water, lagoons and flooded forests in search of schools of prey.
Origine
Cosmopolite ou introduitAmazonie, Orénoque et GuyanesAmérique du NordOcéans tropicaux et récifs
Profil de poisson
- Tempérament
- Semi-aggressive
- It exhibits a strongly predatory, territorial, and moderately aggressive temperament toward other members of its own species. This cichlid is an active and explosive swimmer that requires wide open spaces to swim and perform rapid pursuits. In properly sized aquariums, it shows calm and regal behavior toward species that do not represent potential prey or territorial rivals.
- Régime alimentaire
- Omnivore
- This species is an extremely efficient carnivorous and piscivorous predator that requires highly proteinaceous foods. In the aquarium, it must be fed with meaty foods such as fresh prawns, mussels, raw fish fillets, and high-quality large pellets formulated for predatory carnivores. It is advisable to avoid feeding live feeder fish to exclude the risk of transmitting parasites and diseases harmful to the tank.
- Espérance de vie
- 10-15 years
- Taille adulte
- 70 cm
- Ratio des sexes
- Solitary
- Butterfly peacock bass do not strictly require a specific sex ratio in the home aquarium outside of breeding attempts. They are generally kept as solitary show fish or in small, heavily monitored groups in massive public-sized aquariums. If breeding is the goal, keeping a group of juveniles together until a natural pair forms is the best approach, as forced pairings of mature adults often lead to lethal aggression. Otherwise, sex ratio is largely an inapplicable metric for standard hobbyist setups due to their enormous tank size requirements.
- Fréquence d'alimentation
- Twice daily
- It is recommended to feed young specimens once or twice daily to support their rapid structural growth. For mature adults, the frequency should be reduced to feeding every other day or two to three times a week to avoid premature fattening of internal organs. This slowed rhythm mimics the natural hunting and prolonged digestion behavior of large predators in the wild.
- Charge biologique
- Extreme
- The butterfly peacock bass is a massive, predatory cichlid that produces a remarkably high biological load. Their diet consists of heavy, protein-rich foods such as whole fish, shrimp, and large pellets, which results in significant and rapid waste production. To maintain healthy water parameters, the aquarium requires heavy-duty filtration, massive biological media capacity, and frequent, large-volume water changes. They are entirely unsuitable for standard filtration systems and require specialized, high-turnover sump or canister setups.
- Courant
- Stagnant
- It prefers slow to moderate water movement, favoring calm river bends in the wild, but requires extraordinary oxygenation and filtration. A constant and well-distributed water flow supports the elimination of waste resulting from heavy meals and ensures a healthy environment. It is essential to have monumental sumps or external canister filters to ensure water purity.
- Risque de saut
- Yes
- This powerful, explosive predator carries an extremely high risk of jumping out of the aquarium. When striking at surface prey, fleeing from perceived threats, or simply being startled by external shadows, they can launch their heavy bodies completely out of the water with tremendous force. A weighted, heavy-duty lid is strictly required, as standard glass or light plastic covers can easily be shattered or pushed off by a mature specimen. Ignoring this precaution almost universally results in fatal jumping incidents.
- Reproduction
- Oviparous
- They are substrate spawners that form monogamous pairs during the breeding season in the Amazon basin. Both parents take care of preparing a smooth stone or flat surface for depositing the adhesive eggs, guarding them fiercely. Breeding in home aquariums is exceptionally rare due to the need for tanks of enormous proportions to house the breeding pair.
- Compatibilité et compagnons
- With caution
- This species is suitable only for cohabitation with monumental-sized and robust fish that cannot fit into its large protrusible mouth. Ideal tankmates include arowanas, large armored catfish, freshwater stingrays, and predatory cichlids of similar size. Any smaller fish will be considered food and swallowed instantly thanks to its lightning-fast hunting reflexes.
- Niveau dans le bac
- All levels
- These dynamic predators utilize the middle to upper levels of the water column to patrol and hunt. They are highly active cruisers that require massive amounts of open swimming space to thrive. While they may rest briefly near the bottom, their predatory nature draws them upward toward the surface to scan for food and strike at top-water prey. Aquascaping should be minimal and restricted to the bottom to allow unobstructed swimming in the upper regions of the tank.
Modèles et paramètres scientifiques
FishBase
Fenêtre sur les données scientifiques officielles de l’espèce
FishBase v25.04Données synchronisées le : 15/06/2026
- Niveau trophique
- 4,5 ± 0,8 se
- Résilience
- Élevée (moins de 15 mois)
- Singularité phylogénétique (PD50)
- 0.5
- Relation bayésienne longueur-poids
- a = 0.01148, b = 3.07
- VulnérabilitéVulnérabilité modérée à élevée (50 / 100)
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