Black ocellatus
Lamprologus speciosus
moderatesemi aggressivebottom swimmerCichlidae
- Adult size
- 4 cm2 in
- Start with
- 1
- Tank length
- 12 cm5 in
- Lifespan
- 5–8 yrs
- Temperature
- 24–28 °C75–82 °F
- pH
- 7.6–9
- Hardness
- 10–30 dGH
- Diet
- carnivore
Tiny colonial shell dweller; provide far more empty shells than fish over fine sand.Tiny colonial shell dweller; provide far more empty shells than fish over fine sand.
Tank sizes
Good tankmates
Avoid with
- Banded gourami
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Bandit cory
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Black kuhli loach
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
Black neon tetraNo shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Black phantom tetra
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Blackline rasbora
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Bleeding heart tetra
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Blind cave tetra
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Bloodfin tetra
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Blue acara
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Blue emperor tetra
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
- Blue lyretail
No shared pH rangeNo shared pH range
Sources
| temperature | 24–28 | AqAdvisor (aqadvisor.com), retrieved 2026-10-04; agrees with FishBase (fishbase.se), retrieved 2026-10-04 · medium |
|---|---|---|
| ph | 7.6–9 | AqAdvisor (aqadvisor.com), retrieved 2026-10-04 · low |
| gh | 10–30 | AqAdvisor (aqadvisor.com), retrieved 2026-10-04; agrees with FishBase (fishbase.se), retrieved 2026-10-04 · medium |
| origin | Southern Lake Tanganyika, East Africa | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · low |
| notes | Tiny colonial shell dweller; provide far more empty shells than fish over fine s | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| beginner friendly | false | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| care level | moderate | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| color palette | #4A4A4A, #8A7D6A | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · low |
| activity | sedentary | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| swim zone | bottom | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| temperament | semi-aggressive | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| fin nipper | false | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| long finned | false | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| territorial | true | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| schooling | false | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| schooling min | 1 | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| diet | carnivore | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| lifespan years | 5–8 | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · low |
| growth to adult months | 10 | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · low |
| length weight | {"a":0.025,"b":3} | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · low |
| planted safe | true | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |
| body shape | cichlid | curated-v0 (needs expert review) · medium |