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How to look after
Astronotus ocellatus
Oscar, Velvet cichlid
(Agassiz, 1831)

There are several man-made varieties of oscar. This is the albino.
more images here

(Other members of the genus Astronotus)

ADULT SIZE: 35 cm

WATER CONDITIONS: Not critical

TEMPERATURE RANGE: 25-30 C

FOOD: Feed Astronotus ocellatus live and dried foods

DISTRIBUTION: This species comes from Brazil, Peru

AQUARIUM CARE: The Oscar is an aquarium favourite, being much more 'pet like' in its behaviour, it is a firm favourite with many aquarists. They are a large, long-lived species, and need to be well cared for if they are to thrive. They spend much of their time resting and playing, though they will 'strike' when feeding. They particularly relish nutricious livefoods; earthworms, prawn, fish etc. A good feeding readily triggers spawning.

BREEDING: Eggs are typically laid on a cleaned surface. A piece of slate is ideal, though they will dig a pit in the gravel if not provided with a suitable substrate. The eggs are fanned by both parents, and the the young grow quickly; like their parents they can eat endlessly.

Have you bred Astronotus ocellatus? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?, or examine existing Astronotus ocellatus breeding reports

Astronotus ocellatus
Oscar, Velvet cichlid

There are several man-made varieties of oscar. This is the albino.

Albino oscar

Astronotus ocellatus
Oscar, Velvet cichlid
breeding notes

BREEDING: Eggs are typically laid on a cleaned surface. A piece of slate is ideal, though they will dig a pit in the gravel if not provided with a suitable substrate. The eggs are fanned by both parents, and the the young grow quickly; like their parents they can eat endlessly.

Have you bred Astronotus ocellatus? Why not fill in a breeding questionaire?

This page summarises breeding reports provided by visitors to this site, along with some statistical analysis. Please feel free to contribute - whatever your experience! 2 breeders have filled in breeding reports, a summary of the results are shown in the graphs below. You can read the full reports here. To add details of your experiences of Astronotus ocellatus, why not fill in a Breeding and maintenance Report.
Would Astronotus ocellatus be a good addition to a community tank? Never Doubtful, only with VERY calm fish Only with species of similar size Yes, a good community fish	How would you describe the disposition of Astronotus ocellatus? Very timid Slightly timid Neutral Somewhat aggresive on occasions Very aggressive
In which water conditions do you keep these fish? Very soft and acidic Moderately soft and acidic Neutral Moderately hard and alkaline Very hard and alkaline	At what average temperature? 10-15°C 16-19°C 20-23°C 24-27°C 28°C+
What, if any is the biggest difficulty encountered when breeding these fish? Poor egg production Poor egg survival Poor fry survival rate Deformities Skewed sex ratio	How would you describe sex ratios when breeding Astronotus ocellatus? If you are unsure please leave this question unanswered. Almost all males Somewhat male heavy Roughly equal Somewhat female heavy Almost all females
In general, how difficult is Astronotus ocellatus to keep and breed? Very easy Easy Average Difficult Very difficult	How sucessful have you been at breeding Astronotus ocellatus? Very unsucessful Fairly unsucessful Average Fairly sucessful Very sucessful

Remember, each record represents only one persons experience; if you had different results, or used different methods, please share your experiences