Oscar 7cm

Oscar

The Oscar cichlid is arguably the world’s most popular predatory South American cichlid and often the gateway species into the world of monster fish keeping. These fish have been in the aquarium hobby for almost 100 years and through that time there have been plenty of unique colour strains however these oscars are as true as they get and look almost exactly like wild oscars without being wild-caught. These will be an amazing consideration for aquarists trying to emulate a wild-type aquarium or if they just want to enjoy the natural colours of an Oscar.

Though most people think the red tiger Oscar is what wild oscars look like, they are actually a captive developed strain where the red scales are the main focus. These wild-type standard Oscars carry more shades of greens and browns with bold, jet-black patterning through the body and fins. The number of red scales is far less compared to red tiger oscars and in some cases may be non-existent aside from the tail spot. The personality of these fish though is still that beloved puppy dog behaviour that all captive oscars have which is part of the reason why oscars are so loved in the home aquarium. These oscars would also be great to mix into a group of newer colourful Oscar strains to provide some contrast as well.

Trying to find the males and females in this species is very difficult in comparison to other South American cichlids. There are no immediate distinguishing factors between male and female Oscars and it is best to let them pair off naturally. However, because they are a territorial fish it is at times difficult to house multiple oscars in an aquarium without it being very large. Naturally, the wild oscars are found in the Amazon River of South America.

Tank Recommendations for your Oscar
Oscars are big fish, growing to around 30 cm long, and are also considered to be messy fish. Because of this, it is best to keep them in a tank that is a minimum of around 380 litres. Though the internet may show recommendations for smaller tank volumes, in the long run, this can be detrimental to the fish as maintaining proper quality in smaller tanks with a full-grown Oscar can be very difficult. This size tank will not only allow for a full-grown adult Oscar but also the possibility for other tank mates.

The aquascape for an Oscar should be taken very lightly as these are big and often clumsy fish. They regularly scratch themselves and bump into scaling materials which could cause unnecessary injury, so it is best to keep them on a sand or gravel substrate with a few smooth river rocks and some driftwood to mark out territorial boundaries. Since Oscars come from dimly lit environments it will look cool to have these fish under some dim warm lighting tones to show off their patterning.

Suitable Tank Buddies
Oscars are big, boisterous fish which can be very territorial. Though Oscar's behaviour can range from slightly aggressive to highly aggressive, caution should be taken when they are kept with other fish because Oscar's voracious personality and feeding response can mean they outcompete tank mates for food.

Usually Compatible
Large-growing-- Central and South American cichlids such as jaguar cichlids, red devil cichlids, Veija cichlids, and species of a similar sort can be housed with Oscars.

Sometime Compatible
Geophagus, silver dollars, flag tail prochilodus, and other large growing fish species.

Rarely Compatible
Peaceful aquarium species and nano fish such as tetras or shrimp will become immediate food for the Oscar.

Feeding your Oscar
Oscar cichlids in general are by far one of the easiest fish to feed. They will eat any aquarium food given to them from pellets to frozen foods. Their diet should contain good quality floating or sinking pellets with high protein content. This should be supplemented with frozen foods such as bloodworms.

One thing to note is that they are messy eaters so feeding flakes might not be a good option. Oscars will often beg their owners for food by swimming up to the top of the aquarium in expectation of a meal, this behaviour often leads to aquarists overfeeding their Oscars. This not only causes poor water quality but can also lead to long-term negative health effects for the Oscars as well.