{"product_id":"gold-ocellatus-shell-dweller","title":"Gold Ocellatus Shell Dweller","description":"\u003csection class=\"mt-11\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-mk-serif text-[28px] leading-[1.1] text-pretty text-mk-heading\"\u003eOverview\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-3 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eThe gold ocellatus shell dweller lives on the bottom of the tank and makes an empty snail shell its home. It is mostly peaceful away from its shell and easy to keep.   The gold ocellatus shell dweller treats one empty snail shell as its whole world. It digs out sand to bury the shell at the angle it wants, and backs in tail first when anything bigger comes near. A female can spend most of her life within a few centimeters of her shell, raising batch after batch of \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#fry\" data-glossary-term=\"fry\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003efry\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e inside it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection class=\"mt-11\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-mk-serif text-[28px] leading-[1.1] text-pretty text-mk-heading\"\u003eCaring for the gold ocellatus shell dweller\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-3 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eGive gold ocellatus shell dwellers at least 11 gal (40 L). Lay a sand bed at least 5 cm deep so they can dig. Add more empty snail shells than fish, since each one needs a home base to claim. Spread the shells out so every fish has space.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-4 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eKeep the water hard and alkaline, at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) and a \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#ph\" data-glossary-term=\"ph\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003epH\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e of 7.5 to 9.0. Feed small sinking foods and crushed pellets, plus frozen cyclops, \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#brine-shrimp\" data-glossary-term=\"brine-shrimp\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003ebrine shrimp\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e or \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#daphnia\" data-glossary-term=\"daphnia\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003edaphnia\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-4 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eKeep one male with two or three females. They are mostly peaceful, but each fish turns fiercely \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#territorial\" data-glossary-term=\"territorial\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003eterritorial\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e in the small zone right around its own shell. Outside that patch they leave the open water alone, so they pair well with mid-water Tanganyikans. Keep the upper water open for those fish, since the shell dwellers stay down low.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-4 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eMales are larger, and females stay around half their size. They are easy \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#cave-spawner\" data-glossary-term=\"cave-spawner\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003ecave spawners\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e that breed readily inside the shells. The female tends the eggs and \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#fry\" data-glossary-term=\"fry\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003efry\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e in her shell.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection class=\"mt-11\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-mk-serif text-[28px] leading-[1.1] text-pretty text-mk-heading\"\u003eGood to know\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-3 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eThe gold ocellatus shell dweller is a dwarf \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/species\/cichlids\" data-inline-link=\"species\/cichlids\" class=\"text-mk-teal underline-offset-2 hover:underline\"\u003ecichlid\u003c\/a\u003e in the \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#genus\" data-glossary-term=\"genus\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003efamily\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e Cichlidae. Most fish in the trade are \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#captive-bred\" data-glossary-term=\"captive-bred\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003etank bred\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e, and they can live several years in good water.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection class=\"mt-11\"\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-mk-serif text-[28px] leading-[1.1] text-pretty text-mk-heading\"\u003eIn the wild\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"mt-3 text-[16px] leading-[1.65] text-pretty whitespace-pre-line text-mk-body\"\u003eGold ocellatus are \u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tankbud.com\/glossary#endemic\" data-glossary-term=\"endemic\" class=\"underline decoration-mk-faint decoration-dotted decoration-1 underline-offset-4 outline-offset-2 hover:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:rounded-[2px] focus-visible:decoration-mk-teal focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-mk-teal\"\u003eendemic\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e to Lake Tanganyika in East Africa. They live over open sandy stretches scattered with empty snail shells. The lake's water is hard and alkaline.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e\n\u003csection data-landing-section=\"\" class=\"mt-16 border-b border-white\/8 pb-10\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"@3xl:grid @3xl:grid-cols-[260px_minmax(0,1fr)] @3xl:items-start @3xl:gap-12\"\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"font-mono text-[11px] leading-none font-medium tracking-[0.16em] text-mk-faint uppercase\"\u003eWeekly picks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 class=\"font-mk-serif text-[28px] leading-[1.05] text-pretty text-mk-heading @3xl:text-[36px] mt-3\"\u003eTank mates\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"mt-4 @3xl:mt-0\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"text-[16px] leading-[1.6] text-pretty text-mk-body\"\u003eThe gold ocellatus shell dweller is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the bottom. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/section\u003e","brand":"Premier Tropicals","offers":[{"title":"1\"","offer_id":54366686511397,"sku":null,"price":26.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1027\/6071\/0437\/files\/IMG_1057.jpg?v=1793509368","url":"https:\/\/www.premiertropicals.com\/products\/gold-ocellatus-shell-dweller","provider":"Premier Tropicals","version":"1.0","type":"link"}