Page 105 - Encyclopedia of Aquarium and Pond Fish, 3rd Edition

CHARACOIDS/TETRAS AND OTHERS 103

Bryconaethiops microstoma Prionobrama filigera
Small-Mouth Featherfin Tetra requirements of Small-Mouth Featherfins are quite Glass Bloodfin
specific; the water must be well oxygenated, with
ORIGINS Central equatorial Africa, occurring in Stanley good movement to replicate the fast-flowing ORIGINS South America, occurring in central and
Pool, lower Zaire, in fast-flowing water. stretches of water that they inhabit in the wild. southern Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina.
SIZE 6 in (15 cm). Being rather nervous fish, they need a well-planted SIZE 2 ⁄2 in (6 cm).
1
DIET Flake, small live foods, and algae. tank to provide plenty of hiding places. The tank DIET Prepared foods and small live foods.
WATER Temperature 75–82°F (24–28°C); soft should also be covered, because they are excellent WATER Temperature 72–86°F (22–30°C); soft
(50–100 mg/l) and acidic (pH 6.5). jumpers. Although algae form an important part of (50–100 mg/l) and acidic (pH 6.5).
TEMPERAMENT Placid, but does not shoal. their natural diet, they will often ignore alternative TEMPERAMENT Placid and social.
plant foods offered to them. Small-Mouth
The long trailing filaments on the dorsal fin are Featherfins have an unusually small mouth
seen only in the male Small-Mouth Featherfin, compared to other tetras and so should only Red base to
shown here; in the female, the dorsal fin is shorter be offered live foods of an appropriate size. caudal fin
and more rounded. Young Small-Mouth
Featherfins have a silvery body color,
which darkens with age. Female
The water chemistry Swim
bladder Glasslike
body
When backlit, the body of the Glass Bloodfin is
completely transparent. Sexing is straightforward,
because only mature males display a white
extension of the outer edge of the anal fin. An
aquarium for Glass Bloodfins should be shaded and
incorporate floating plants and retreats around the
sides. These active fish must also have plenty of
space in which to swim. When spawning, Glass
Bloodfins scatter their eggs among clumps of
vegetation. The eggs hatch about three days later.

Hasemania nana
ADAPTED TO LIFE UNDERGROUND
False Silver-Tipped Tetra
The Blind Cave Tetra (see opposite) occurs only reared in a well-lit environment. The principal
in a single Mexican cave system. Outside, in sensory input of these fish comes from the lateral ORIGINS South America, in the Rio Purus tributaries in
nearby rivers, the ancestral form of this fish line system, which runs along each side of the western Brazil and the San Francisco basin in the east.
can still be found, complete with natural body. This detects changes in water movements. SIZE 2 in (5 cm).
pigmentation and fully functional eyes. Blind Cave Tetras probably also have a good sense DIET Prepared foods and small live foods.
Reflecting their origins, Blind Cave Tetras can see of smell, because they have no problem finding WATER Temperature 72–82°F (22–28°C); soft
when they hatch but lose vision as skin grows enough food when competing with fully sighted (50–100 mg/l) and acidic (pH 6.5).
over the eyes. This happens even when they are species in aquarium surroundings. TEMPERAMENT Placid and social.
Eye is just visible A coppery body and contrasting silver tips on the
beneath the skin fins, including both lobes of the caudal fin, typify
the males of this small, shoaling species. Females
have a paler, silvery-gold coloration, as well as a
more rounded body shape, which is most obvious
when they are in spawning condition. A separate
spawning tank is needed to prevent the eggs from
being devoured. Hatching takes place in a day; the
free-swimming young require fry foods at first.

Black
streak

Silvery-gold
female

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