Tropical Fish - Neon Tetra

Neon Tetra

Tropical fish are popular aquarium fish, due to their often bright coloration. Brightly coloured highly active and extremely friendly, tetras are among the most popular of all aquarium fish. Paracheirodon innesi of the characin family, also called ‘the neon tetra’ is the most known freshwater fish kept at home aquariums. They are also relatively hardy and easy to keep, provided there are no other fish in your aquarium big enough to eat them. The fish is characterized by an iridescent blue horizontal stripe along each side of the fish from its nose to the base of the adipose fin, and an iridescent red stripe that begins at the middle of the body and extends posterior to the base of the caudal fin.

Wild Neon Tetras are highly prolific and have a minimum population doubling time below 15 months. Wild Neon Tetras inhabit very soft and slightly acidic waters in tropical regions of South America where the water temperature usually stays between 20 and 26 degree C (68 and 80 degree F). They shoal naturally in the wild and are thus happier, more brightly colored, and more active when kept as a shoal as opposed to singly. The difference is that the red stripe only halfway ups the body while it runs the full length of the body on the Cardinal Tetra. Distinguishing these two species from each other is however not difficult at all if you know what to look for. Wild Congo tetra is found in the warm waters of the Zaire river basin on the African continent, and your Congo tetra will therefore appreciate a water temperature in the 23-26 degree C (73 -79 degree F) range. Soft water is best, but a healthy Congo tetra will usually adapt to harder conditions as well.

Setting up a Neon Tetra Aquarium

The Neon tetra is an extremely popular aquarium fish, especially among beginner aquarists. The following are tips in setting up an Tetra Aquarium;

• A shoal of brightly decorated Neon Tetras will add colour as well as activity to the aquarium. Therefore, it’s recommended to buy a species tank with 50-100 neons.
• Unlike peaceful neons, some larger fish may harass on small neons.
• Keep in mind that most tetra species are less robust than the Neon tetras when it comes to water conditions.
• Neon's are perfect for any community tropical fish tank.
• Include fine textured aquatic plants in the set-up
• Include fish that mix well in an aquarium are other types of tetras, such as the rummy-nose tetra, cardinal tetra, and glowlight tetra, and other community fish that live well in an ideal Tetra water condition

Breeding Neon Tetra

In captivity, Neon tetras are considered quite difficult to spawn, especially among hobby aquarists since it can be hard to achieve perfect water conditions. Due to the difficult faced during spawning, it is advisable that old or unhealthy fish should not be bred. So how do you identify the spawning couples, females are more rounded than males and are usually bigger than males. The Neon Tetra or Paracheirodon Innesi is a small slim-bodied species of tetra. However, the 'straightness' of the line and the plumpness of the female might occasionally be due to the eggs she is carrying during spawning. This makes it closely related to other popular aquarium fishes like the Cardinal tetra Paracheirodon axelrodi) and the Green Neon tetra (Paracheirodon simulans). The neon tetra eggs are sensitive to light. Neon's should therefore be housed in a semi-dark aquarium with the bottom and sides in dark colours. Be sure to remove the adults after the eggs have been laid, as the adults will eat them. Feeding should be provided at least two times a day. Fry can be fed rotifers, especially infusoria and egg yolk for 1 to 4 weeks, followed by nauplii of brine shrimp, shaved cattle liver, and formulated diets. When the fry is roughly one month old, they will start displaying their adult colouration. They tend to be timid and, because of their small size, should not be kept with large or aggressive fish who may bully or simply eat them.