Breeding Cardinal Tetra (Paracheirodon Axelrodi) In The Aquarium

Location

This freshwater species lives in forest creeks and tributaries of Upper Amazon River.

Body description

This species is very similar to neon tetra (Paracheirodon innesi). This species has horizontal, red stripe which goes from the eye to the base of the caudal fin on the under-side. Neon tetra has this stripe shorter - from half of the body to the base of the caudal fin. Body of the fish is elongated. Colour of the body is silvery-olive. There is a horizontal, blue, lustrous, like neon stripe from the eye to the base of the fat fin. This neon stripe is very important for this species because these fish lives in "black water" reservoirs (water has dark color because there is a lot of tannin in it). This luminescent stripe helps the fish to see each other and then they can feed together. Male is thinner than female.

Temperament and behaviour

This is quiet, peaceful and shoal species. It prefers to swim at all water levels.

Aquarium decoration

You can keep these fish in a general tank or a biotope aquarium. They prefer to live in clean water, without accumulation of nitrate. The aquarium should have dimmed light, dark substrate and space to swim. A partial water exchange should be done regularly. You shouldn't keep this species with large fish, e.g. angelfish, which can eat cardinal tetras.

Breeding

This is an oviparous species. Breeding these fish isn't an easy task. Water in the aquarium should be very soft, acidic (pH=6) with 26°C water temperature. The fish spawn in group. Female lays up to 500 eggs in the evening. The eggs hatch after 1 day. The fry starts to swim and feed 5 days later. The parents don't take care for the offspring and you should remove them because they can eat the eggs and offspring. The eggs and larvae are sensitive to light and the aquarium should be covered so no light gets to the aquarium.