Family: Melanotaeniidae
Distribution: Melanotaenia praecox was initially found in the tributaries of the Mamberamo and Wapoga River systems in West Papua. They have since been found in the small creeks and swampy waterways near Siewa in the Tirawiwa River system, a remote area of northern West Papua.
PH: 6.5 – 8.0
Temperature: 24°C -28°C (72 – 79F)
Hardness: 5 – 30dH
Description: This miniature Rainbowfish exhibits the usual Rainbowfish characteristics of big eyes and twin dorsal fins. Additionally they have brightly coloured fins, yellow on females, red on males, and pinkish grey scales with neon blue tonings that range from brilliant lavender through to teal. Females are smaller and more silvery than males. They grow up to 6cm (2 inches).
Diet: Dwarf Rainbowfish are omnivores and will readily accept most commercial foods, whether live or frozen. Feed them high quality flake or pellet food and offer large amounts of live food like brine shrimp, blood worms and tubifex worms. They love chopped up, defrosted peas and will even eat garden lettuce as a plant food source. An easy feeder!
Breeding: Breeding Dwarf Rainbowfish is relatively easy. Get your breeding pairs into condition by feeding them higher quality and quantities of live and plant based food. Set up a separate breeding tank with lots of fine leaved plants or spawning mops and keep the water soft and acidic. Keep the breeding pair in a species only tank as they will cross breed with other Rainbowfish. Watch the female to make sure she doesn’t get stressed with the mating chase ritual.
While the breeding process is initially simple, the fry can be challenging to raise because of their size. The eggs will hatch within a week and should be removed to a separate tank to avoid predation. Feed on microworms or baby brine shrimp and keep them separate until they are old enough (about two months) to rejoin the community tank.
Comments: Dwarf Rainbowfish are extremely popular in the aquarium hobby because adapt exceptionally well to a beginner’s community aquarium. They bring their trademark peaceful, colourful personalities to the fray. Provide aquatic vegetation, submerged logs and other hiding places to keep your fish happy.
While Dwarf Rainbowfish are easy to keep, getting the most out of their spectacular colouration takes a bit of effort. Use a dark substrate and contrasting colour on the backing of the tank. Add floating plants and at least a third of the tank should be open water to encourage the fish to swim there. Allow for an extra few hours of sunlight to further display their radiance.
For basic care, replace at least 25-50% of their water weekly and make sure your tank is at least 20 inches long and 20 gallons in size. Secure a firmly fitting top as these fish love to jump.
Article/Books:
Recommended Compatible Species:
Rainbowfish are a great community species in terms of their temperament and apart from other Rainbowfish species they also live happily with most Tetra species (particularly the Neon Tetra and Black Tetra). They are also great tank mates with Discus, CorydorasCatfish (particularly Corydoras Sterbaiand Corydoras aeneus) Angelfish, Clown loach, the common Guppyand Platy and most Gourami(such as the Blue Gourami and Dwarf Gourami like the Honey Gourami) Also can live happily with most Danio(particularly the Zebra Danioand Pearl Danio) and also many Killifish make great tank mates. One thing you should take into consideration when housing rainbows with these recommended species is the water quality. Temperature and Hardness are similar but P.H. can be quite different, although it is not ideal, if you keep your water at a P.H. of 7 this should keep your community happy.
Rainbowfish are schooling fish and should be kept in groups consisting of at least six individuals, preferably no less than 10-15. Mix it up with enough females to give them a rest when the males are on the chase, but provide enough males to bring out their vibrant colours when they are in competition for female attention. Whilst this is beneficial to the health and wellbeing of the fish, a large school is rewarding for the aquarist because a school of iridescent Rainbowfish is more dramatic to the eye than a few shy fish peeking out from behind dense vegetation.
Originally posted 2009-11-22 12:57:55. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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