Physical description: An elongated fish with lateral compression. Color varies from beige to light brown with black stripes that extends from the mouth to the tail. The fins are transparent. This fish has a pointed head and an upturned mouth for grazing algae. The iris is bright red. The belly is beige to white. The lips are red. A yellow line is located above the black stripe. Size/Length: To 8" (20 cm) Similar species: None Habitat: Still or slow-flowing water with floating plants. South America; in the Rio Negro, Rio Moiocu, Rio Tapajos. S: bottom, middle Aquarium: 40" (122 cm) or 40 gallons (150 l). Tank set-up should be as for others of the Anostominae family. See genus description. Use a filter that does cause much disturbance of the water. Peat filtration is recommended. Water chemistry: pH 5.0-6.5 (6.0), 0-8 dH (4), 75-82°F (24-28°C) Social behavior: Should either be kept singly or in groups of six or more. If kept in smaller groups, fish may fight. If kept singly, it does well in a community tank with medium to large fish. Suggested companions: South American cichlids that can tolerate acidic water, see A. anostomus. FOOD: Algae; vegetable; spinach, lettuce; fruits; vegetable flake food; plants; live; worms, crustaceans, aquatic insects, insect larvae. SEX: Females are said to be deeper-bodied than males. Breeding techniques: Unknown Breeding potential: 10. Breeding has not been successful in captivity. Remarks: This species swims in head pointing downwards position, grazing algae off rocks and searching for fallen food. Difficulty of care: 6. A hardy fish when kept in well-maintained water. The water should be peat-filtered and frequent partial water changes should be made. Recent articles about fish Overfishing may hurt Amazon forest trees (2/5/2008) Overfishing is reducing the effectiveness of seed dispersal by fish in the Brazilian Pantanal, reports Nature. The research suggests that fishing practices can affect forest health. Scientists find fish that literally lives in trees (10/17/2007) Scientists have found a fish that literally lives in trees, according to research published in The American Naturalist and highlighted in New Scientist Magazine. Piranhas originated when Amazon was flooded by seawater (12/4/2007) South America's piranha family of fish -- notorious as eaters of flesh -- can be traced back to a single ancestor which dispersed when the Amazon was flooded by seawater some five million years ago, report researchers from the Institut de Recherche Pour le Developpement (IRD). Today piranhas are exclusively freshwater fish found from the Orinoco River basin in Venezuela to the Parana in Argentina. |
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Copyright Rhett Butler 1994-2009 The copy for fish.mongabay.com was written in 1994-1995. Therefore some information such as scientific names may be out of date. For this, I apologize. Feel free to send corrections to me. |
