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Killifish
/ Aplocheilinae / Golden Pheasant
Golden Pheasant, Blue Gularis
Aphyosemion sjoestedti* | Pictures
Synonyms: Aphyosemion
coeruleum, Fundulopanchax sjoestedti, Fundulus caeruleum, F. sjoestedti, Nothobranchus sjoestedti.
Physical description: An elongated species with a fan-shaped caudal fin. The color depends entirely on the
population.
Two variants are most often seen; a green type and a golden morph.
The green variant has a background of
green with over-laying red spots and stripes.
The lower parts are blue and the belly is white.
The fins are green with red markings
and have a green edging.
Females are reddish-brown.
The golden race has an shiny olive-brown back, and green-gold to blue-gold
flanks.
The front part of the body is marked with dark red spots, while the rear part has several dark red,
transverse stripes.
The fins of this morph are elaborately elongated and green-gold in color.
Red splotches mark the fins.
Female
are brown-gold.
Size/Length: To 4" (10 cm)
Similar species: Other Aphyosemion
species.
Habitat: Ponds and marshy pools in coastal rainforest regions.
West Africa; Benin, Cameroon, Ghana,
Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Togo.
S: bottom, middle
Aquarium: A tank measuring 30" (76 cm) with a capacity of 20-25 gallons (75-98 L) is sufficient
for a male with two or three females.
Provide many retreats with rocks, wood, roots, and thickets of plants.
Use
a dark substrate, preferably peat and use subdued lighting.
Keep the tank well-covered.
Water chemistry: pH 6-7.5 (6.5), 2-12 dH (4), 70-77°F (21-25°C)
Social behavior: A lively species that is predatory towards small fish.
Keep one male with several females.
Suggested companions: Hatchetfish, Corydoras
, Loricarids, Pangio
, Congo Tetras,
some Mormyrids,
Pelvicachromis, Synodontis.
FOOD: Live; insects, insect larvae, Brine Shrimp, other crustaceans, fish fry; flakes are
occasionally accepted.
Sexual differences: Males are more colorful and larger than females.
Breeding techniques: Use a peat moss substrate or a container containing peat moss (See breeding of annual
in the introduction of Killifish) as this species buries its eggs.
Remove the peat from the tank after
spawning and allow it to
dry for a day.
Place the peat, which should be always kept moist, in a plastic bag,
and store it at a temperature from 64-75°F (18-24°C).
Be sure to air out the bag periodically.
After
four to eight weeks, the moss can be placed in a tank containing soft water.
After the fry emerge from the moss,
they can be fed on Artemia
nauplii
Breeding potential: 6.
This species is fairly easy to breed.
Remarks: As a result of this species' wide distribution, several regional/coloration varieties
are known.
This species is an 'annual' Killifish.
*Some ichthyologists suggest that
Fundulopanchax sjoestedti is the correct
name of this species.
Difficulty of care: 5.
This beautiful Killifish species tends to be aggressive towards others of its own species.
The
Golden Pheasant requires live foods in its diet.
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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