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Perches
/ Monodactylidae / Striped Mono
Striped Mono, Striped Fingerfish, African Angelfish, Seba Mono
Psettus sebae | Pictures
Synonyms: Monodactylus
sebae
Physical description: A tall, disc-shaped fish with lateral compression.
The head is small, as is the mouth.
The
eyes are large and have a black band running through them.
The dorsal and anal fins are almost opposite
one other and the edge of the tail is almost straight. The body is silver to white in color while the fins are
body colored.
The front edge of the anal and dorsal fins is black.
This species has a black line running
across the gill cover connecting with the black of the anal fin. The back edge of the anal and dorsal fins is also
black.
Size/Length: To 8" (20 cm)
Similar species: Monodactylus
species.
Habitat: In estuaries of Zaire and Senegal rivers on the coast of West Africa.
S: all
Aquarium: 36" (90 cm) or 35 gallons (132 L).
Follow suggestions for
M. argenteus
.
Water chemistry: pH 7-8.5 (7.7), 12-30 dH (16), 75-82°F (24-28°C).
A 3% addition of salt is required.
Add
23 TSP. of salt to every 10 gallons of water (30 g/10 L).
Social behavior: As for M.
argenteus.
Suggested companions: As for M.
argenteus.
FOOD: Live; small fish, small crabs, shrimp, worms, insect larvae; pellets; peas; lettuce;
spinach; flakes; plant debris.
Sexual differences: Too hard to distinguish
Breeding techniques:
Spawning immediately follows a simple courtship where the male circles the female.
About
4, 000 eggs are laid.
These hatch in 24-60 hours.
Start feeding with newly hatched Brine Shrimp and other small live
foods.
Breeding potential: 10.
Spawning has been accomplished only a few times to date, and few details pertaining to
water composition are available.
Remarks: This saltwater species may occasionally visit freshwater habitats and should not be
considered a freshwater species.
Difficulty of care: 8.
This species requires brackish or salt water and a regime of frequent partial water changes.
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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