The killifishes of the genus Rivulus represent the most species-rich genus of New World Killis. We received recently beautiful R. rectocaudatus from Peru, which are unique due to their amazing orange anal and caudal fins, as well as due to their orange scales along the body.
Rivulus are not annual fish at all, but live as long as any fish of comparable size, may it be a tetra, livebearer or anything else. A very special thing in Rivulus is their tendency to travel over land when the weather is humid enough for that. In the wild, they jump from plant to plant, attaching their body on wet leaves. If they try to do the very same in a living room, this is usually fatal, so it s absolutely necessary to cover the tank. The fish will find even the smallest opening!
The sexes of the population we were able to import, are not so easy to distinguish yet, as the fish have a size of only 3-4 cm and thus all of them show the typical Rivulus-spot on the basis of the caudal, which is so typical for adult females. However, the males can already be recognized by the red border of the anal fin, which is completely orange in females. Adult males will get a blueish body, loose the caudal spot and develope a very charcteristic spade-shaped caudal fin, which stays round in females.
For our customers: the fish have code 344063 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Rivulus: Latin, means “small brook”. Probably the name was given, because the describer was told the fish live in brooks. rectocaudatus: Latin, recto means “straight”, caudatus means “tailed”, referring to the characteristic shape of the caudal fin.
Suggestion of a common name: Orange finned Rivulus, Spadefin Rivulus
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
| Angaben zum Tier | |
|---|---|
| Herkunft | Peru |
| Verfügbare Größe in cm | 3-4 |
