This cute blue-eye originates from the surroundings of the town Timika in the Indonesian province Papua on New Guinea. It was discovered and scientifically described relatively late (1999); at first it was thought to be the same species as P. reticulatus, whose locality is about 900 km further northwest (seen from Timika). But then it turned out that they are different species.
The animals reach a maximum length of about 3 cm (without caudal fin), males are slightly larger than females. In nature they live in strongly shaded jungle streams of about 2 m width. There pH-values between 6,7 and 7,8 and water temperatures between 24 and 28°C were measured. One must always keep in mind that such measurements are always only snapshots and in nature the values can occasionally deviate significantly up and down. Nevertheless they show that the species is obviously not adapted to extreme conditions.
The care and breeding are comparable with other blue-eyes. It is best to keep the completely peaceful animals in a group of 10-20 specimens of both sexes. They eat any common ornamental fish food, it only has to fit into the small mouth. Spawning takes place in fine plants, these fish do not practice brood care. The newly hatched fry are tiny and grow quite slowly.
For our customers: the animals have code 446022 on our stock list. Please note that we supply only wholesale.
This cute blue eye belongs to our standard offer; the animals are bred ones from Indonesia. Recently we received some very nice specimens. This “no name” variant stays a bit smaller (around 3 cm) than the popular variant from the Aru Islands (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/pseudomugil-gertrudae-aru-ii-xl-2/), which reaches almost 4 cm length.
Pseudomugil gertrudae has a relatively wide distribution in northern Australia, but does not occur uniformly everywhere, being scattered. In addition, it is found on many small islands and on Papua New Guinea. Since the different populations have no contact with each other, there are many subtle differences in coloration. However, this is probably also related to the respective biotopes. The measured water values in waters with P. gertrudae vary enormously: Temperature: 12 – 34 °C, pH 3,7 – 9,4, conductance 12 – 650 µS/cm, total hardness 0 – 18° dH, carbonate hardness 0 – 10° dH.
From this you can see: they are tough little creatures! In nature they usually live only one year. But in the aquarium they can live up to four years. During the day the males are continuously busy with courtship acts, flapping their fins like a butterfly with its wings. From time to time they also stretch their fins to the breaking point and sail around their mate or a rival. It is a great pleasure to watch the fish.
In the aquarium are continuous spawners that lay a few eggs a day – up to 10 or 12 per female, but usually less. The eggs are deposited in fine aquatic plants or artificial spawning substrates (spawning mobs). The parents do not care about the eggs or the fry, which hatch after 4-9 days (depending on water temperature).
For our customers: the fish have code 446002 on our stock list. Please note that we supply only wholesale.
Now we have obtained a third variant, which this time best corresponds to the “real” P. paskai, also a beautiful little animal. However, experts agree that this is also a color variant of P. luminatus, which we call P. luminatus “Blue” on our stock list. In contrast to the two previously imported forms, the Blue is much more surface oriented and almost always swims just below the water surface.
For our customers: the animals have code 446463 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
In 2010 this beautiful rainbowfish was discovered on a private expedition in eastern West Papua. It lives there in the Taritatu River (former: Idenburg River). At first it was thought to be a Chilatherina species, but genetic studies rather point to Glossolepis. The species could be brought back alive and propagated in the aquarium. Nowadays captive bred specimens even appear in the regular trade (eg not only among spezialised hobbyists), so good was the success to establish the species in the hobby.
This slender Glossolepis becomes about 12 cm long, females remain smaller. The photographed specimens are 8-9 cm long. A particularly striking feature of this species is the red anterior dorsal stripe, which the females also show, although much weaker than the males. In the high courtship (in this mood the animals come naturally in the photo tank hardly) the body ground coloration darkens to a wonderful blue.
For our customers: the fish have code 417603 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply exclusively to wholesalers.
Similar to rainbowfishes, hardyheads (Craterocephalus) are exclusive elements of the Australian fauna. That is, they are found only on the Australian continent and offshore islands (including New Guinea) that formed the large landmass called the Sahul during the Ice Age. Craterocephalus have two separate dorsal fins and, like rainbowfishes, belong to the mullet relatives, but in a different lineage called silverside relatives.
Aquaristically Craterocephalus hardly appeared outside Australia so far. We have now received from Indonesia – probably from the Indonesian part of the island of New Guinea known as Papua – hardyheads that are most likely Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum. This species grows to 9 cm long and there is also some aquaristic experience with it. It is considered to be very durable and peaceful. Concerning the water composition there are no special demands, a temperature between 24 and 28°C suits it. They will eat any common ornamental fish food, including dry food. The fish spawn on fine plants, they do not practice broodcare. There are hardly any external sex differences, females become a little more plump and the yellow coloration of the belly is less pronounced.
All in all Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum is a pretty, if not very colorful fish, but because of its unusual body shape it enriches a community aquarium very much. Craterocephalus should always be kept in a group, single individuals do not feel well.
For our customers: the animals have code 412453 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply exclusively to wholesalers.
An absolute rarity among the rainbowfish relatives is the ornate rainbowfish Rhadinocentrus ornatus. Within the genus Rhadinocentrus there is only one species, of which however several local variants exist. The reasons for the rarity of this fish in the hobby are that it is a subtropical species, so in the long run it needs certain seasonal variations in temperature (16-17°C on the one hand and 26-28°C on the other) and the water chemistry in its natural habitat, which is unusual for rainbowfish. There, the water is usually soft and acidic. Of course, the animals do not die if they are kept in normal tap water at the usual 25°C, but in the long run this is nothing and the reason why strains of the beautiful fish are lost again and again. Since there are no exports from Australia, its home country (it occurs from Fraser Island (southern Queensland) southward to Evans Head (northern New South Wales)), it can take many years before animals are available again for the hobby once a strain has become extinct.
These very slender, somewhat nervous fish absolutely must be kept in a group of at least 10, preferably 20 or more specimens. They grow to a length of 6-7 cm, are absolutely peaceful and do not harm plants. As plant spawners they show their full color only in well planted tanks and this most likely early in the morning when the sun rises; in our photo tank we cannot realize this well; of course we have the ambition to provide you with pictures of courting males yet, but this may take some weeks; by then we have probably already sold the fish. That’s why we decided to present them here already.
For our customers: the fish have code 453401 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
This is the only almost always available aquarium fish that comes from the large, geologically old island of Madagascar. All other freshwater fishes from this island, which unfortunately are often threatened with extinction due to massive environmental changes, are only suitable for specialists.
The beautiful Madagascar rainbow (Bedotia geayi) grows to a length of 10-12 cm and is about 10 years old, but in nature it always remains smaller and no free-living specimen is likely to live to such an age. Although Bedotia are only distantly related to the Australian rainbowfishes, they are very similar to them in terms of behavior. Males and females differ with respect to the coloration of the fins. Sexual maturity begins at an age of less than one year, then the animals are usually 4-6 cm long. The animals photographed for this post are such young, just sexually mature specimens.
You have to be a bit careful with very large specimens, they have a relatively large mouth, in which a half-grown guppy may well disappear. So you should only combine fish with them that are at least half the size of the Bedotia to be on the safe side.
Regarding the chemical composition of the water and the food, the animals are completely undemanding, any tap water suitable as drinking water and any commercial ornamental fish food meet their requirements. In nature they are forest dwellers, often colonizing very soft and acidic water.
For a long time B. madagascariensis was synonymous with B. geayi, which is why the latter name is widely used in the hobby (these animals were first introduced to France in 1953 and have never disappeared from aquaristics since). The easiest difference for aquarists to recognize between B. madagascariensis and B. geayi (whose ranges are separated by several hundred kilometers) is the caudal fin pattern. In B. madagascariensis both sexes have a continuous black band in the caudal fin (clearly in front of the edge of the caudal fin – the technical term for this is “submarginal” – and the red zone in the male), which is missing in B. geayi. Also, the males of B. geayi have a red chin spot, while those of B. madagascariensis do not.
The first imported animals for aquaristics were actually B. madagascariensis, the “real” B. geayi was introduced much later. Nowadays both species are available in the hobby (we include a picture of B. madagascariensis here for comparison) and are usually not distinguished in the trade. Basically it doesn’t matter, only if you want to breed you have to be careful not to accidentally create unnecessary hybrids. Since both Bedotia species have to be classified as endangered in nature, it is important to keep the aquarium populations pure.
For our customers: the animals have code 373313 on our stock list. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
The Diamond Rainbowfish – Melanotaenia praecox – is one of the smallest species of the actual rainbowfishes and grows only 6-7 cm long. It shows already from 3 cm length its splendid iridescent body coloration. That is why it is one of the most popular species in the trade. With age the males become high-backed and then the red in the vertical fins develops even more intensively.
Since Melanotaenia praecox is only found on the island of New Guinea and there only in a small area in the western half of the island called Irian Jaya, all Diamond Rainbowfishes in the trade are descended from a few animals. Carelessly raised animals are susceptible to disease, well raised ones are not.
For our customers: the animals have code 428601 on our stock list. Please note that we only supply wholesale.
The Celebes Rainbow, Marosatherina ladigesi, is perhaps still remembered by some readers as Telmatherina ladigesi. The species lives endemically (i.e. – seen worldwide – exclusively there) in cool karst streams in the area around Bantimurung, Maros karst, Sulawesi Selatan; Sulawesi belongs politically to Indonesia, but zoogeographically to the Australian region. In former times the big island was known as Celebes.
Marosatherina ladigesi grows about 5-6 (rarely to 8) cm long around is a peaceful, lively schooling fish, which should be kept in harder, well buffered water. A strong current is ideal. The males develop long extended fin rays in dorsal and anal fins. Each animal – male as well as female – has an individually differently coloured first dorsal fin with a different amount of black. During courtship the males become smoky black. They spawn in fine-grained plants, brood care is not practised by these fish.
A shoal of 10-20 specimens is a wonderful sight that you will not forget so quickly. The animals are a little bit sensitive to moving, but otherwise easy to care. They accept any usual fish food, but prefer to eat from the surface. Plants are not damaged.
For our customers: the animals have code 461204 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The cute blue-eyes of the species Pseudomugil gertrudae are actually always in our stock. We usually get them as bred ones from Indonesia. Originally they are found in northern Australia and southern Papua New Guinea.
At the moment we have fully grown, about 4 cm long animals in stock, which we received from a European breeder. The population Aru II is characterized by a high proportion of yellow in colouration. The Aru-Islands are located about 150 km in southern direction off the coast of New Guinea. The males of P. gertrudae are wonderful when they try to attract the attention of the – probably only in our eyes – inconspicuous females with their fins spread wide apart.
For our customers: the animals have code 446014 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The blue-eyes Pseudomugil furcatus, relatives of the rainbow fish, originate from the island of New Guinea. However, there are never wild catches of the maximum 6 cm long, peaceful schooling fish on the market, but only offspring, all of which go back to a single collection in 1981. Since then they have been bred continuously. The natural distribution area is relatively small; the species occurs, as far as known, exclusively in the Sufia Valley, Papua New Guinea, where it lives in flowing waters. Together with P. furcatus the beautiful goby Tateurndina ocellicauda can be found (https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/tateurndina_ocellicauda_en/). The water there is neutral to slightly alkaline (pH 7-8) and 24-29°C warm; accordingly, P. furcatus is suitable for care and breeding in most common tap waters.
The nutritional requirements of Pseudomugil furcatus are easy to meet, a good dry food is completely sufficient as a basic diet, in addition fine live and frozen food of all kinds can be provided.
The aquarium for blue-eyes should contain a lot of free swimming space so that the fish can swim out and the males can fight out their harmless show fights, but also have a good background plantation of fine-grained plants (e.g. Myriophyllum), in which they spawn almost daily. The young fish are very small, but apart from that they are easy to raise. Pseudomugil do not exercise brood care, but they usually do not significantly feed on spawn and juveniles. Males and females can be easily distinguished by their different colouring and fin shape.
For our customers: the animals have code 444001 (sm) and 444002 (md) on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The red rainbow fish, Glossolepis incisus, is one of the magnificent classics among the rainbow fish. One can well understand that this fish caused real storms of enthusiasm in the 1970s, when only two relatively inconspicuous species of this group of fish were known in the hobby. The home of Glossolepis incisus lies in western Papua New Guinea, where it inhabits Lake Sentani and its surroundings. Due to the increasing pollution of the lake, the species is considered endangered. In the hobby, only bred ones are represented.
The red rainbow fish becomes 15 cm long in the male sex, females remain smaller. Regarding the coloration, the red glittering splendour increases with every centimeter that the fish grows. But also our usually traded, 6-7 cm long animals are already very nicely colored.
For our customers: the animals have code 417303 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
The blue-red Boesemans rainbow fish has not disappeared from the aquariums since its aquaristic discovery in 1981. For a time, it was so sought after that it was caught on a massive scale for export; these animals went almost exclusively to Japan, where were paid insane sums for them. There were even fears of overfishing of the animals, which occurre only in a very small area, and therefore an export ban was imposed. All animals on the market are bred ones for decades, so overfishing of the natural stocks has long ceased.
Melanotaenia boesemani Red is a breeding selection that does not occur in the wild. They are beautifully coloured fish and the perfect starter species for everyone who wants to try rainbow fish for the first time, because neither the care nor the breeding are difficult. However one should consider that these fish are very long-lived and easily reach 10-12 cm, also 15 cm are probably possible. One should therefore have sufficiently large aquariums (from 120 cm edge length) available for them, because in too small aquariums they cannot live out themselves properly.
For our customers: the animals have code 427313 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply wholesalers.
110 yeras ago – 1907 – the German-Dutch scientist Max Weber described freshwater fishes from New Guinea, which have been collected by a scientific expedition to the island by the Netherlands in 1903. One of the new species was a rainbowfish. Weber named it Rhombatractus sentanienis. Nowadays we know that fish under the name of Chilatherina sentaniensis. The specific name was chosen after Lake Sentani, elevation 75 m over sea level, where the type specimens have been collected. Later expeditions to the lake showed that the species can be found rather in the affluences of the lake than in the lake itself.
The introduction in the hobby appeared much later and until kow this attractive fish is seen only sporadically in the trade. We can offer the fish since 2013 from time to time. As in most species of rainbowfish one has to be a bit patient until the animals show their full splendid coloration, but from the moment on they do the patience is more than rewarded. For more informations on the species please see http://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/fish-archives/chilatherina_sentaniensis_en/
For our customers: the fish have code 410153 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
One of the species of rainbowfishes with the longest aqurium history is the dwarf rainbowfish, Melanotaenia maccullochi. It reached Europe as early as 1934 and is kept and bred since then. However, if we order nowadays M. maccullochi from Indonesia we do not get this species, but another one which has only a rough similarity with M. maccullochi: M. australis. M. australis has been considered to be a subspecies of M. splendida for a long time. It is distributed in northern Australia. The variety with the pretty red fins that is spread in the hobby currently looks most similar to the form from the Sale River in the Kimberly region, state of Western Austalia. We can offer this species both as imports from Indonesia (bred fish) as well as German bred ones. It attains a maximum length of about 11 cm.
For our customers: the fish have code 427104 and 427123 (selective bred „Super Red“) on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Currently we have wonderful, fully grown specimens of the Threadfin Rainbowfish in stock. Like a butterfly its wings the male Threadfin Rainbowfish flaps its first dorsal fin during courtship. The males can be easily recognized by the long filaments of the second dorsal and the anal fin. The tender species attains a maximum length of about 5 cm.
There is hardly another aquarium fish as peaceful as this one. One must never keep I. werneri in company with rough behaviour, the Threadfin Rainbowfish will not survive under such conditions. In respect of water chemistry the Threadfin Rainbowfish is flexible. It thrives well in a pH of 5.5 to around 8.0 (BUT: be very careful when adopting the fish to new conditions, it is extremely sensitive against sudden changes!) and soft to medium hard water. The water temperature should be slightly higher than usual, about 25-29°C. But the most important factor is the correct feeding. These fish have a very small mouth. Food particles must be small, too! Best is living brine shrimp nauplii, but I. werneri feeds also on very fine dry food, micro, vinegar worms, rotatoria, cyclops (this can be frosted, too), etc.
Who is willing to fulfil the demands of that fish and also adds some peat, alder cones, or dead leaves in the tank will be rewarded by beautiful and fascinating looks.
For our customers: the fish have code 421704 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Pseudomugil sp. “paskai Red-Neon” has been imported for the first time in 2012 and is for sure one of the most spectacular discoveries of aquarium fish in the millenium. Since the first importation the fish has been well established in the hobby and proofed as a beautiful, peaceful, and hardy ornamental fish.
However, there was a scientific name missing. Preserved specimens – they lack usually all colours – look very similar to Pseudomugil paskai, but this fish has totally different and much duller colours in life.
Now the species has been described scientfically in a proper way and here is the correct and valid name: Pseudomugil luminatus.
For our customers: the fish have code 446452 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Literature:
Allen, G. R., Unmack, P. J. & R. K. Hadiaty (2016): Pseudomugil luminatus, a new species of Blue-eye (Teleostei: Pseudomugilidae) from southern New Guinea, with notes on P. gertrudae. Fishes of Sahul 30 (1): 950-961
For the first time ever we obtained this charming rainbowfish from a breeder. The specific name “pygmaea” refers to a small body size. In fact our fish are full in coloration. They are currently about 4 cm long (total length). According to literature the maximum lengthin males is about 7 cm, whereas females always stay smaller and hardly ever reach 5 cm.
Melanotaenia pygmaea is known from a very small area only. The species lives endemic – this means only there – in tributaries of the Prince Regent River in the Kimberly region of the state Western Australia. The aquarium strains most probably go back to collections made in 1992 and 1994. The species has been discovered in 1974 and formally described in 1978.
For our customers: the fish have code 428634 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Glossolepis dorityi also originates from West Papua, like Melanotaenia rubrostriata „Dekai Village“ (see http://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/news/Melanotaenia_rubrostriata_Dekai_Village__en/).
Males attain a maximum length of about 15 cm, females stay smaller.
Sadly the females have only quite dull colours. Males need about one
year to reach a length of 7-8 cm. At that size they already display a
real firework of splendid colours, which fascinate any observer. It is
hard to believe that a person might exist that is not fascinated by
displaying males of Glossolepis dorityi „Lake Nenggwambu“!
The
fins seem to burst when the males circle around each other and the
females. The latter are led into the plantation where they spawn. These
continuous spawners daily spawn some eggs. Over one weeks the breeder
can obtain more than 100 eggs from one male and two females. The newly
hatched larvae must be fed with infusoria or likewise small food,
because Artemia nauplii are much to large for them. Glossolepis dorityi
„Lake Nenggwambu“ does best at comparatively high water temperatures
(28°C), medium hard water, a pH around 7 and a water change on a regular
basis. Then they become literally “underwater jewels”!
For our customers: the fish have code 417122 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The
village named Dekai is located in West Papua (formerly: Irian Jaya) in
the district of Yahukimo. It seems to be a real hotspot for extremely
beautiful species of rainbowfish. Many species and local varieties have
been collected there in the past years and brought to the tanks of
enthusiasts. This applies also for this variety of M. rubrostriata. It
really doesn´t matter from a hobbyists point of view if one prefers to
see M. rubrostriata (Ramsay & Ogilby, 1886) as a full species or
only as a subspecies of M. splendia. In the latter case it has to be
named M. splendida rubrostriata.
Of
real great importance is the water quality for this fish. The water
should be changed as often as possible. At temperatures of 24-28°C,
medium hard water and a pH around 7 the fish will readily spawn. For
spawning fine plant material is needed, like Myriophyllum, Java Moss
etc.. Here the eggs are deposited.
One should never keep
different species of Melanotaenia or other rainbowfishes together,
because in the aquarium this would lead to unwanted hybrids.
For our customers: the fish have code 428652 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The Malili lake system on Sulawesi (former Celebes) is home of spectacular shrimps, snails and mussels which are exported for the hobby. Now the import of an endemic atherinoid species was successful, namely Telmatherina bonti. Like many atherinoides of the Malili lakes this species is polychromatic, which means that males and females appear in different sports. In T. bonti, which by the way differs from all other Telmatherina species by lacking filamentous extensions in the first dorsal fin rays, yellow, white and yellow-white individuals exist. In nature they occur in mixed schools and there is no sexual preference observable (in the sense that yellow females prefer to mate with yellow males for example). So these sports are definitely not races or subspecies. The meaning of the polychromatism is unknown.
In the aquarium, T. bonti, which can grow to approx. 8cm length, is a very peaceful and lively fish. Keeping is easy, if one considers that the water in the Malili lakes is always rather warm (approx. 28°C) and its pH value is always over 8. Both should be simulated in the aquarium. All usual dry and frozen fishfood is taken readily. Eggs are laid in plants. The fish are permanent spawners. Telmatherina bonti excites with its lively nature and the constant courtship. It never gets boring to watch a school of this fish – and it should always be a school!
For our customers: the fish has code 461235 on our stocklist.Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Telmatherina: the word “telma” is ancient Greek and means “swamp”; Atherina is another genus of fish. bonti: after the indigenous name applied to the fish at Towuti lake: “bonti-bonti”.
One of our breeders has to reduce the number of tanks in his fish house and so we have the very rare opportunity to offer some valuables among the rainbowfishes with given locality and in fully grown specimens. One of them is Pseudomugil signifer from the Gap Creek – beautiful animals, aren’t they?
For our customers: the animals have code 446203 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade. Available in limited numbers only!
It has been only recently that we were able to present to you the sensational Pseudomugil luminatus “Red Neon” (see http://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/archiv.php?news_id=556). Now we received from one of our suppliers in Indonesia a new variety of that species which we called Pseudomugil luminatus “Yellow” due to the rather yellow basic coloration, compared with the “Red Neon”. However, when displaying the yellow colour changes also in a brilliant orange.
Besides the basic colour of the body the two varieties can be distinguished by the coloration of the caudal fin. In “luminatus Red Neon” the tips of that fin are very light coloured, in “luminatus Yellow” the tips are darker than the remaining fin.
Both varieties of that charming dwarf are currently in stock. The fish become hardly 3.5 cm long. Regarding keeping and breeding Pseudomugil luminatus has proofed to be very adaptable and hardy – an ideal aquarium fish!
For our customers: the animals have code 446453 (Red Neon) and 446463 (Yellow) on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Pseudomugil: means “wrong Mugil”; Mugil is another genus of fish. paskai: dedication name.
For the first time ever we can offer this rare blue eye. The completely peaceful fish – they attain a maximum length of about 4 cm – a very interesting due to the fact that the stripe in the anal fin differs individually from yellow to red.
For our customers: the fish have code 446153 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
This wonderful rainbowfish seems to glow from inside! Sadly the species is very close to extinction in the wild due to environment pollution. This species is only found in Lake Sentani in New Guinea and some of the affluents of that lake. Luckily Chilatherina sentaniensis is kept and bred by rainbowfish enthusiasts and there is a chance that the species can survive at least in aquaria. Buying that fish does not only mean that one obtains a beautiful aquarium inhabitant, but buying that fish is also an act of species protection!
For our customers: the animals have code 410152 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
We obtained very nice German bred specimens of this colorful rainbowfish, which is found in the trade only very occasionally. Our specimens are currently 5-7 cm long. The species attains a maximum length of about 14 cm and each centimeter the fish grows it becomes even more colorful!
For our customers: the fish have code 428653 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
The species of the genus Pseudomgil are relatives of the rainbowfishes. But they stay much smaller and usually they reach only 4-5 cm in length. This is also true for P. signifer, which looks a bit like a miniature edition of the Celebes rainbowfish (Marosatherina ladigesi). The males are displaying the whole day through what makes a fascinating picture. We offer this charming schooling fish as bred specimens, for they originate from Australia (eastern coastal area of Queensland and New South Wales) and no wild collected fish are exported from there.
The fish like to spawn in fine plant material (Java moss etc.). The eggs need 2-3 weeks to hatch. The offspring is already 5-6 mm long and can readily accept freshly hatched brine shrimp nauplii as food.
Males can be quite aggressive against each other, so it is recommend to keep only one male in smaller tanks or in breeding tanks. They should be combined with a number of females.
Regarding water parameters the species is quite tolerant, but hard water (a bit salt can also be added) is preferred.
For our customers: the species has code 446302 on our stocklist. Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale marked.
The Malili lake system on Sulawesi (former Celebes) is home of spectacular shrimps, snails and mussels which are exported for the hobby. Now the import of an endemic atherinoid species was successful, namely Telmatherina bonti.
Like many atherinoides of the Malili lakes this species is polychromatic, which means that males and females appear in different sports. In T. bonti, which by the way differs from all other Telmatherina species by lacking filamentous extensions in the first dorsal fin rays, yellow, white and yellow-white individuals exist. In nature they occur in mixed schools and there is no sexual preference observable (in the sense that yellow females prefer to mate with yellow males for example). So these sports are definitely not races or subspecies. The meaning of the polychromatism is unknown.
In the aquarium, T. bonti, which can grow to approx. 8cm length, is a very peaceful and lively fish. Keeping is easy, if one considers that the water in the Malili lakes is always rather warm (approx. 28°C) and its pH value is always over 8. Both should be simulated in the aquarium. All usual dry and frozen fishfood is taken readily. Eggs are laid in plants. The fish are permanent spawners. Telmatherina bonti excites with its lively nature and the constant courtship. It never gets boring to watch a school of this fish – and it should always be a school!
For our customers: the fish has code 461235 on our stocklist.Please note that we exclusively supply the wholesale trade.
Lexicon: Telmatherina: the word “telma” is ancient Greek and means “swamp”; Atherina is another genus of fish. bonti: after the indigenous name applied to the fish at Towuti lake: “bonti-bonti”.
Marosatherina ladigesi the Celebes rainbow originates from Celebes, Sulawesi, (Indonesia) and Philippines. Juveniles and females have shorter fins and fairly drab colours. As they mature, males develop heightened colours long extensions of the dorsal and anal fins. These are peaceful, active, hardy and not at all shy. They do best in groups of seven or larger group containing a mixture of male and female fishes. They prefer slightly hard and alkaline water between pH 7,0 – 8,0, GH 10 – 20, 24-27°C. It is reported that the celebes rainbow sometimes inhabits tidal streams so it is tolerant of a little salt. They are omnivores in the wild, they will readily take flake foods, but appreciates frozen daphnia, bloodworm and brine shrimp in tanks. Minimum size 80 x 40 x 40cm to provide plenty of free-swimming space for a group. Plant the tank heavily with tall bushy plants like Cabomba and Hygrophila to provide cover.(Photo F. Schäfer, Text K. Diehl)
Angaben zum Tier
Herkunft
Indonesien, Philippinen
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