Colombian tetra - care, maintenance, suitable food and possible diseases

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Probably, many domestic aquarists are familiar with such a fish as the Colombian red-finned tetra. On the one hand, it is quite simple in content. On the other hand, it is very attractive. It is not surprising that when choosing the right fish, it is often preferred by both novice aquarists and experienced aquarists who have given more than one year of their lives to this exciting hobby.

Appearance

First of all, it is worth talking about the appearance of the Colombian tetra, the photo of which is posted in the article.

The body is laterally flattened, quite high. These are not too large fish - the length rarely exceeds 6 centimeters. Although in the wild there are also larger individuals - about 7 centimeters. The caudal fin is red, while the ventral and dorsal fins are either transparent or have a subtle pinkish tint. Between the tail and dorsal fin there is an adipose fin, the function of which scientists have been arguing for years.

The body is covered with silver scales of the same size.

Sexual dimorphism is extremely weak. At first sightIt will be difficult even for an experienced aquarist to distinguish a male from a female. Only after carefully looking at the flock, you can see that some have a slightly longer dorsal fin, has a brighter color - these are males.

They don't live too long - an average of 3-5 years, which, in general, is a standard period for small fish.

Contents

As already mentioned, the content of the Colombian tetra is quite simple and unpretentious. But there are certain nuances that are useful to know about when starting these fish.

To start with, the tetra is a schooling fish. Therefore, you should not buy a pair - it is better to immediately take 10-15 individuals. Then they will feel more comfortable and confident. Indeed, in the wild, such small fish, left alone, almost always die. A pair of tetras will probably hide in the thickets, and you won't be able to admire them.

For such a flock, a small aquarium is quite enough - 70-90 liters.

The design of the fish is not too picky. They will equally like an almost empty aquarium with a few planted algae, as well as a dense, overgrown one.

You can choose any decor elements, first of all, focusing on what kind of fish will live in the aquarium along with tetras.

The main thing is that the fish have enough food (we will talk about this a little later) and clean water. Therefore, it is advisable to use a sufficiently powerful filter and regularly change part of the water - about 20% per week.

Suitable food

The diet can also be arbitrary -tetras eat almost any food: frozen, dry, live and vegetable. But in order for the fish to feel really good, it is worth diversifying the diet.

It is advisable to feed at least once a day with live or frozen food - tubifex, bloodworm or brine shrimp. If this is not possible, then dry food is also suitable. The main thing is to somehow diversify the diet. If you feed the fish all their lives with dried gammarus or daphnia, then there is a high probability of developing various diseases, and tetras grow quite small. In extreme cases, you can use balanced flakes, which include artemia and bloodworms.

Crushed frozen beef heart can also be given. It is best to scrape it off with a regular blade.

It is useful to give vegetable food a couple of times a week. Boiled young lettuce leaves are a good choice. If you do not feed them with greens, then tetras may well taste the young shoots of algae. Therefore, it is recommended to plant algae with hard leaves in an aquarium with them.

It is also worth considering that fish almost never take food from the ground. Because of this, you need to feed little by little, but at least two, and preferably three times a day.

Selecting neighbors

First of all, when choosing fish that will live with the Colombian tetra, it is worth considering their eating habits. A large amount of food falls to the ground. You have to clean it daily so that it does not deteriorate and does not impair the quality of the water. But the problem is easy to solve if you start small catfish. A good choice would be ancistrus or speckled catfish. The first will clean the glass and decor items, and the second will float along the very bottom, collecting the remnants of the meal.

In addition, platies, guppies, neons and other not too large, calm fish will become good neighbors. But they will not get along with barbs or swordsmen. Mobile and at the same time quite aggressive fish will turn the life of unfortunate tetras into a real nightmare, chasing and sometimes biting off their fins.

At the same time, calm, slow-moving fish will be an unfortunate choice - sometimes tetras like to play with their flock and will cause problems for neighbors.

Possible diseases

In general, tetras are not prone to disease. They usually occur due to injuries (due to a negligent attitude on the part of the aquarist or through the fault of aggressive neighbors), as well as inappropriate conditions.

Besides, fish are quite sensitive to water quality. For example, large amounts of chlorine can burn the gills, resulting in death in the most advanced cases.

You also need to monitor the quality of the feed. Live bloodworms or tubifex caught in unfamiliar areas or bought from new sellers should be treated with a solution of potassium permanganate or methylene blue to destroy parasite eggs and prevent infection from entering the aquarium.

Conclusion

Now you know more about the Colombian tetra - maintenance and care, suitable neighbors for her and possible diseases. That's whythe likelihood of serious problems is reduced to a minimum.