Edit Anableps anableps
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Name
Scientific name
Anableps anableps
Described by
Authority Linnaeus, Year 1758, Bracketed
Family
Anablepidae
Common names
Four-Eyed Fish, Vieraugenfisch
Photograph credits
All 8 credited
Summary
The four-eyed fish, Anableps anableps, is a viviparous fish of brackish mangrove coasts in north-eastern South America, from Venezuela to B…
Size and aquarium
Maximum size
260mm, standard length
Aquarium size
Minimum length 150 cm, Minimum depth 45 cm
Water
Water conditions
Temperature 25–31°C, pH 7.5–9
Hardness
15–35dGH
Conductivity
Not recorded
Behaviour
Temperament
Not recorded
Social needs
A shoal or group
Community suitability
Not for a community
Where it lives
Countries, regions, rivers and lakes
Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, Venezuela
Writing
Etymology
Anableps: from the Greek ana- (Gr. ᾰ̓νᾰ-), a prefix meaning 'up, upwards' and blépsis (Gr. βλέψις) meaning 'sight', in reference to the split eye structure of …
Distribution
Occurs along much of the north-east South American coastline from the Gulf of Paria (the shallow, brackish inland sea which separates Trinidad and Tobago from …
Habitat
Inhabits brackish-water Rhizophora mangrove forests where it has come to forge an extraordinary existence at the water's edge of inter-tidal zones. These const…
Aquarium size
Surface area is far more important than height but this species is unsuitable for all but the largest aquaria; a tank with base dimensions of 150 ∗ 45 cm shoul…
Maintenance
It's exposed to highly variable salinity levels between 5-30‰ in the wild so water chemistry isn't too much of a concern; for ease of maintenance a specific gr…
Water conditions
Temperature: Strictly a tropical species; the temperature should be maintained between 25 – 31 °C. pH: 7.5 – 9.0 Hardness: 15 – 35 dGH
Diet
In nature it has a diverse, but highly adapted, feeding strategy dependant on environmental conditions. At low tide it seldom forages at all except during neap…
Behaviour and compatibility
Best kept in a species-only display and may predate on much smaller fishes but in very large tanks can be combined with peaceful estuarine fishes. Some Poecili…
Sexual dimorphism
Females grow considerably larger than males and the latter possess a prominent gonopodium. This has a different structure to that seen in Poeciliid livebearers…
Reproduction
Anableps species are viviparous and mating usually presents few problems provided you have a mixed-sex group. The genital opening of the female is covered by a…
Notes
The eye of Anableps species is split horizontally by a band of epithelial tissue. It has two corneas, two pupils, a single, egg-shaped lens and one retina that…
References
References
3 on this profile