Results for “moenkhausia”

The ceros tetra, Moenkhausia ceros, is a small characid from the Amazon basin in Peru and Brazil. Rare in the UK hobby, it occasionally shows up as a contaminant among imports of more popular species. It inhabits slow-moving rivers, tributaries and floodplain lakes. Moenkhausia is used as a catch-all for many small characins, and most experts agree the genus needs a full revision.

The glass tetra, Bario oligolepis, is a characin from northern South America, with populations in Venezuela, the Guianas, Peru and Brazil. One of a handful of species that closely resemble the red-eye tetra, it is seen much less often in the hobby and is also known as the glassy tetra. It inhabits slow-moving rivers, tributaries and floodplain lakes. Very peaceful, it does not compete well with boisterous or much larger tankmates.

The red-eye tetra, Bario sanctaefilomenae, is a characin from Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, living mostly in clear rivers that feed the Pantanal. All fish in the trade are captive-bred in huge numbers and are unfussy about water chemistry and diet. Somewhat boisterous, it suits a community of active tankmates such as similarly sized tetras, rainbowfish and barbs, and can intimidate sedate species such as anabantoids or dwarf cichlids.

The diamond tetra, Makunaima pittieri, is a characid endemic to Lake Valencia and surrounding waters in Venezuela. It is usually sold as a fairly bland, silvery juvenile, and given time and a good diet develops into an adult that sparkles like a diamond. It is found in shallow, vegetated parts of the lake and slow-moving tributaries, but most fish in the trade are mass-bred on commercial farms in Eastern Europe or the Far East.