Neon tetras are very popular freshwater aquarium fish as they are easy to keep and suitable for a community aquarium. They are brightly colored and look wonderful when kept in small shoals. The neon tetra comes from South America and can be found wild in Brazil, Colombia and Peru.
The beautiful coloring of the neon tetra is due to the lovely iridescent red and blue stripes in contrast to the light blue or greenish coloring along the back and the silver white coloration of the abdomen. It grows to only 3cm. It is not easy to distinguish male from female but the female has a slightly bent stripe and a larger belly. If the fish is stressed the iridescent stripe tends to fade temporarily. Most neon tetras sold are captive bred and can adapt to good range of conditions in home aquariums.
A pH of between 6 and 7.8 is suitable and at least a 24inch aquarium. They are best kept in a heavily planted tank, without bright lights and warm water of between 75 and 80F. As they are small don’t keep them with much larger or aggressive fish. Keeping them in small shoals is recommended as they are happier this way and they will look wonderful swimming together in your tank.
These fish can be fed on flake food but it’s always a good idea to supplement this with live food whenever possible. Brine shrimp, daphnia blodworms are all acceptable.
Tags: neon tetra, Tropical Fish Information
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