Royal fish. Tetra royal aquarium fish

The first mention of the royal tetra occurred in 1911. And many years later, in 1959, Nematobrycon palmeri Eigenmann first appeared in European aquariums. The royal tetra is a resident of the water system of the San Juan River, located in Colombia.

The length of her body is 5.5 cm. A distinctive feature of the royal tetra is the absence of an adipose fin.

To distinguish fish by gender, consider the average tail ray and the overall size of the individual. Tetra females are smaller than males. The abdomen of the female is much rounder, and the body color is dull and not expressive. The central ray of the tail fin of the male is longer than that of the female. It is believed that not all males of the royal tetra can bear offspring. That is why you should carefully select males for breeding these fish.

For successful breeding, these fish should be planted in a separate aquarium. Females are kept separately for about 2 weeks. The water where the offspring will develop can be taken from the main aquarium, but at the same time adding peat extract to it. A suitable temperature for spawning is water +24 +26C.

The water in the spawning aquarium should not be too acidic or soft, otherwise the fry may get dropsy. In general, breeding the royal tetra is an easy process. Swept eggs turn into larvae within a day after throwing. And after five days, fry appear from it. The main food for the fry of the tetra is, and the grown young are fed with tubifex, previously cut. Also, they can be given flies (R. Drosophila) as complementary foods.

The capacity for keeping the royal tetra should be selected spacious. The lighting is diffused. Small flocks of tetras look very beautiful against the background of the dark bottom of the aquarium. As neighbors for Nematobrycon palmeri, small tetra-shaped fish are ideal. A good food for an aquarium tetra is oatmeal or mosquito larvae.

Among all the representatives of the tetra in the aquarium, the most important male always appears, who leads the whole flock. He acts as a leader, which is probably why the royal tetra got its name. Similar behavior of males can be observed in other types of aquarium fish. For example, in Nematobrycon lacortei males behave in a similar way. But this type of fish is not very common among aquarists. And a new type of small Inpaichthys kerri is considered more popular.

There are three subspecies of the royal tetra: common ("Palmeri"), "Red-eyed" and black (Nematobrycon amphiloxus). The black tetra is the rarest variety, which still does not really have its own Russian name. Currently, active debate continues on this issue, and some experts believe that Nematobrycon amphiloxus is a synonym for Nematobrycon palmeri. And other experts insist that this name belongs to a subspecies of the red-eyed tetra - Nematobrycon lacortei. The most popular is the fish of the Palmeri subspecies, but the red-eyed fish is also a rare occurrence in the world of aquarists.

The description of the complex and confusing situation among Russian ichthyologists regarding the black tetra variety was well described in one of the American magazines Tropical Fish Hobbyist.

In one of the issues of the journal in 2000, an article was published explaining the formation of Nematobrycon amphiloxus.

It all started with the fact that a variety of fish similar to N. Palmeri, caught in 1960, was identified as amphyloxus (black tetra). This happened because the then ichthyologists already knew about the existence of a new nematobricon, but did not have the opportunity to see live. It was under this name that the sale of this fish took place over the next ten years. It wasn't until 1971 that scientists Weitzman and Fink discovered the mistake and named the new species Nematobrycon lacortei.

After a more detailed study of the representatives of palmeri and amphyloxus, scientists realized that the differences between these fish (not counting the color) are very small. That is why they can be recognized as one species. Based on the fact that the name palmeri was first introduced, it was decided to consider amphyloxus a synonym.

There is also an ancient legend about characin fish. Which says that once in ancient times in the rivers that do not connect with each other in Colombia, royal tetras of different types (palmeri and amphyloxus) lived. Nematobrycon amphiloxus was distinguished by a black stripe along the entire body. Years later, the rivers were connected with the help of canals and the two types of tetra mixed with each other. As a result, viable hybrids of the royal tetra appeared. This legend explains the strange disappearance of the black nematobricon in amateur circles.

Another scientist, after whom the red-eyed tetra got its name, Rosario LaCorte, studied wild-caught royal tetras. He noticed that all males have all the signs of full-fledged palmeri, and among the females representatives of both palmeri and amphyloxus were found. Through the process of selective breeding, Rosario has restored the black variety of the tetra. And it was she who was identified as Nematobrycon amphiloxus in 1914.

And since 1988, a new subspecies of the royal tetra, the Black Palmeri, began to appear in many aquariums in Europe. Where she came from is still a mystery. In an article (Nematobrycon palmeri amphiloxus?) by Czech aquarist Jroslav Kadlec, the estimated dates for the appearance of black palmeri in Europe were given.

In the early nineties, Nematobrycon palmeri amphiloxus first came from Germany to the Czech Republic. But this type of royal tetra saw the light only at the ITERZOO exhibition in 1994. This species can be considered descendants of the black palmeri, bred by Rosario LaCorte. This fish came to our aquariums from Bulgaria in 2000. And she was successfully bred by the Bulgarian ichthyologist D. Penev.

According to the ichthyologist, it was very, very difficult to breed this kind of royal fish. These fish did not want to spawn in any way, the eggs were constantly disappearing. Adults constantly suffered from various intestinal diseases. This made it extremely difficult for them to swim. All this happened with Nematobrycon palmeri amphiloxus, despite the fact that other fish of the characin family were kept in identical conditions and were absolutely healthy.

In an attempt to reproduce, Nematobrycon palmeri amphiloxus was fed bloodworms, coretra, tubifex, live daphnia and cyclops, dry food, crumbs of various types of bread, and even mashed green peas. And it was not possible to determine the cause of the diseases of the fish. Some of them periodically died, others recovered or started to get sick again.

One of the most experienced harassers in Moscow, O. A. Yakubov, changed the diet of fish, offering only fresh plankton as food. But this experiment also did not bring positive results. Of all the individuals, only one male remained alive, who several times still had an inflammation of the intestine.

And only as a result of the mating of the last male of Nematobrycon palmeri amphiloxus with a female of an ordinary palmeri, offspring were born. The fact of the complete similarity of all offspring with their mother turned out to be unfortunate. All six fish from the litter turned out to be males with signs of common palmeri. But thanks to this experiment, it was possible to establish the close relationship of these two types of palmeri.

After some time, in a completely unexpected way, we managed to find a black female palmeri, which was immediately bought for the last male surviving.
The most remarkable is the fact that black fish appeared from ordinary palmeri parents. And black palmeri appeared by constantly updating the flock at the expense of young individuals of the same flock.

From all this we can conclude that the appearance of black palmeri is quite possible in two ways, which will be the result of prolonged inbreeding (inbreeding) of fish. The option of crossing a simple palmeri with a black palmeri can be considered more realistic. And to say that the common palmeri is stronger and takes up over the amphyloxus. After some time, the black female was crossed again, this time all the offspring turned out to be black.

In conclusion of the historical opus about the black royal tetra, one more story should be lifted. In the winter of 1996, an order was placed for South American palmeri from Colombia. More than 250 fish arrived in the cold conditions of our climate. All the fish from the party, surprisingly, turned out to be black royal palmeri. Although at that moment they caused wild disappointment with their cloudy and unusual color for Moscow aquarists. It is still not known what kind of tetra was introduced in that batch. Most likely, it was amphyloxus and its hybrid mixture with lacortea.

The color of the fish from the package was very strange and not typical. Due to poor conditions for acclimatization, soon the entire batch of royal palmeri that arrived from Colombia died.
The main difference between Nematobrycon amphiloxus and the common palmeri is its color. The shape of the body and fins are identical. Amphyloxus has bright, black stripes along the entire body, starting from the head and ending with the tail. The ventral part of the fish has several whitish stripes from the nape to the back fin.

The royal tetra can change color from time to time. The color of the fish depends on its vital activity. During the mating season, males turn completely black. This is the blackest fish among all aquarium inhabitants. Even the black male Megalamphodus megalopterus is not as bright in color as the male royal tetra during the mating season.

Females can change their color when they want to hide from the male if they are not ready for the mating process. The most attractive thing that remains with them at this moment is their golden eyes.

In a relaxed state, the fish have a black body with light strokes along the back and abdomen. The fins are usually gray or transparent.

Apart from the color of the eyes, the royal tetra in its color has no other colors than black and gray. Sometimes the nape area can be decorated with white scales, and the anal fin has a white edging. In the process of growth, the fry first shows one black stripe along the entire body, which increases with time and completely colors the tetra.

What about other royal tetras?

The most spectacular in terms of color is the common Nematobrycon palmeri. It is very popular among most aquarists. This type of tetra does not cause difficulties in the process of keeping and in the process of breeding.

Nematobrycon lacortei is a rarer subspecies of the royal tetra. There is not much information about it in a variety of publications for lovers of aquarium fish. It is believed that this species differs from palmeri only in its color. But the color scheme still has some differences.

Tetra lacortea has more muted colors and blurred borders between them. Individuals of Nematobrycon lacortei are warm yellowish-red, in contrast to palmeri, which are cool blue-green.

The head and gills have a reddish tint, which smoothly turns into a purple stripe on the body of the fish. And closer to the tail, the purple hue turns into jet black. A distinctive element of the color of lacorteas is a shiny area of ​​​​the body from its middle part to the caudal peduncle. It can be seen especially well during side lighting of the fish.

With a detailed study on the body and sides of the fish, you can see the presence of almost all the colors that exist in nature. Perhaps that is why the German aquarists gave Lacorte another name (Regenbogentetra), which translates as rainbow tetra.
Each individual of this species has its own unique pattern on its side. The appearance of this pattern can be compared with the uneven peeling of the mother-of-pearl surface of the scales from the head to the tail itself. The male always proudly demonstrates his long anal fin, which has a reddish edging, to the opponent, pulling him forward. Females of the royal lacortea have a more modest coloration. Their body is dominated by light, yellowish shades.

Nematobrycon lacortei is also called the red-eyed tetra. This fish got its name really due to the presence of red eyes. But it is worth noting that among all Lacorteas, only the eyes of males are painted in a reddish-brown hue. Females of this species have the same eye color as other representatives of the royal tetra, green-yellow. Thanks to the red eyes, you can easily separate the fish by gender. Adults of all three varieties have major differences in the tail region.

In palmeri, the shape of the “trident” of the caudal fin is clearly visible. It is also called the crown. The central ray of palmeri is black, elongated and even slightly pointed. Nematobrycon amphiloxus has a more modest caudal fin. It lacks the pigtails on the sides of the tail lobes and the central part of the fin is much shorter. The tail of the male Nematobrycon amphiloxus is even less attractive than the others. It is practically not pointed and without pigtails. But it has a very thin and long central ledge.

All three varieties of the royal tetra can interbreed without much difficulty. All this leads to the disappearance of pure breed and bright representatives of each species. The colors of individuals mix over time, becoming less bright and attractive.

In an aquarium, mating games of males of one species with females of another species can often be observed. The spawning process and lifestyle of all types of royal tetra are similar to each other.

If you watch the growing individuals (at least 8) of different sexes of the royal tetra for a long time, you can see many curious nuances of the behavior and relationships of these beautiful aquarium fish. Their behavior in the flock is constantly arousing increased interest not only among amateurs, but also in the circles of professional aquarists.

If you find an error, please highlight a piece of text and click Ctrl+Enter.

Aquarium fish are special inhabitants of the aquatic kingdom, which, by their very appearance, evoke an incredible feeling of pleasure and tranquility. Not without reason, leading psychologists and psychotherapists recommend, in stressful situations, to observe the life of fish in an aquarium for several minutes and put your thoughts in order. However, before you start new inhabitants in the aquarium, you should learn about their features. In today's publication, we will tell you about the royal tetra, and also consider what you should know about the conditions for its maintenance and reproduction of these beautiful inhabitants of the aquarium.

Royal tetra - one of the varieties of tetra - a type of small, variously colored fish that barely reach seven centimeters in length. These tiny fish have a rather narrow, sometimes elongated body, resembling a rhombus. Varieties of tetra include such as: thorns, lemon tetras, copper, glass and royal.

Coloring in different species of tetra is always different. Some of them are painted with gray scales, others have two transverse black stripes, there is also an absolutely black tetra with bright blue eyes and a red rim around the eyes.

The royal tetra is distinguished by a white-yellow abdomen and a dark, narrow stripe that runs along the body. The back may be olive in color with a brown tint. The fins are translucent or yellow-green. The male has blue eyes, the female has green eyes.

It is important to note that if the conditions in the aquarium worsen, then all the tetras lose their beautiful color.

The homeland of these fish is South America, where they live in natural conditions in shallow rivers, near-bottom thickets of algae, and even in the roots of aquatic plants and fallen leaves.

The royal tetra appeared in Europe only in the sixties of the twentieth century, while several new species were discovered. These are schooling fish that are best kept in an aquarium in the amount of ten to twenty individuals at a time. The fact is that one fish in the aquarium behaves aggressively and does not allow other inhabitants of the aquarium to live in peace. The royal tetra guards its territory and can attack any of the fish swimming by. But in a flock, the behavior of fish changes completely - they become cute and calm. Moreover, they quite calmly coexist with other peaceful neighbors, do not eat algae and do not undermine the soil. Therefore, this fish can be safely populated in an aquarium even with expensive algae.

In fact, keeping this type of aquarium fish is not difficult at all, since they are picky about feeding and eat almost any food. Live food will become a delicacy for them, but you should not refuse combined feeds.

As for the water temperature, for the normal maintenance of the royal tetra, it should not be below twenty degrees. Water filtration is required.

It is important to note that the royal tetra does not like bright light, so it is recommended to use diffused lighting. It is also recommended to plant a lot of algae in one corner of the aquarium - tetras hide in them.

Reproduction of the royal tetra

Even in captivity, that is, in an aquarium, the royal tetra breeds beautifully as soon as it reaches sexual maturity (six months). However, the selection of future producers is best done from four monthly fish. Spawning takes place after special preparation of water and the separation of females and males into special compartments.

After the caviar is marked, literally after three days it is already possible to feed the fry. However, remember that the survival rate of fry is quite low. Therefore, it is very important to provide high quality tetra content, including the first complementary food, for which brine shrimp, nauplii and ciliates are used.

Maintaining an aquarium, arranging the life of fish, as well as breeding underwater offspring requires a lot of energy costs and patience, and most importantly, knowledge. Each fish needs special living conditions. Today we will talk about the royal tetra, or, as it is also called, palmeri. This is an amazingly beautiful and graceful sea creature, the fish gets along well with neighbors of a different species, lives for a relatively long time, and even spawns under ideal conditions. In this article, we will analyze what the royal tetra is, how to care for it, what conditions of detention are necessary for this species, and also find out how spawning and the appearance of palmeri offspring occur.

Palmeri belongs to the fish of the carp-like order, the characin family. This species is absolutely non-aggressive, gets along well with other tetras, swordtails, lanterns, neons, pulchers, ornatus and other fish. The maximum body length is about 6-7 cm. The main color of the scales is golden, silver interspersed with blue and green glitter. Along the entire body, the fish is decorated with a long longitudinal strip of black or bluish color. The fins are yellow, slightly transparent. Males of the royal tetra are larger, with a pronounced dorsal fin and long tail fin feathers. A feature of the tetra is that the fish is able to swim upside down at an inclination of 45 degrees. Palmeri will be a wonderful decoration for any aquarium.

How to keep a royal tetra in an aquarium?

The royal tetra is a rather unpretentious fish; even a novice aquarist can handle it. Here are a few aspects and important knowledge that will help you in caring for palmeri.

1. It is advisable to keep the royal tetra in small flocks, at least 5-6 individuals. Then they will sort things out in the tribal group. Otherwise, the fish may start biting the tails of other inhabitants of the aquarium.
2. Due to the fact that the royal tetra is kept in flocks, fish will need a fairly large aquarium, at least 60 liters.
3. Comfortable water temperature for palmeri is 22-26 degrees.
4. The pH of the water should be around 6.5-7.0.
5. The water in the aquarium should be changed twice a month, draining a twentieth of the liquid from the aquarium and adding fresh, settled water without chlorine and other harmful impurities.
6. Most modern aquariums are closed from above, that is, they are equipped with special covers. However, some amateurs can still find "open" aquariums made in a handicraft way. They must be closed, otherwise the royal tetra can easily jump out of an artificial reservoir.
7. Remember that fish get along well with other species, but not with predators!
8. Feeding the tetra will not cause you much trouble. In nature, the fish feeds on small larvae, worms and other insects. In an aquarium, palmeri will not refuse either dry or frozen food. Try to use different compositions in feeding, the more varied the food, the brighter and more beautiful the color of the fish will be. To make palmeri not only beautiful, but also healthy, regularly change her diet from dry food to live food and vice versa. In addition, you should follow the gastronomic preferences of the royal tetra. As a rule, fish are more willing to eat the food they need the most. That is, if palmeri leans on a live worm or bloodworm, it means that there is not enough protein in her body, consider this in subsequent feedings. Such an approach will help prevent many diseases against the background of a deficiency of protein or plant components in the diet.
9. The natural habitat of the fish is the rivers of Columbia, in which there is a dense and diverse vegetation. That is why the tetra will feel much better if there are many plantings in the aquarium. In addition, the dark mound and dense green color of the plants perfectly sets off the color of the fish and makes the royal tetra even brighter and more spectacular.

Summing up, we can say that the guarantee of the health of the royal tetra is based on three main conditions - a good variety of food, peaceful neighbors and clean water, which needs to be changed in a timely manner. Follow these conditions and the fish will delight you for a long time.

In most cases, fish spawn on their own and no conditions are required for this. However, if a clear goal is set to achieve offspring, this should be taken care of. As a rule, if there are at least 10 fish of different sexes in a flock, then over time they themselves form pairs. It is not difficult to distinguish a female from a male - males are brighter and more beautiful. In addition, males have a pronounced blue iris, while females have this color green.

In order to get healthy and numerous offspring, fish should be moved to another aquarium, as they become quite aggressive during spawning. But before that, the male and female should be kept separate for several days, introducing only natural live food into the diet. After “fatting”, the couple must be transferred to a separate aquarium, put a bunch of small plants on the bottom for spawning. Sprinkling the bottom with soil is not worth it, this will add additional trouble to you when the fry appear. Be sure to make subdued lighting, as at the very bottom of natural reservoirs. This is a prerequisite for spawning, so the fish feel safe. Natural daylight is enough, but not direct. It is also important to consider that the water in the reservoir is soft.

Spawning, as a rule, begins at dawn and lasts several hours. During this period, the female lays up to hundreds of eggs. Sometimes parents themselves can start eating caviar if some of the living conditions seem to them not perfect. Therefore, you need to monitor the process and, if necessary, immediately resettle the male and female from the offspring. Within two days, fry hatch from the eggs, which in 2-3 days will begin to swim independently. In the first days of life, babies should be fed with infusoria and acetic eel - these little worms will make up for the lack of necessary substances and serve as an excellent start in the life of new fish. When the new offspring are fully grown, they can be moved to a common aquarium. You should not do this before - fry can become prey for larger fish. Even if you do not specifically take care of breeding offspring, the royal tetra breeds well and can increase the number of the flock by 5-7 times in a year.

The royal tetra is an amazing, tenacious fish that adapts to different places of residence. Many aquarists admit that their journey in the world of artificial reservoirs began precisely with the royal tetra, because it survives even in the most difficult conditions, forgives the owner for gross mistakes in keeping. Dumplings are an easy way to decorate your aquarium with vibrant colors and paint.

Video: aquarium fish royal tetra

Aquarium fish royal tetra or palmeri (lat. Nematobrycon palmeri) feels great in common aquariums, preferably densely overgrown with plants. She can even spawn in them, especially if you keep the royal tetras in a small flock. It is desirable that there are more than 5 fish in such a flock, since they can cut off the fins of other fish, but keeping in a flock significantly reduces this behavior and switches them to sorting out relations with relatives.

Behavior and Compatibility

One of the types of tetras that gets along well with other individuals. These are lively, peaceful fish whose bright appearance will serve as a contrast to many other species. Good "companions" for most viviparous aquarium fish, representatives of zebrafish, rasbor, other tetras and peaceful inhabitants of the bottom, corridors or small loricaria catfish. They can also be kept with most macropods and ramirez apistograms. Of course, keeping them in an aquarium with larger species is undesirable, since the latter may mistake tetras for food. In an aquarium with a South American theme, these fish can be kept along with other peaceful tetras, nannostomes, apistograms and other types of cichlids. It is recommended to buy a group of fish at once, consisting of at least half a dozen individuals, preferably 10 or more. These fish gather in schools in the wild, so they will feel much better in the company of members of their own species. In addition, in a flock, these fish will always look spectacular. Males usually compete with each other for territory in one way or another, but their fights do not cause much damage to individuals, provided that the aquarium is large enough and adequately decorated.

In fact, keeping this type of aquarium fish is not difficult at all, since they are picky about feeding and eat almost any food. Live food will become a delicacy for them, but you should not refuse combined feeds.

As for the water temperature, for the normal maintenance of the royal tetra, it should not be below twenty degrees. Water filtration is required.

It is important to note that the royal tetra does not like bright light, so it is recommended to use diffused lighting. It is also recommended to plant a lot of algae in one corner of the aquarium - tetras hide in them.

Reproduction of the royal tetra

Even in captivity, that is, in an aquarium, the royal tetra breeds beautifully as soon as it reaches sexual maturity (six months). However, the selection of future producers is best done from four monthly fish. Spawning takes place after special preparation of water and the separation of females and males into special compartments.

After the caviar is marked, literally after three days it is already possible to feed the fry. However, remember that the survival rate of fry is quite low. Therefore, it is very important to provide high quality tetra content, including the first complementary food, for which brine shrimp, nauplii and ciliates are used.

Royal Tetra(scientific Nematobrycon palmeri), which is also called Imperial Tetra(Emperor Tetra) or Tetra Palmeri, is a great tropical fish that prefers to be kept in densely planted aquariums. These fish are interesting in that if there is at least a small flock of them in the aquarium, they will regularly breed without any outside interference. Palmeri belong to the characin family, and this suggests that, like many of their relatives, they can gnaw quite strongly on the long fins of neighboring fish. To prevent this from happening, experienced aquarists recommend keeping them in a group of at least 5 fish. Thanks to this, they will focus their attention on each other, and not on other inhabitants of the aquarium.

Length of Royal Tetras in an aquarium does not exceed 5cm (1.97 inches). These fish are quite hardy and can adapt to a relatively wide range of water conditions (pH and dKH). Palmeri tetras are tropical fish, so the average temperature of their content should not fall below 22-23 0 C.

Royal Tetra - photo.

Royal Tetra - video.

Royal Tetra - content.

Scientific name: Nematobrycon palmeri (Tetra Royal).

Other names: Imperial Tetra (Emperor Tetra), Rainbow Tetra (Rainbow Tetra), Tetra Palmeri.

Level of care for the Royal Tetra: easy.

Size: up to 5cm (1.97 inches).

Water parameters:

• pH 5-8
• t0: 22-27 0 C (72-80 0 F)

The Imperial Tetra lives: 3-5 years.

Palmeri Habitats: South America, Atrato and San Juan river basins.

Behavior: Like other species of characins, they do best in a group of at least 5 fish. Also, the larger the flock, the better their behavior will be (they will pay less attention to the fish swimming nearby).

Breeding Royal Tetras: they scatter eggs on the ground surface. If the aquarium contains the same number of females and males, then they will form pairs on their own and may even begin to spawn. If this happens, then in order to save eggs and fry, they must be removed from the general aquarium, otherwise they will be eaten.

It is best if each pair spawns in a separate spawning tank. To stimulate reproduction, the female and male are seated for 10-14 days and are well fed using live food. Then they are launched into a spawning ground, the water in which should have the following parameters: very soft, t 0 \u003d 26-27 0 C, pH \u003d 7. It is also necessary to put several bunches of plants (preferably small-leaved ones), for example, Javanese moss. Lighting must be dimmed (you can leave only natural). In this case, the rays should not fall to the bottom of the spawning ground at a right angle. For the convenience of caring for caviar, soil and decorations are not added.

Spawning Tetra Royal early in the morning. In a few hours, the female throws out a hundred eggs, and the male fertilizes them. Then the producers are removed from the spawning ground. The fry appear after 1-2 days, and after a few days (3-5) they begin to look for food. Starter food - microworms, ciliates, later - brine shrimp nauplii.

Aquarium size: for a small flock - 80-130l.

Royal Tetra Compatibility: like other tetras, they can bite the fins and sides of neighboring fish. To limit aggression towards other species, they are kept in a pack.

Palmeri disease: symptoms and treatment.

Diet / Feed: in the wild they feed on worms and crustaceans. The main food can serve as micro-granules and flakes. It is recommended to supplement the diet with bloodworms, black worms (blackworms) and similar live / thawed foods.

Region: often kept at the bottom of the aquarium, but can swim in other layers of water.

Floor: male Royal Tetras are larger, have larger fins (ventral, anal, dorsal) and are more colorful. It is also believed that each gender has its own eye color. In females, for example, the iris of the eyes is green, while in males it is blue.