Care
Wild populations of this fish are found in habitats with dark substrates, where aquatic plants, tangles of wood and leaf litter provide areas of cover.
Their aquarium should be spacious, with areas of cover to provide them with hiding places which will be used less frequently the more they settle in. As with most tetras, these are shoaling fish that are most comfortable and look their best when kept in large numbers. Rather than shoaling aimlessly, males will defend their personal space and display to rivals and females, showing their best colours when they have plenty of both to impress. Unless interested in spawning, the females will often spend their time together in open water and keeping groups of ten or more individuals will allow both them and any lower-ranking males the opportunity to enjoy some peace and quiet.
Feeding
Offer a good quality flake food and micropellets, supplemented with small frozen foods such as daphnia and mosquito larvae.
Breeding
Spawns in typical tetra fashion. A conditioned pair should be added to a specially set up breeding aquarium which has soft water, a pH below 6.5, and plenty of live plants. The male is said to pursue the female during the first light of day, after which time she will release her eggs, which will sink to the bottom of the aquarium amongst the plants. Remove parents after spawning. The eggs should hatch after 24 hours.
