Care
Named after the site of their discovery, an oxbow lake of the Tami River, this rainbow has subsequently been found in a few lakes nearby. The original lake seems to be part of a flood plain and was densely vegetated with little water movement.
This is a peaceful shoaling species ideally suited to the planted community aquarium. They should be kept in groups of 6 or more individuals and because of their active nature, the aquarium should be spacious to allow them a good amount of swimming space. As with many other Rainbowfish species, the small juveniles can look comparatively drab to the absolutely stunning adult fish, and so are all too often overlooked in the shops. However, once settled into the security of the planted aquarium, these young specimens will soon begin to colour up, revealing their true adult beauty. The males in particular will develop a positively dazzling appearance, with the dominant male displaying the brightest colours of all.
May also be seen as the Millenium Rainbowfish. An albino form is occasionally available.
Feeding
Flake, green flake, micropellets, and small frozen foods such as mosquito larvae and daphnia.
Breeding
A separate good-sized breeding aquarium should be set up with 75% mature tank water and 25% of dechlorinated fresh water, along with a substrate of marbles. A small air-driven sponge filter (with a mature sponge) should be added to give gentle circulation and filtration. The temperature should be set at 27 °C. A conditioned pair should then be acclimatised across to the breeding aquarium, which should be furnished with plenty of fine-leaved plants/Java moss clumps. After a time, the male will begin displaying to the female. He will then begin to drive the female over the plants, utilising the whole length of the tank. The eggs will be scattered over the plants a few at a time. These fish are known as 'continual spawners' which means that the spawning activity takes place over several days, even months in some cases. This can present problems to the aquarist in that some adult fish may begin to consume the eggs as they are scattered. Alternatively, a spawning mop or clump of moss can be added to the main tank and moved to a rearing set up - note that this approach is inadvisable when housing different species together due to the very real danger of hybridisation. Many fishkeepers have found the eggs to be remarkably tough and have had great success in siphoning them out into another aquarium (containing matching water from the spawning tank). The eggs will usually hatch in 6-9 days (dependent on temperature) and once free-swimming, the tiny fry can be offered infusoria, moving onto larger foodstuffs such as baby brineshrimp and fine crushed flake foods as they develop.
