Care
The Blue Panchax is known from heavily vegetated canals, ditches, ponds, reservoirs, and lowland wetlands. It is not unknown for them to move into slightly brackish waters in mangrove creeks, and they thrive on eating the mosquito larvae which land on the water"™s surface. A pair of these top-dwelling fish require an aquarium 3ft long, and if a larger group (including more males) are to be kept together, a more spacious tank must be provided. The aquarium itself should be aquascaped with plenty of plants, including floating varieties wherever possible. This will give the fish a natural network of hiding places and territories. Tangles of driftwood can also be added to give additional shelter. Blue Panchax are accomplished jumpers, so it is essential that the tank has tight fitting coverslides. These fish are predatory and have surprisingly wide mouths (view them head-on). Therefore they should never be combined with small community fish e.g. Neon Tetras, as these will soon become a snack. Blue Panchax are best maintained with medium sized fish of a peaceful disposition, and which do not occupy the same extreme top level of the aquarium. Interestingly, in their native homelands, this species is referred to as the 'White Spot' on account of the bright silver-white mark on top of the head when viewed from above.
Feeding
These fish require a good variety of meaty frozen foods, as in the wild they are known to take insects and insect larvae from the water"™s surface. Bloodworm and white mosquito larvae are preferred, but they will also enjoy vitamin-enriched brineshrimp and daphnia.
Breeding
A chosen conditioned pair should be acclimatised to a softwater breeding aquarium furnished with large clumps of fine leaved plants and floating plants. Some aquarists prefer to condition the male and female in separate tanks prior to bringing them together in the breeding aquarium. The eggs, which are of quite a large size, will be deposited amongst the plants near the water"™s surface. From here it is easy to transfer them to another growing-on tank so that the parent fish do not predate on them (alternatively, carefully remove the parent fish from this aquarium once spawning has ceased). The eggs can be expected to hatch within 9-14 days (temperature dependant) and the young offered finely powdered "˜first foods"™ and newly hatched brineshrimp.
