New Fish Tank Tips: Don’t place your tank next to a window. Sunlight entering your aquarium will cause major headaches in the form of green algae. Direct sunlight will also cause your tank water temperature to increase.
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The neon tetra (Paracheirodon innesi) is a freshwater fish of the characin family (family Characidae) of order Characiformes. The type species of its genus, it is native to blackwater or clearwater streams in southeastern Colombia, eastern Peru, and western Brazil, including the tributaries of the Solimões where the water is between 20–26°C.[1] It is not found in the whitewater rivers of Andean origin. Its bright colouring makes the fish visible to conspecifics in the dark blackwater streams,[citation needed] and is also the main reason for its popularity as a tropical fish.
The Neon Tetra has a light-blue back over a silver-white abdomen. The fish is characterized by an iridescent blue horizontal stripe along each side of the fish from its nose to the base of the adipose fin, and an iridescent red stripe that begins at the middle of the body and extends posteriorly to the base of the caudal fin. Most, if not all, will develop a olive green sheen lining their backs. The fish is completely transparent (including fins) except for these markings. During the night,the blue and red become silver as the fish rests—it reactivates once it becomes active in the morning. It grows to approximately 3 cm (1.25 in) in overall length. Sexual dimorphism is slight, the female having a slightly larger belly.
The Neon Tetra was first imported from South America and was described by renowned ichthyologist Dr. George S. Myers in 1936, and named after Dr. William T. Innes. P. innesi is one of the most popular aquarium fish, having been bred in tremendous numbers for the trade. Most neon tetras available in the United States are imported from Hong Kong, Singapore, and Thailand, where they are farm raised, or to a lesser extent (<5%) from Colombia, Peru, and Brazil, where they are collected from the wild. During a single month, an average of 1.8 million neon tetras with an estimated value of $175,000 are imported into the United States for the aquarium trade. [2] With the exception of home aquarists and a few commercial farms that breed neon tetras experimentally, captive breeding on a commercial scale is nonexistent in the United States. While commercially bred neon tetras have adapted well to a wide range of water conditions, in the wild they inhabit very soft, acidic waters that are usually cooler than the 25°C most tropical aquaria are maintained at.[1] Neon Tetras have a lifespan of about five years. Neon tetras are considered easy to keep in a community aquarium that is at least 60 cm (24 inches), with a pH of 5.0–7.0 and KH of 1.0–2.0. However, they will not tolerate dramatic changes to their environment. They tend to be timid and, because of their small size, should not be kept with large or aggressive fish who may bully or simply eat them. Fish that mix well in an aquarium are other types of tetras, such as the rummy-nose tetra, cardinal tetra, and glowlight tetra, and other community fish that live well in an ideal Tetra water condition. Mid-level feeders, they are best kept in schools of five to eight or more, for the “shoaling” effect when they move around the tank. They shoal naturally in the wild and are thus happier, more brightly colored, and more active when kept as a shoal as opposed to singly. Their colour and the iridescent stripe may become dim at night, and can be virtually invisible after a period of darkness. The color may also fade during a period of stress, such as human intervention into the tank. Neons are best kept in a densely planted tank with subdued light and an ideal temperature of 78-80 degrees Fahrenheit to resemble their native Amazon environment.
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