|
The African Longfinned
Tetra, Brycinus longipinnis, is an active schooling fish
closely related to the Congo Tetra. It has silvery sides and large
scales with a subtle blue-green coloration. The eye is red and the
most prominent marking is a heavy horizontal black line from about
half back to the base of the tail. There also is a yellowish cast
in the coloration, depending on the light angle and conditions.
The dorsal fin of the male can by extremely long flowing, often
extending beyond the tail. The high activity, long flowing dorsal,
attractive coloration, and peaceful nature make this fish very desirable
in a community aquarium.
Brycinus longipinnis is from tropical West Africa and was
first introduced to the hobby in 1928. Soft, slightly acid water
is usually recommended, but not a necessity. It is large for a tetra,
attaining about 4.5 inches, although I have not seen them that large.
Growth is fairly slow and I suspect that it is a fairly long-lived
fish. Water quality is important as it is sensitive to nitrates,
possibly even more so than it’s cousin the Congo Tetra. Once
in an established aquarium, there doesn’t seem to be a problem,
but I have found they ship poorly unless there is plenty of room
per fish in the bag. Their higher activity level probably consumes
more oxygen than normal and may be one reason they are not frequently
imported. Because of their size and constant swimming, I would recommend
a 30-gallon tank or larger for them with lots of open swimming space.
Clean, well-oxygenated water and regular water changes are important.
Several authors have recommended peat filtration, although I have
not found it necessary. I suspect their natural habitat to be fast
flowing rivers because of their streamlined body and constant swimming.
Seventy-five to 78 degrees seems to be a good temperature for them.
The African Longfinned Tetra swims in midwater and feeds mainly
at the surface. Some cover or floating plants are helpful as it
can be timid or easily frightened, especially in smaller groups.
It will eat just about any food including dry food, frozen brine
shrimp, daphnia, white worms, frozen liver, and beef heart. Some
imported fish have been very finicky about eating for me, but once
they become adjusted, they do fine. Water quality seems to effect
their appetite somewhat too. They can be extremely heavy eaters
and seem to do best on a variety of high protein foods.
Most references I found stated that the African Longfinned Tetra
had not been bred in captivity. Two sources from Europe, however,
did refer to an occasional spawning but gave few details. If this
fish has been bred at least a few times in the last 60 years since
its introduction, I am disappointed that no information has been
recorded in the reference literature. Perhaps the breeders felt
the information unimportant, or did not wish to write an article,
or even felt the “secret” might get them a few extra
dollars when they sold the fry. I do not know the status of the
African Longfinned Tetra in the wild, but the natural habitats of
many fish we keep in the hobby are threatened by environmental damage
or political unrest. If we do not share or publish the information
on breeding difficult fish, they may become extinct or unavailable
to the hobby.
Whenever I see in reference books, “This species has been
bred, but no details available,” I wonder why. We are very
fortunate in the Kalamazoo-Detroit area. S.W.A.M. has a very strong
BAP program and a number of our programs have been given by professional
breeders very willing to share their knowledge.
Darrel Ullisch gave me a pair of Brycinus longipinnis about
a year and a half ago and I obtained three more specimens after
that. Sexing adults is not difficult. The male is slightly larger,
has the long dorsal fin, and has a convex anal fin. The females’
anal fin is a concave at the bottom edge. With 2 males and 3 females,
I set out to try and condition them and get the females to fill
with eggs. For the first few months they ate little and were concave
in the belly area, probably a result of adjusting from the wild.
Gradually they began eating more and me, but I could not get the
females to fill with eggs. Finally, after feeding 2 to 3 times per
day with beef liver, white worms, and frozen brine shrimp, I got
one female to show a slight convexity, but certainly not a plumpness.
The pair was about 2.5 inches so I set up a bare 10 gallon tank
with fresh softened water (Culligan) and plastic plants in a dimly
lit area with the temperature about 75 degrees. The filter was a
foam filter under gravel in pan. After aging the water about 12
hours and knocking the bubbles off the plants, I introduced the
pair of fish. For three days there was no activity and the fish
hid in the plants. The fourth morning I got up and there were 2
to 3 hundred eggs scattered all over the bottom with no attempt
to eat them by the parents. The eggs are large (2mm) and very similar
to Congo Tetra eggs. This spawning had a high fertility rate of
about 80%. I removed the parents and siphoned off about half the
eggs, placing them in rainwater with methylene blue in a dimly lit
area with light aeration. The remaining eggs I left in the breeding
tank and added 15 drops of methylene blue to control fungus, keeping
the filter going strongly. Trying different ways to hatch eggs often
tells me what the best water chemistry, etc., is for hatching. In
4 days the eggs began to hatch and were all hatched in 2 more days.
I obtained an excellent hatch in both the rainwater and the breeding
tank. In 4 to 5 days I had about 200 free-swimming fry. (Lest you
think this result was a snap, I bred the same pair again two months
later under what I thought were the same conditions, and I got a
very poor hatch of 15 fry, which I had to help break out of the
eggshell. Such is the fickleness of breeding fish!)
The fry are long, have small mouths, and need infusoria for about
2 to 3 days before they will take newly hatched brine shrimp. A
single drop of Liquifry 2 to 3 times per day was used. The fry must
constantly swim or they will sink and it was necessary to use a
strong air supply to the foam filter to keep the water moving and
a high oxygen content. It also keeps the food in front of the fry
constantly. The slender fry have small stomachs so be careful not
to overfeed and pollute the water. Once the fry are eating newly
hatched brine shrimp, the job is easier, but the fry digest their
food quickly and need to be fed a minimum of 2 times per day. In
about 3 weeks they were taking finely powered dry food as well.
I managed to spread the fry to other tanks fairly quickly and after
3 months have about 150 fry from 1 to 1.5 inches. These fry feed
quite aggressively in larger schools and will even attach sinking
pellets on the bare bottomed tank leaving little for the catfish
or other slower fish! I have kept them with several other species
of fish and have not noticed fin nipping behavior at all.
In summary, the African Longfinned Tetra is a lively, peaceful,
attractive fish capable of being as popular and available as its
cousin the Congo Tetra. I highly recommend it as a fine addition
to any larger community tank. I encourage all hobbyists to not be
afraid to try and breed difficult or previously unbred fish –
you may have just the right conditions to attain success. All fish
breed, it’s just that some haven’t done so in captivity.
Use common sense, clean water, and a variety of foods. Give it a
try and good luck. I may be reading your article in the near future!
|
Up
5
|
