Fish Profile



Congo Tetra

Origin= Zaire (The Republic of Congo now) Scientific Name= Phenacogrammus interuptus Max. Size= Males: 3.14" (8CM), Females: Smaller, not known how much exactly. pH= 6-8 Temperature= 22-29C (72-85F) Temperment= Generally peaceful species, but may bite smaller fish Minimum Tank Size and/or Tank Type= A 25G (100L), community tank. Favourite Foods= Live & Artifical foods. Other Info= This is one of my favourite fish, it has very nice colours. This fish was first breed by the German Aquarist Meder, succeeded in breeeding this fish without acclimatization in 1951 in Neustadt. Breeding Info= TANK: With 25G (100L) capacity and a spawning grid. GENDER: The Male is larger and more colourful, with longer dorsal, ventral, anal and caudal fins. BREEDING RATIO: 1 Male : 1 Female; with a slight preponderance of males. BREEDING WATER: 26C (80F); pH of 6.5; dCH < 1. OTHER BREEDING INFO: Large Aquariums and soft water are prerequisites for succesful breeding. If you are going to spawn these fish in a shoal then the tank must be of at least 51G (200L) capacity. If the soft water is not available in sufficient quantity to fill the tank then the eggs must be taken out immediately after spawning and put in a smaller tank containing water of the given values. These fish are very lively, chasing one another so quickly that the act of spawning is practically unnoticeable. The females are prolific and 400 developed young fish from a single female are not unusual. The eggs are non-adhesive, round and glassy, they are about 1.8mm with pronounced germinal disc. The incubation period is about 144 hours (six days). Shortly after the embryo emerges from the egg case it becomes free-swimming and immediately takes food. Though the eggs are relatively large the fry are not particularly big and in the first few days have difficulty in coping with larger brine shrimp nauplii, which you should feed them.

Photo Credit: Raymond Tan's Fish Page Photo Credit: Erik Cohen Photo Credit: Erik Cohen Photo Credit: Erik Cohen