The Neon Tetra, Paracheirodon innesi, is, without a doubt,
one of the most popular and most commonly seen tropical aquarium
fish. Their brilliant electric blue and red coloration, ease of
maintenance, small size and peaceful demeanor make them an ideal
aquarium resident.
Neons are very adaptable to various aquarium conditions as they
can tolerate pH’s from the middle 5’s to the middle
8’s. The best results are obtained when they are kept in the
range from 6.0 to 7.0. The water should be slightly soft for optimum
conditions, but they can tolerate very hard water without ill effects.
The temperature in a Neon tank should be kept in the low to mid
70’s. If the temperature in the tank exceeds 80 degrees, the
Neon’s coloration begins to bleach out and they begin to act
very sluggish. Cleanliness of the water is very important to the
well being of Neon Tetras. Good filtration and 25% to 50% weekly
water changes will keep the Neons looking and feeling good.
Neons may very possibly be the most prodigious egglayers kept in
home aquaria. I have witnessed them lay eggs almost daily under
a wide variety of conditions. A small school will produce hundreds
of eggs a week, but the eggs are eaten, they fail to develop, or
the fry are eaten before they are large enough to be seen. Successfully
spawning and raising the fry is difficult but it can be done if
the proper conditions and care are provided.
The first step in successfully spawning Neons is the proper set-up
of the spawning tank. I used a 5-gallon tank filled with rainwater.
The rainwater had had peat moss soaking in it for almost a month.
The peat gave a brownish tint to the water, and, I believe, the
acids leached from the peat help induce spawning and prevent bacterial
growth which may harm the eggs or the fry. The pH was still a little
high so I used a product called PH Down to bring the pH to 6.2.
I added 1 teaspoon of non-iodized table salt to add some mineral
content to the water and 5 drops of acriflavine to preclude fungal
growth. The temperature was regulated to maintain constant 75 degrees.
This may be on the high end of the range. Commercial Neon breeders
in Hong Kong maintain tank temperatures of 68 degrees F via the
use of air conditioners and these breeders produce thousands of
neons a week. A small sponge filter with just a slight trickle of
air and several yarn spawning mops placed on the bottom completed
the set-up.
The second step is the proper conditioning of the breeders. Separate
the males and females. A glass divider seems to work best, as the
fish can still see each other and this seems to enhance the spawning
urge. The breeders should be fed as much meaty foods as they can
consume. Mine were fed all the white worms and live baby brine shrimp
that they could eat. Within a week, the females were bulging with
eggs and the males were constantly dancing for the females.
When conditioning is complete the fish should be placed directly
into the spawning tank. Although the use of trios, reverse trios,
and groups of Neons have all been advocated, I chose one nice pair.
I feel that one fish, not actively participating in the spawning
act will eat enough eggs to make the multiple breeder approach nonproductive.
Within minutes, the male will begin courting the female. He tends
to swim around the female in a square pattern, using short jerky
movements followed by periods of motionlessness. If the fish are
put into the spawning tank in the evening, they will probably be
done by noon of the following day. The reduced girth of the female
will be the only easily recognized sign of the completed spawning
activity. When you feel that the day’s spawning is completed,
remove the adults.
The eggs are quite small and, with close inspection can be seen
lying on the bottom and among the mops. They are not very adhesive
and by shaking the mops they will settle to the bottom, then the
mops can be removed. Now the tank should be covered to exclude light,
which can be harmful to eggs and newborn fry.
As soon as the Neons have spawned, you should start an infusoria
culture. The easiest method I know is to fill a one-gallon jar with
water from an established tank and add 6 or 7 Red Ramshorn snails.
Feed the snails with live baby brine shrimp and in two or three
days the jar will be filled with clouds of tiny infusorians.
The eggs will hatch in about 36 hours. The tiny fry can be seen
wiggling on the bottom of the tank. It takes 4 or 5 more days before
the fry are free-swimming and can be fed. For the first feeding
I added infusoria rich water and 3 drops of a prepared liquid fry
food. I gave the babies this mixture for two days. On the third
day I dropped the liquid fry food and fed them twice a day on infusoria,
powdered fry food, and vinegar ells. On the fourth day, microworms
were added to their diet and on the seventh day they were large
enough to eat newly hatched baby brine shrimp. When the fry began
to eat the brine shrimp, I added several snails to the tank to eat
leftover food and prevent fouling of the water.
When the fry were two weeks old I began to change one quart of water
every other day. The fry are very sensitive to bad water conditions
and the water must be kept clean and fresh.
In three or four weeks the fry will begin to show the distinctive
electric blue stripe. When this occurs the water changes can be
reduced in frequency and increased in volume. Fifteen to 25% every
third day will ensure good health and growth.
When the fry are two months old they should have reached a length
of at least one inch and should be colored exactly as an adult.
This may seem like a lot of effort just to raise a fish that is
both plentiful and inexpensive, but there is a great personal satisfaction
in being able to breed a fish that has had the “difficult”
label given to it. So pull a couple of Neons out of your community
tank and give them a chance. You’ll find out how interesting
it is to spawn the Neon Tetra.
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