Blue neon as a species was first described by Gehry in 1927. Now it is one of the most popular varieties of fish found in domestic waters. Bright flocks fly around the aquarium, like small comets, delighting the eye and leaving no one indifferent.
Unpretentious care of the fish – a great start for beginners when starting the first aquarium.
The blue neon fish is a great choice for beginner aquarists.
Blue neons – representatives of the Kharacin family, belong to ray beams. Fish live only in the basins of the rivers Rio Putumayo, Marañona and Rio Ucayali.
Now this variety is practically not caught and not exported. In Hong Kong’s fish farms, neonchiki are artificially bred; their price is much lower than the cost of wild representatives.
Color in fishes is memorable. The blue neon shade of the band, which was the reason for the name of the fish, passes from the head to the tail, and below it is a strip of bright red color. The size of the males vary from 3 to 3.5 cm, the female is larger – 3.8-4 cm.
The fins are transparent. Lifespan 3-5 years.
Gender differences are well pronounced: slender males with even stripes, females of dense build, stripes on their body in the middle have a fracture due to roundness of forms.
Fish of a peaceful nature, get along well with all the underwater inhabitants of the home pond. But with large predatory fish, the neighborhood should be excluded: they will take neons for a lively lunch and will definitely eat them.
In terms of content, blue neon is unpretentious. It will suit even a small aquarium (not less than 10 liters), which need not be covered with a lid or glass: neon guys are nimble, but not bouncy.
It is better to get a flock of 5-6 or more individuals.
Blue neons can reach 4 cm in length.
Key parameters for comfortable content:
- water – + 18-24 degrees. Excess temperature can halve fish life;
- dH – 5-7;
- pH 6.5–7;
- lighting – moderate. Must be shaded places;
- aeration and filtration are required;
- the ground is dark. Against its background, the fish look brighter;
- vegetation – any living plants that do not interfere with the fish free to swim;
- scenery – mounds of stones, decorative grottoes, caverns, castles, koriazhka.
Adult fish are fed in small portions once a day to avoid obesity, which can lead to death. Be sure to once a week need a fasting day.
The blue neon fish is omnivorous: it eats with pleasure both dry and live and frozen food. But more preferred:
The owner should take into account the small size of the pet’s mouth and crush large particles of feed. Live food is better to pre-freeze to avoid poisoning.
A varied diet contributes to the saturation of color and health of the wards. It is not recommended to mix dry and frozen types of feed in one feeding.
Surpluses must be removed to avoid clogging up the aquarium.
Even with good maintenance, the fish periodically get sick. An indicator of the health of neonchik is the intensity of their colors. Faded color speaks about the beginning of the disease or stress.
If the owner on time notes the deterioration of the condition of the ward, the chance of cure is high. But there are incurable ills, symptoms and treatment that you need to know necessarily:
- Neon disease Fungal disease resulting in neon death. Symptoms: the fish refuses to eat, the neon strip becomes faded. In this case, all underwater inhabitants are infected. All that remains is the elimination of the contents of the aquarium (fish, snails, shrimps, plants) and good disinfection of the tank along with the soil.
- Dermatocystitis. On the body of neonchik thin white formations are formed – cysts. Within each, spores develop, parasitizing in the fish until all organs cease to function normally. The chance of survival is minimal. If time to eliminate the sick fish, you can save the rest.
- Fin rot. The main cause of the disease is the owner’s inattention to their wards. With poor water quality, the fins of the fish begin to decompose. In time, the measures taken will save not only neons, but also all the fish living in the aquarium.
The change in their color indicates the deterioration of the fish.
If the goal of the owner of the fish is blue neon – breeding, you need to provoke the first spawning yourself. Fish are capable of breeding in 6-8 months.
Before the start, males and females are separated and begin to feed abundantly with live food, preferably Cyclops. Tubber is not recommended, it is too fatty food during spawning.
During this time, a spawner is prepared with a length of at least 40 cm. Instead of soil, it is carpeted with Javanese moss or nylon muddle, pressed with stones so as not to pop up. Water parameters should be as follows:
- acidity – not higher than 5.0;
- stiffness – up to 4.0;
- temperature – 26 degrees.
The water is prepared in advance and before landing the fish they wrap the aquarium with thick dark paper in which a small hole is pierced. Next to put a dim source of light, diluting the darkness of the water through the hole in the paper.
Couples are planted in the afternoon. The spawned producers are immediately removed from the spawner so that they do not eat caviar.
Then remove the dead eggs (they turn white) and turn off the lights.
During spawning, fish are not recommended to feed pipe makers.
After 22-24 hours the larvae hatch. Water temperature should be + 25 degrees. After a week, they become mobile and float to the top to swallow a bubble of air, which eventually turns into a swimming bubble.
If the surface of the water is drawn into the film, all the larvae will die.
Hatching fry still do not see well, so the aquarium should be dimly lit. They start feeding with infusoria, as the children grow up, they switch to Artemia and Cyclops.
As soon as the fish actively begin to grow and gain weight, they can be planted in a common household pond.
With proper maintenance and nutrition, a flock of nimble neonchikov will delight the owner for a long time from generation to generation.
If you liked the video – share with friends:
