Warmfish

I’ve almost stocked my tank completely, I’m trying to under stock as much as my patience will allow to ensure the fish I’ve got have the room to grow and live long and healthy lives.

The last shoal I wanted to add was a shoal of rummy nose tetra. I purchased 5 (for £10).

Figure 1- Close up of rummy nose tetra in my tank

There are three possible types of rummy nose tetra. Hemigrammus rhodostomus, Hemigrammus bleheri and Petitella georgiae. Based on my research, I think I’ve got the most common of the three, the Hemigrammus bleheri. In my mind the most noticable difference from the other two is the lack of a mid body line.

Figure 2 – the three types of rummy nose tetra (from peteducation.com)

Figure 3 – differences explained (from peteducation.com)

My rummy nose tetra like to shoal with the cardinal tetra, which is amazing to watch when the lights are low in the room.

Another interesting feature with these fish is their red nose. It seems it is an excellent indicator of good water quality. When the red nose reaches past the gill, you know the water is in good condition. When the red starts to fade, you know you need to get the testing kit out!

Martin

My local fish shop surprised me by having these in stock when I was looking for Rummy nose tetra. I couldn’t resist. The colours these fish possess make them excellent for showing off your tropical tank. I got a male and a female. It is a good idea to only stock one male in a tank my size as they will get aggressive towards each other.

Figure 1 – Male

The fish shop didn’t state any particular species, so I’ve had to use my detective work to establish what type of Killifish I’ve got. I think they are Nothobranchius rachovii. Please do correct me if I am wrong!!

Figure 2 – Male (and rummy nose tetra)

Figure 3 – Male

Figure 4 – Female (centre of picture)

The female is not as colourful as the male, however she has lots more personality, and will come to greet you when you come to feed them, and also come to say hello when you come close the the glass.

Buyers of these fish should be aware that they are great at jumping. The male managed to jump out onto the condensation tray, luckily I heard the jump, so was able to put him back in the water. After a day or so, he was back to normal. It must be quite an ordeal to land on a hot piece of glass and dry out!

I’ve got quite an array of colours in my tank now, the deep blue and purple of the Cardinals, the stark copper of the lamb chop harlequin, the shiny orange of the leopard danio, and the red and golden yellows of the Apistogramma cacatuoides. I also now have some rummy nose tetra for yet another dimension of colour!

Martin

Links of interest:

British Killifish Association

Killifish.co.uk

Tropical Fish Expert - Killifish