Origin: Atrato and San Juan River basins, South America Notes: A smaller alternative to the Bleeding heart tetra, there’s now a new variant available called Bentosi ‘White Fin’ which looks even better. Keep in large groups and keep warm to avoid outbreaks of whitespot. Notes: Needing no introduction, the colours of this fish say it all. Origin: Upper Orinoco and Negro river basins Keep in groups of ten or more and only combine with other tiny fish and invertebrates. Notes: Ember tetras are tiny and great for nano tanks. Origin: South America, Araguaia river basin. Males develop the elongate dorsal fin and get better as they mature. Notes: These are beautiful little tetras still relatively new in the hobby. Origin: Teles Pires river in the upper Tapajós basin, Brazil. Whatever your persuasion, there’s a tetra waiting for you… Your fish will repay you with better colours, more natural behaviour and may even reproduce. Some habitats contain lush plant growth while others are deviod of plants, instead filled with leaf litter and shaded by overhanging trees.Ĭombine one or more groups of tetras with some Corydoras catfish, Apistogramma dwarf cichlids and hatchetfish or pencilfish and you will be creating a little of the Amazon in your living room. A biotope replicates nature from a certain habitat in a certain part of the world and the classic choice for many of these South Americans is a softwater river, with soft sand, stained water and bogwood to represent water edge rainforest. Provide the best conditions for your tetras with a biotope aquarium. Tetras are easy to feed, accepting a wide range range of dry, frozen and live foods, and some will even breed, scattering their eggs among the leaves of plants and mosses. We’ve put together a selection of tetras from South America - most readily available and few more unusual ones.Īll of them will mix easily with each other and other fish, with most being ideal for beginners and for smaller aquariums only 60cm/24” long. What’s more, you can keep groups and mix them with other fish to really show them off at their best. As old as the hobby itself, these jewels of South America and West Africa are perfect for aquarium life as they are easy to keep and undemanding. Think of a tropical community aquarium and you will more than likely visualise one with tetras.

Tetra fish tank