Photo: Loiselle P. V., Rodriguez D., CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Madagascar rainbowfish
Bedotia madagascariensis
10 cm
Adult size
140 L
Minimum volume
8
Minimum group
8 years
Lifespan
Water parameters
Understand these values- Genus
- Bedotia
- Diet
- carnivore
- Social life
- shoal
In the wild
Overview
Imported as early as the 1950s, this Malagasy rainbowfish is still often sold as Bedotia geayi, a related species from the Mananjary basin. It is listed as endangered.
- Scientific name
- Bedotia madagascariensis Regan, 1903
- Classification
- Atheriniformes › Bedotiidae
- IUCN Red List
- Endangered (EN)
Natural habitat
Eastern Madagascar: lower reaches of rivers between the Ivoloina (near Toamasina) and Vatomandry
Observations (GBIF) and localities Native countries Rivers and lakes
It lives in clear, shaded lowland streams with very soft water and a moderate current, and sometimes in acidic blackwater marshes. Where the habitat is open or murky, it has been replaced by introduced species (mosquitofish, platies).
Behaviour
Peaceful and undemanding, it is a shoaling fish that lives with rainbowfish, barbs, characins, peaceful cichlids and catfish, but not with other Bedotia (hybrids). It mainly eats insects: live or frozen prey and good-quality dry food.
Sources:FishBase Seriously Fish GBIF · Base map: Natural Earth