Photo: Axel Zarske, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Head-and-tail-light tetra
Hemigrammus ocellifer
4.5 cm
Adult size
80 L
Minimum volume
8
Minimum group
5 years
Lifespan
Water parameters
Understand these values- Genus
- Hemigrammus
- Diet
- omnivore
- Social life
- shoal
In the wild
Overview
The head-and-tail-light tetra owes its name to the two bright spots on its eye and tail, like a ship's lights. Popular for decades, it is mass-bred for the trade; there is also an albino form.
- Scientific name
- Holopristis ocellifera (Steindachner, 1882)Current valid name; in the hobby: Hemigrammus ocellifer
- Classification
- Characiformes › Acestrorhamphidae
- IUCN Red List
- Least concern (LC)
Natural habitat
Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, and the Amazon basin in Brazil and Peru
Observations (GBIF) and localities Native countries Rivers and lakes
It lives in slow rivers, tributaries and floodplain lakes, in groups, in water with little current. It feeds on worms, small insects, crustaceans and plant matter.
Behaviour
Hardy, lively and peaceful, it is one of the best choices for beginners and for community tanks: livebearers, Danio, Rasbora, other tetras, Corydoras, gouramis and dwarf cichlids. Not with large species that would eat it, such as the angelfish. Keep it in a shoal. It accepts almost anything, with small live or frozen prey for good colours.
Sources:FishBase Seriously Fish GBIF · Base map: Natural Earth