Photo: Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Coral red pencilfish
Nannostomus mortenthaleri
3 cm
Adult size
100 L
Minimum volume
6
Minimum group
4 years
Lifespan
Water parameters
Understand these values- Genus
- Nannostomus
- Diet
- carnivore
- Social life
- small group
In the wild
Overview
The coral red pencilfish, discovered by Martin Mortenthaler, was first described as a subspecies of N. marginatus before being raised to species rank in 2003. Males are a brilliant red. Its tiny range earns it the status of critically endangered.
- Scientific name
- Nannostomus mortenthaleri Paepke & Arendt, 2001
- Classification
- Characiformes › Lebiasinidae
- IUCN Red List
- Critically endangered (CR)
Natural habitat
Peru (Loreto): Nanay and Río Tigre basins
Observations (GBIF) and localities Native countries Rivers and lakes
It lives in slow tributaries, small rivers and marshes rich in plants, submerged wood and leaf litter, in black water: shallow, almost motionless water, very soft, pH 4 to 6.
Behaviour
Peaceful with other species, but shy and tiny: keep it alone or with small, calm characins, Corydoras or small Loricariidae. It is a very good companion for dwarf cichlids and does not hunt fry. Gregarious, it forms hierarchies among males. Fine dry food and small live or frozen prey every day (Artemia nauplii, Moina).
Sources:FishBase Seriously Fish GBIF · Base map: Natural Earth