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Red Rainbowfish

Salmon Red Rainbowfish Also: Lake Sentani, Red Irian, Irian Jaya, or New Guinea Red Rainbowfish Family: Melanotaeniidae

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Glossolepis incisus Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy Greg Rothschild

  In the natural world, red doesn’t get much better than with the Red Rainbowfish!

   Like so many fish, the Red Rainbowfish is also known by variety of other names. Yet in almost all its designations you can't help but to notice the predominant phrase of 'red': Salmon Red Rainbowfish, Lake Sentani Rainbowfish, Red Irian Rainbowfish, and New Guinea Red Rainbowfish. Of course there is the odd ball Irian Jaya Rainbowfish, but in most cases there is no misunderstanding of the impression this striking fish makes. This species quickly and uniquely demonstrates the appeal of the rainbowfish family.

   If well kept in a mixed school of male and female fish, you will see a constantly changing show of crimson and silver in the male Red Rainbowfish. Although female coloration is less inspiring, without a female to display to the males will be a dull dusty brown. It is competition between males that brings out the best colors. To see good strong reds, frequent water changes are also essential.This is a most excellent fish for any aquarist willing to accept the challenge.

   The Red Rainbowfish is currently listed as vulnerable, meaning it is liable to become endangered in the near future. It is in this danger because of over harvesting and destructive collection methods for the aquarium trade. The purchase of wild caught specimens for direct sale or for irresponsible breeding has seriously damaged wild populations. In addition to dangers in the wild, this fish is often poorly bred, leading to a genetically weak captive population. Considering the precarious position this species is in, the aquarist should first consider buying carefully bred specimens rather than “farmed” or wild caught specimens.

For more Information on keeping freshwater fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Distribution:
   The Red Rainbowfish was described by Weber in 1907, and lives only in Lake Sentani in Irian Jaya. They tend to gather around the margins of the lake where there is vegetation and bog type wood.

Status:
  The Red Rainbowfish is listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: VU - vulnerable.

Description:
   Red Rainbowfish are long, slender fish. Mature males will have a highly arched back and very narrow head. Red Rainbowfish show many typical rainbowfish characteristics, namely large eyes, a deeply forked mouth and two dorsal fins. In the right setting, mature males have a brilliant blood red body and fin color. The body is accented with silver scales. Age, health, mood, water quality, temperature, and rank in the school will all impact the shade and intensity of red the male displays. Females and young males will be a uniformly dull olive brown in color with clear gray fins.

Size - Weight:
   Red Rainbowfish are quite capable of 6 inches in length (15cm), but may be smaller in the aquarium.

Care and feeding:
   Red Rainbowfish are omnivorous, but usually eat a heavily meat based diet. They require a high quality diet to promote good coloration. Live and processed foods are both essential to its well being. Buy processed food in small amounts frequently as nutrition in these products quickly deteriorates past usefulness by this species. Specially prepared commercial foods that are sold as 'color food' will contain dyes like carotene which is advantageous to enhance their color. Some good examples of suitable live food include bloodworms, tubifex worms, water fleas, or brine shrimp. These should be fed at least twice per week as a supplement to the prepared diet. If these are unavailable live, frozen (defrosted) substitutes would also be accepted.
   The Red Rainbowfish is an active fish. The aquarium and its inhabitants should be prepared to meet this inherent condition. The plants should be sturdy enough to stay rooted and recover from any browsing. There should be a good stretch of open water for them to school in. If you choose to add bogwood, take care that your water is hard enough that you don’t experience a pH drop.
   Because they are very active swimmers the aquarium should be spacious, with 35 gallons being the absolute minimum. Eventually adults will need a much larger tank, with 100 to 150 gallons being reasonable. When startled these fish may jump, so a tight aquarium hood will prevent them from getting airborne. If a constant regimen of 25-50% weekly water changes is not upheld, expect poor coloration. Keeping the tank at a lower temperature, say 70° F (21° C), will make more of the males display brighter red colors.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:
   Red Rainbowfish swim wherever there is open water, usually in the top or middle region.

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   Temperature: 70 - 79° F (21 - 28° C)
   Hardness: 8 - 25 dGH
   Ph: 6.5 - 8.5

Social Behaviors:
  Red Rainbowfish do fine in a community aquarium of similarly sized fish, but do exceptionally well in a geographical tank stocked with other rainbowfish. Although generally non-aggressive, overly aggressive or very shy tank mates will make bullies out of them. Mix them with other playful but good natured fish for best results. If in a tank with both other males and females, the males will occupy themselves by displaying their brightest and best red colors and flaring their fins. When males are displaying, you may notice some chasing between rainbowfish, but this is rarely a concern unless a fish is injured, has nowhere to hide, or is constantly harassed (usually a result of one of the first two).
   Red Rainbowfish are schooling fish and the ratio of males to females is very important to keep a reasonable peace among them when numbers are small. Although you can always keep single sex schools, don't expect to see any red coloration out of the males without representation from both genders. Properly stocking rainbowfish is a little tricky so we include the following recommendation for stocking. Choose which type of school you want to keep and how many fish.

Sexual Differences:
   Mature males will be much redder, have the arched back described above, and will often be the more territorial sex.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   A breeding tank should be set up with a sponge filer and either many fine leaved plants or a spawning mop. A pair of healthy adult rainbowfish should be introduced. They should be conditioned with live foods and plant based foods. Remember, you are trying to emulate the bounty of the flood season so feed more and higher quality food than you normally would.
   After the female has produced eggs, the males will display an amazing show of intense colors and direct the female to the spawning site, spawn, and then rest. The spawning mop or plants should be removed and replaced after the spawning or the eggs will be eaten. The fish will repeat this daily for a few days, with steadily decreasing numbers of eggs produced. The parents should be removed when egg numbers fall or if the females show signs of fatigue.
   The fry will hatch after about a week and should be fed infusoria or a liquid fry food until they are able to eat small live foods. The fry are something of a challenge to raise until they are about two months old. The fry grow slowly and require clean water during the entire process.
   A problem to be aware of is crossbreeding. Rainbowfish in the wild will not breed with fish of another species, even when presented the opportunity to do so. But for some reason, rainbowfish of the Melanotaeniidae family in the aquarium will interbreed, often with undesirable results. Somehow the fry of mismatched parents lose most of their coloration. Since many of these species are rare, it is desirable to keep the bloodlines distinct, or risk losing the beautiful coloration that nature has taken thousands of years to develop.

Buy Red Rainbowfish From LiveAquaria.com

See an overview of how to breed Rainbowfish in Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Availability:
   The Red Rainbowfish (also sold as the New Guinea Red Rainbowfish, the Salmon Red Rainbowfish, the Lake Sentani Rainbowfish, the Red Irian Rainbowfish, or the Irian Jaya Rainbowfish) is widely available in pet stores and online. Specimens sell for about $5.00 - $15.00 USD each.

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Latest Comments
I have a male and female of the glossolepis incisus (New Guinea Red Rainbow fish). The male was a gift long before I knew of this species and I must say I'm completely enamoured with this fish. He's so loveable and interactive. I had to get a female for him, he was displaying for anyone and anything, lol. Though I'd love to get more rainbowfish I'll have to wait until I get a bigger tank. These fish are hardy and very pleasant to raise. Gail Hengen 2007-12-10

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