Congo Tetra

1 Congo Tetra Overview

The Congo Tetra, also known as the Congo Neon or Congo Fish, is native to the Congo River in Africa. It is small, reaching about 8-10 cm as an adult, and is gregarious—suitable for schooling and mixing with similarly sized fish.

Chinese name: Congo Tetra

Aliases: Congo Neon, Congo Fish

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Distribution: Congo River system, Africa

2 Physical Characteristics

Also called the Congo Neon, the Congo Tetra’s name hints at its unique coloration. It occupies the middle and lower levels of the aquarium, and is best kept with aquatic plants, which provide shelter and showcase its beauty.

The Congo Tetra grows 8-10 cm. It is spindle-shaped with a small head, large eyes, and an upward-slanting mouth. The dorsal fin is tall and narrow; the pelvic and anal fins are large. The caudal fin’s outer edge is straight but protrudes at the center. Its base color mixes blue-green with golden yellow, and its large scales have a metallic sheen, glowing brilliantly under light.

3 Aquarium Conditions

Native to the Congo River, captive Congo Tetras require attention to water quality or disease and even death may result. They prefer clean, weakly acidic soft water at 22-26°C. Gregarious and active, they occupy the middle and lower water levels. Generally peaceful and mixable with most small fish, they share the Tiger Barb’s vice of occasionally nipping the fin edges of slow-moving, long-finned fish.

4 Feeding Guidelines

The Congo Tetra is not hard to keep; with stable water and healthy, reasonable feeding it grows well. What should it eat, and how to feed scientifically?

The Congo Tetra is robust and unfussy. Though omnivorous, it prefers animal-based food and readily accepts various artificial feeds. It likes weakly acidic water, schooling, and active life in the middle-lower levels. Eggs hatch about 36 hours after fertilization; the fry cannot swim and absorb their yolk sac for 36 hours, then swim freely and can be fed tiny live food such as cultured paramecia. After about 10 days the fry accept ordinary fine fish food without special care.