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According to the richness of the Characoidei species, the African ichthyofauna is inferior to the Central and South American fauna. Actually, the black continent represents only 3 families against 11 in the rivers of South America. But in spite of such numerical and species preponderance of the "Americans", African haratsinas do not give up their positions at the zoo market without a fight, especially since many kinds of external data are in no way inferior to their rivals from the American continent and often find themselves in the collections of amateurs and professionals alike.
Based on previously published materials of Russian and foreign aquarists, and also summarizing my experience, I will try to tell about the content and breeding at home of fish of the three most popular, in my opinion, species of the family of African tetras (Alestidae), who for more than thirty years have periodically lived In my aquariums, presenting unexpected surprises, forcing to experience failures and triumph over victories.
At the Bird Market in Moscow, fish appeared somewhere in the late 60's, representing an exceptional rarity and attracting everyone's attention. In those years, the boom of haracin was in its prime.
The most recognized was the tetra-congo-Phenacogrammus (Micralestes) interruptus (Boulenger, 1899), also known as the "beautiful Congo", "rainbow phenacogrammus", etc. Such epithets reliably reflect the bright color of the fish.
The homeland of the species is the Congo River basin (Zaire). The size of fish is 8-10 cm. Congo has a high, highly streamlined body, covered with large relief scales. The back of the males glows with a soft turquoise light, the rest of the body is greenish-blue. From the head to the base of the tail stretches a wide orange band. Very impressive look great velvet-black eyes, framed by a blue ring.
Additional decoration of the males are ashen-violet fins. The spinal cord is strongly extended and ends with several rays, often leaving behind the tail. The anal forms a wide veil, ending at the base of the tail. But the most original is the caudal fin, in the middle part of which there are several feather-like outgrowths. Their length, shape and number are individual for each individual.
The females are smaller, not so smart and do not have these amazing formations on the tail. Sometimes by 2 - 2.5 years they have very short tubercles between the lobes of the caudal fin.
The content of the Congo does not cause much trouble. Fishes are quite peaceful, resistant to infectious diseases. Perfectly feel in soft as well as in hard (up to 20 degrees) water with a temperature of 21 - 23 degrees C. Aeration and filtration are desirable. They like spacious, well-lit aquariums with densely planted areas and vegetation-free "glades", where fish arrange swift "dances". Males, fluffy huge fins, chasing each other, somersaults, lie down on the move to the side, sparkling blue-green color.
During games, fish sometimes even forget about feed, although they do not suffer from lack of appetite. With pleasure they eat corpatrum, bloodworm, tubule, crustaceans. The greatest treat for them is the fly-drosophila or other insects thrown to the surface of the water. For the balancing of nutrition, one should not forget about vegetable food, which in natural conditions is up to 40% of the diet. You can give imported mixed fodders, bread crumbs and cookies.
Depending on the conditions of keeping and caloric content of food, the fish ripen by 10 months, often by the year. They contain a flock of 10 - 15 individuals. The behavior of the flock will tell you about the spawning that began in the general aquarium. Usually the gong and mating begin in the morning hours in 20 - 30 minutes after turning on the lighting. Naturally, to save in this case caviar is not possible.
To obtain the offspring, mature fish are planted in a separate container with a soft (dGH 2- 3 degrees) acidified (pH 6.0 - 6.2) water. It should be well-kept, as fresh water is poorly tolerated by the fish. This must be taken into account when they are kept. To change the water in a common aquarium is necessary often - 1 - 2 times a week, but in small portions (1/10 volume).
Several methods of breeding these fishes have been worked out. You can plant a couple to spawn, you can group of 5 - 7 individuals. Groups can be dominated by both males and females. The main condition is the sufficiency of space. A couple of fish need at least 30 liters of water, per pack - no less than 70. This does not mean that a pair of Congo does not spawn in a 20-liter aquarium, but no good results in this case. Firstly, the very mechanism of spawning requires the need for at least a 20 - 25-centimeter layer of water: after a short, 3 to 5 minutes, the male gon grows vertically on the tail above the plant bush, often working with fins. The length of the male (up to 10 cm) plus the height of the substrate (also about 10 cm), plus the safety grille (another 2 - 3 cm) - that's the result.
Ready for spawning female (a characteristic sign - the emerging ovipositor) swims to the male, becomes near, and transparent eggs for 15 to 20 pieces are poured into the water. The fish spread out to the sides, and again the rut begins. This lasts for 2 - 2.5 hours. The total number of eggs is 300 - 500 or more, depending on the age and condition of the female.
The second reason for unsuccessful spawning in small volumes is the abundant secretion of sex products by males. Ration of eggs and a large amount of milk lead to an immediate bacterial outbreak and death of the masonry.
And the third: Congo - a shy fish, often falling into shock during transplants. In a close spawning she will feel uncomfortable, fight against the glass, get hurt. Here, as they say, not to hiccup.
Even under optimal conditions, fish rarely spawn the next day. As a rule, this happens only on the 3rd - 6th day, while the Congo does not adapt in the new environment.
To create a calm atmosphere, the spawning ground is covered with dark paper, the water is slightly aerated and the temperature is raised to 27-28 degrees C.
Lighting is acceptable natural, you can additionally include a light bulb 25 - 40 W on top. Bright sunlight, in my opinion, does not give a significant advantage.
Caviar at the Congo is not sticky. Lowering to the bottom, it swells up to 2 - 2.5 mm in diameter. The whole cycle of development of the embryo takes place within 6 days. This is the most time-consuming time for the breeder. You need a glass tube, a pipette or a thin hose I'll fight to select all the unfertilized eggs, then every day to inspect the caviar and choose the saproligny covered with it.
A healthy, normally developing caviar is completely transparent and accessible for observation: on the third day the embryo starts to tremble, and on the fifth - to turn. At this time, it is necessary to lower the water level to 5 - 7 cm and to strengthen the aeration. This provides a friendly hatch.
Blooming fry are fully formed and immediately begin to actively eat. Starting feed - rotifers as part of "living dust". In winter, a brackish rotifer is suitable. Infuzoria is possible, but only as a supplement, otherwise the fry of the Congo will starve. From the second week, nematodes and nauplius crustaceans are introduced into the diet. Do not hurry to translate the fry on the chopped pipe.
The monthly linear increase in fry is about 5 mm. Sexual dimorphism begins to manifest itself to 3.5 to 4 months. Keep the purity in the grower and do not forget to add 1 - 1.5 liters of water a day from the common aquarium, which contains the producers.
Long bovine breecinus - Brycinus longipinnis (Gunther, 1864); Synonym: Alestes longipinnis (commercial name - yellow congo).
The homeland of these African fish is Sierra Leone, Ghana, Togo, Guinea-Bissau to Zaire (Congo). The size is up to 13 cm. The first batch was delivered to Moscow from Germany in 1967, and two years later the well-known kharatsintchik V. Kuskov received from them offspring.
A dozen fry of this generation and settled in my aquarium with the young congo growing up. Britsinusy quickly adapted, felt confident, eagerly ate the proposed food and grew, ahead of the pace of their neighbors. In order to avoid encroachment on the food and territorial interests of the Congo, I planted the newcomers in a separate 250-liter aquarium with older small-sized charats of different species. In this aquarium, the growth rate of fingerlings increased, and in six or seven months I already had well-formed young fish.
Long-bore breecinus is a typical representative of light open waters. The body of the fish is high, strongly compressed laterally.
Color olive-green, shiny. Individual scales on their backs are gleaming with bright green lights, especially noticeable in reflected light. From the base of the tail, approximately to the middle of the anal fin, passes through the coal-black stripe. Above it is another - irrigating golden yellow. Such a luminous "decoration" is characteristic for hemigrammus (pulcher, "flashlight", kostelo, etc.) and serves, apparently, for better intraspecific orientation.
The fins are well developed and pinkish in color. The high dorsal fin of males is very effective. It has the shape of a braid and ends with several long rays of a smoke-milk color. Pelvic fins are also elongated, and their edges are smoky. The blades of the powerful tail are highly developed, the cut between them is deep. Anal fin of males rounded in the form of a sickle, on its outer margin there is a whitish edging. In females, the anal fin is smaller and has the shape of a triangle. This is the main visible sexual difference.
The large fat fin is sharply pronounced, painted pink, and has a dark edging along the outer margin. Scales large. The jaws are powerful, the mouth is large, with many small sharp teeth. Gill cover brightly shine emerald green. Abdomen is shiny, silvery. Attract large, expressive eyes. The pupil is large, black, the iris is wide, glossy, golden-yellow with a thin bright orange color in the upper part.
To keep the bricks do not require special conditions. You need a large, lightly planted aquarium with fairly bright top lighting. Movable fish are kept in the middle layers of water. They are undemanding in the chemical composition of water. In the hard water, feel as good as in the soft. Water should be well-kept, crystal clear. Optimum parameters for the content: T = 22-24 degrees C, pH = 6-7, rigidity up to 10 degrees.
Fish tolerate short-term temperature drops of 2 to 3 degrees, but are very sensitive to lack of oxygen, so good aeration and filtration are necessary. Once a week, it is advisable to replace 20 - 20% of water with a tap water for a period of 3 to 4 days.
Pisces look more elegant against the background of dark or black soil. Of plants with these fish, cryptocoryn, echinodorus, and also ferns look good.
Britsinusy - fishes are peaceful, suitable for keeping in common aquariums. They keep a flock, are very mobile and swift, but fearful (especially in a small volume) and with a sharp movement usually hide in the thick of the plants.
To the forage are undemanding: various insects, coretra, bloodworm, tubule, crustaceans - everything is eaten with an enviable appetite. Just like for tetra-congo, they need vegetable top dressing: bread, shoots of soft-leaved plants, oats, etc. They also eat dry food, but it is better not to abuse them. The food is thrown greedily, grabbing it from the surface and from the bottom.
Approximately one and a half years (sometimes earlier) the fish reach sexual maturity. In my opinion, it is more difficult to achieve reproduction of Birch bushes than Congo. Often, the fish are "capricious" and spawning does not occur, although it would seem that all conditions were created for this.
The best results were obtained in those cases when it was possible to catch the right moment. As soon as the males stopped their "round dances" and started to chase the females, driving them into the lower layers of the water, into the thick of the plants, I immediately sent the producers to the previously prepared spawning grounds, where the spawning continued.
As a rule, the activation of fish is observed in the morning. On the body appear a few thin dark blue transverse strokes. Males acquire a bright color and, fluffing fins, begin to swim one after another, often biting the rivals behind the dorsal fin, which sometimes becomes ragged and ugly, especially the hindwings suffer. However, such a trauma does not pose a serious danger - the fins recover quickly enough.
After playing, the male chooses a partner and, pressing it to the ground, with strong lateral blows, knocks out caviar. It should be noted that the abdomen of spawning females is never heavily swollen.
A plexiglass aquarium with dimensions of 100 X 30 X 40 cm, which I used for schooling the Congo, was quite sufficient for a pair of bricks. Group tags require more volume and I have not practiced.
Prepared for spawning water was a mixture of distilled and tap water in a ratio of 4: 1 and stood for three weeks in 50-liter plastic jars with pieces of boiled peat and alder cones. As a result, the water acquired a dark amber color, stiffness of 4.5 degrees and a pH of 6.2 to 6.4. I consider these parameters to be optimal for spawning of long-finned bricks. In softer (pure distillate) water, for reasons unknown to me, spawning did not occur at all, or caviar was unfertilized.
The temperature during spawning should be maintained at a level of 27-28 degrees C. The water should be slightly aerated. The light is needed sufficiently bright (incandescent lamp with a power of 60 - 75 W). The bottom of the spawning ground is covered with a protective mesh. As a substrate I recommend one or two bush of Thai fern. Spawning fish usually in the morning. The spawning time is 2 - 2.5 hours.
According to the publications of several authors, the fertility is 1000 eggs or more. I never succeeded in such results. Stable labels consisted of 400 - 450 eggs, and the fry started to actively feed about 300.
After spawning, the growers are planted, the plants and the safety net are removed. The aquarium is covered with dark paper. All further manipulations with caviar are similar to those described for Congo.
Feeding fry is not a problem. They grow very quickly, but unevenly, but do not exhibit cannibalism. Approximately at the age of 1.5 months on nutritious spring forages they reach a length of 2.5-3 cm. Frequent substitution of standing tap water and a regular increase in the volume of growing aquariums will ensure a good condition for future growers.
Arnoldichthys - Arnoldichthys spilopterus (Boulenger, 1909). Commercial names: red congo, green congo, tetra Arnold.
These tetris live in West Africa from Lagos to the Niger delta. Length of males is up to 8, females - up to 10 cm. Slender, mobile fish with large relief scales and magnificent coloration of mainly golden brown tones. From a large bright red eye to the base of the tail passes a pale pink glowing strip, and under it - a dark green with a characteristic chess pattern. The abdomen is colored in a pale green light. On the dorsal fin there is a large dark spot. Anal fin yellowish, in adult females there is a black spot on it, in males - alternating black and yellow stripes. The first ray of anal fin of males is yellow or red, the black spot is absent.
If you look closely at the tail fin of fish, it is clearly seen that in males it is somewhat larger and its well developed lobes have pointed ends. The females have a miniature tail, and the blades are slightly rounded.
Contain arnoldikhtis as well as other congas. They are mobile, peaceful, concentrated in a flock in the middle and upper layers of the water. To neighbors show complete indifference. Aeration and filtration of water are desirable, its one-time substitution in large quantities is unacceptable.
These amazing beauty of fish are known to aquarists since 1909, but are found in private collections very rarely, since for a long time it was not possible to find the key to their breeding. Periodically, single specimens were brought in, but, without giving offspring, they disappeared. In the 70s, the "authority" of the hara-like fish in Russia fell sharply, and many people forgot about arnoldikhtis. Only from the 90s, thanks to the export from natural habitats, the fish began to decorate the amateur aquariums again.
The first breeding of this species was described by R. Beck in the magazine "Aguarien Terrarien" No. 5 for 1967. I'll allow myself to quote him: "The fish spawned in an aquarium 85 cm long with a water hardness of 3.5 degrees, pH = 6 and a water temperature of 25 degrees C. Spawning lasted several hours. More than 1,000 eggs were swallowed." The eggs were taken and placed in separate jars In a day the water became very turbid and it was necessary to transfer the eggs to other cans with water from the spawning ground, 55 hours after spawning the larvae disappeared, leaving 20% ​​of the eggs, and the fry grew rapidly and after 3 weeks reached a length of 2.5-3 cm. Fish spawned together with others in a common aquarium (250 liters) with tap water of 17 degrees stiffness and pH 7. While there were other fish in the aquarium, the subsequently reared female and male did not show any interest in each other, and only when they were alone, начались брачные игры".
Вот и весь багаж сведений о разведении арнольдихтисов, который был у меня к тому времени. Краткие аннотации к красочным фотографиям в книгах Г.Штербы, Г. Аксельрода, Х.Фрея и других авторов сведений не добавляли.
В 1972 году мне удалось приобрести на Птичьем рынке в Москве двух взрослых самок. Других арнольдихтисов у продавца не было. Прожив около 2-х лет, они без видимых причин погибли. Вполне возможно - от старости. В 1977 году из Ленинграда мне привезли девять 5-сантиметровых подростков. Примерно при этих размерах происходит формирование цветовой гаммы анального плавника. До этого момента вся молодь имеет на нём тёмное пятно, как у самок, затем пятно начинает постепенно исчезать и у самцов появляются контрастные чёрные полосы. К моей радости, в этой партии имелись особи обоих полов. Примерно через год они достигли предельных для вида размеров и стали проявлять взаимный интерес. Но как-то, на мой взгляд, вяло. Позже я убедился, что преднерестовые игры арнольдихтисов по красоте и темпераментности значительно уступают таковым у конго и брицинусов.
С огромным интересом и доброй завистью я прочитал прекрасную публикацию С.Прокопцева "После долгих поисков" ("Рыбоводство и рыболовство", № 5/1978) о разведении этой замечательной африканской тетры. Автор очень подробно и с большим знанием дела описывает её поведение, нерест и выращивание мальков.
Анализируя статью, я пришёл к выводу, что молодых рыб не надо торопить с нерестом - их поведение само подскажет, когда его лучше осуществить.
Мои питомцы отнерестились в возрасте полутора лет. Нерест произошёл в аквариуме 100 Х 30 Х 40 см. Воду подготовил заранее. Необходимого количества дистиллированной не оказалось - пришлось использовать дождевую (dGH 3 градуса, РН 6,6 - 6,8) без каких-либо дополнительных добавок. Профильтровав девять вёдер через обыкновенную вату, я каждое ведро нагревал до 80 градусов С и после охлаждения выливал воду в нерестовик. Процедура очень нудная, но другого пути не было. На дно аквариума положил предохранительную сетку, над ней разместил несколько кустов таиландского папоротника, обеспечил умеренную аэрацию. Температуру поддерживал на уровне 24 градусов С.
Однажды, покормив рыб и наблюдая за ними, я обратил внимание на какую-то повышенную "нервозность" и излишнюю возбудимость самцов. Выловив первых попавшихся двух самцов и самку, я посадил их в нерестовик и поставил реле подогрева на 28 градусов. На следующий день ничего не произошло. Рыбы оживлённо плавали вдоль стекла нерестовика и как бы огрызались друг на друга, а на следующие сутки (видимо, утром) произошёл нерест. Желтоватая икра была разбросана по всему дну. Удивительно, что её оказалось так много, поскольку по брюшку самки это предположить было трудно. Понизив уровень воды до 10 см, я выбрал неоплодотворённую и поражённую сапролегнией икру, добавил в воду типафлавин, закрыл нерестовик тёмной бумагой и выключил свет.
Через сутки, осветив нерестовик переносной лампой, я обнаружил копошащихся на дне и висевших на стёклах личинок. Ещё через 5 дней произошёл дружный расплыв молоди. Малёк очень активно питается (только успевай подбрасывать) прудовой коловраткой. Через 7 - 8 дней свободно принимает науплиусов ракообразных, на 10 - 11 день - мелкого циклопа. Никаких проблем с выкармливанием мальков не возникло.
Помимо вышеупомянутых, десятки видов прекрасных Алестовых обитают в реках далёкой Африки. Большинство из них отлично подходят для содержания и разведения в домашних аквариумах. К сожалению, приобретение их связано с большими проблемами. Приходится рассчитывать только на удачу при посещении московского Птичьего рынка да на щедрость известных столичных аквариумистов, готовых поделиться имеющимися у них новинками.


Г. Фаминский, г. Нижний Новгород Аквариум № 3, 2001 г.