From Aqua Guide, the free encyclopedia
Cardinal Tetra
Paracheirodon axelrodi
- Temperature
- 23–29 °C
- pH
- 4.5 – 6.5
- Min. tank size
- 75 L
- Lifespan
- 5 years
- Diet
- omnivore
- Care level
- moderate
| Scientific classification | |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name: | Paracheirodon axelrodi |
| Family: | Acestrorhamphidae |
| Origin: | Orinoco and Negro river basins, South America (soft blackwater) |
| Care Characteristics | |
| Care Level: | moderate |
| Diet: | omnivore |
| Max Size: | 5.00 cm |
| Water Type: | freshwater |
| Temp Group: | tropical |
| Temperament: | peaceful |
| Min Group: | 6+ together |
| Varieties: | Effectively none, which is unusual and worth knowing. The cardinal is traded as the wild form. There is no established gold, albino or long-finned strain in general circulation, and nothing sold as a "colour variety" of this species should be taken at face value. What varies is origin. Wild-caught fish from the Rio Negro and the Orinoco make up most of the trade and want genuinely soft water; tank-bred cardinals, increasingly available from Southeast Asian and European breeders, are more tolerant of moderate hardness. The two look identical in a shop tank, so ask. Some regional wild populations differ slightly in the depth of red and the amount of blue, and these are occasionally traded under river names rather than as strains. The species to distinguish it from are its relatives, not its variants: the neon tetra (Paracheirodon innesi), with red on the back half only, and the green neon (P. simulans), smaller and dominated by blue-green with very little red. |
| Lifespan: | 5 years |
Quick Tips
- Bioload:Low
- Min Tank:75 L
- Substrate:Dark sand; heavily planted with botanicals/tannins
- Plant Safe:Plant-safe
- Filtration:Low to moderate (gentle flow)
Cardinal Tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi) is a species of fish in the family Acestrorhamphidae. It is native to Orinoco and Negro river basins, South America (soft blackwater). The cardinal tetra is the fish the neon tetra gets mistaken for, and the better fish of the two. The difference is one line: the neon's red starts halfway along the body, and the cardinal's runs the whole length, from nose to tail, under a full-length band of iridescent blue. Side by side there is no confusing them. It comes from the Orinoco and Negro basins, in blackwater so soft and acidic it barely registers on a hardness test — a pH of 4.5 is ordinary in its home range, and specialists give a tolerance range starting at 3.5. It reaches about 3.5 cm and lives four to five years, appreciably longer than a neon. Most cardinals in the trade are still wild-caught, which for this species is a point in their favour rather than against.
Compatibility
- Temperament
- peaceful
- Keep in
- Groups of 6+
- Swims
- middle
- Fin nipper
- No
- Delicate fins
- No
Species similar to Cardinal Tetra
Matched on family, then category, then water type