Information on Cardinal Tetras

Appearance

• The cardinal tetra is distinguished by a silvery blue stripe running the length of its body about halfway up. Beneath the stripe, the fish is bright red. This stripe is characteristic of the 'paracheirodon' species to which it belongs. The cardinal tetra gets its name from the red underbelly, said to resemble the color of a cardinal's robes. The neon tetra looks very similar but its red stripe only extends to halfway along its body.

Breeding

• Cardinal tetras only live for about one year in the wild so will produce offspring within that period. When ready to spawn, the cardinal tetras swim upstream of their native rivers and gather in areas of the river that have complete tree canopy coverage. These dark, shady areas are where the tetras will breed. When ready, the female will allow the male to swim alongside her and they will release eggs and sperm. Once fertilized, the eggs are photosensitive and the spawn will die if exposed to sunlight.

Industry

• As one of the world's most popular aquarium fish, the cardinal tetra sustains an entire industry in Brazil devoted to their capture and sale to aquarium fish traders. The industry is guarded jealously and care is taken not to overfish. Fishing is banned in breeding season, and because of the vast areas of habitat for the cardinal tetra, fishermen are able to fish different areas each year, enabling the tetras to recover their numbers.

Aquariums

• The cardinal tetra prefers warm water above 70F and, as a naturally shoaling fish, it is better to keep them in groups of at least 6 fish or more. They will eat a range of aquarium foods but to prepare for breeding live daphnia should be used. When they are ready to breed, the tank should be covered to minimize light and simulate their breeding conditions in the wild. In the absence of predators, cardinal tetras can live for 3 or 4 years in a well-maintained tank.