Celestial Pearl Danio (Danio margaritatus)
The vibrant colours and peaceful nature of the Celestial Pearl Danio make them extremely popular in the hobby. These fish are suitable for a nano or well-planted aquarium. However, these fish can be pretty shy, so it would be better to keep them in a quiet place and provide plenty of hiding places.
Celestial Pearl Danios are shoaling fish with rival males sparring regularly during the day. It's not unusual to see nipped fins within a group; however, this behaviour will not usually happen to other tankmates.
It would be best to keep these Danios in groups of 10 or more individuals. When more significant numbers are present, the aggression will be spread throughout the group rather than single individuals. In addition, the fish will become bolder, will be more often seen, and they will display much better colouration.
Ideal tank mates for these fish could include similarly-sized, surface-dwelling species and other small Cyprinids and microdevario species. However, it would be best to avoid housing them with larger or more boisterous tankmates as they will likely be intimidated or outcompeted for food.
Celestial Pearl Danios should ideally be kept in a heavily-planted setup with a dark substrate. Making sure you have broken lines of sight in the aquarium will allow your fish to display their natural behaviours and help reduce their skittishness. Floating plants are a helpful addition; however, driftwood and dried leaves are best avoided as the tannins they release are not a characteristic of its natural waters. These fish will require gentle filtration; an air-powered sponge filter would be more than adequate.
Celestial Pearl Danios have an unusual body shape compared to other fish of the same species. In addition, there are notable differences in the colours of the males and females. The males exhibit relatively bright blue body colouration with more colour in their fins. On the other hand, females exhibit duller bluish-greenish background colouration and have a yellowish tint on their bellies. In addition, both the males and the female bodies present small pearly dots.
Tank Mates for the Celestial Pearl Danio
10 ideal tank mate ideas for the Celestial Pearl Danio include:
| Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Danio margaritatus |
| Year Described | 2006 |
| Other Names | Galaxy rasbora, Fireworks rasbora, Rasbora toei, Chilli rasbora, Microrasbora |
| Classification | Actinopterygii |
| Order | Cypriniformes |
| Family | Cyprinidae |
| Genus | Danio |
| Origins | Myanmar |
| Temperament | Peaceful |
| Aquarium Level | Middle - Top |
| Difficulty | Beginner - Intermediate |
| Shoaling | Yes |
| Best kept as | Groups 6+ |
| Diet | Omnivore |
| Reproduction | Egg-Scatterer |
| Lifespan | 3 - 5 years |
| Water Parameters | |
|---|---|
| Water Type | Freshwater |
| PH | 6 .5 - 7.5 |
| GH | 3 - 15 |
| KH | 1 - 5 |
| TDS | 100 - 500 |
| Temperature | |
|---|---|
| 68 - 78℉ 20 - 25.6℃ | |
Photos of the Celestial Pearl Danio
Videos
Celestial Pearl Danios (Danio margaritatus) Freshwater Nano Aquarium Fish Profile & Care Guide
Natural Habitat
To date, Celestial Pearl Danios have only been located in a small mountainous area near Hopong East of Inle Lake in the outskirts of the Shan state capital of Taunggyi and the Southeast Asian nation of Burma in Myanmar.
What to feed the Celestial Pearl Danio
Celestial Pearl Danios have tiny mouths, so you need to consider the size of their food. However, these fish are not fussy eaters and will happily accept high-quality dried food such as flakes, pellets and granules. It may be helpful to know that these fish tend to stay towards the middle to bottom levels of the aquarium, so dried food that sinks would be more appropriate. These Danios will also readily accept live, frozen or freeze-dried foods such as daphnia and bloodworm, which will help keep their colours vibrant.
How to sex the Celestial Pearl Danio
It is relatively straightforward to differentiate between male and female Celestial Pearl Danios. The males are thinner and often more vibrantly coloured and have a more orangy chest and the tail end of their bodies tend to be higher. In contrast, females are slightly duller and have a more rounded body shape.
How to breed the Celestial Pearl Danio
Celestial Pearl Danios are an egg-scattering spawner that exhibits no parental care. However, if your fish are in good health, they will spawn often, and in a densely-planted, established aquarium, small numbers of fry may start to appear without any intervention.
If you would like to increase the yield of fry, a slightly more controlled approach will be required. You can still condition an adult group together; however, you should set up one or two smaller containers and fill them with mature water and some fine-leaved plants or spawning mops.
Lighting or filtration is unnecessary, although you can include a small air-powered sponge filter if you prefer.
Once the adult fish are well-conditioned, you can introduce a single pair or group to each container, including one or two males and several females. However, it's worth noting that the more individuals involved, the higher the risk of egg predation, plus males may distract each other from the females if there's more than one in the tank.
Once spawning has taken place, you should remove the adults; otherwise, they will consume the eggs if given a chance. Females will also require a recovery period before spawning again as they cannot produce eggs daily.
The incubation period is temperature-dependent; however, it usually takes around 72 hours for them to hatch. The fry will then become free swimming about 3 to 4 days later.
It would be best if you initially fed your fry with Paramecium or a proprietary dry food of sufficiently small grade, introducing baby brine shrimp and microworm around a week later or once the fry is large enough to accept them.
Frquently asked questions about the Celestial Pearl Danio
Are Celestial Pearl Danios a shoaling fish?
How big do Celestal Pearl Danios get?
How long do Celestial Pearl Danios live?
What are the best tankmates for Celestial Pearl Danios
What should you feed Celestial Pearl Danios?
In captivity, the fish will readily accept High quality commercially available flakes, granules or pellets; however, make sure they are of a suitable size as they have very tiny mouths. In addition to dried food, you should supplement their diets with live protein-rich food such as krill, daphnia, brine shrimp and grindal worms; these are are all excellent choices.