Ember Tetra (Hyphessobrycon amandae)
The Ember Tetra is a gorgeous fish that will light up any aquarium. They are a peaceful fish, active and playful, and because of its size and ease of care, it will suit both a nano tank or a community aquarium making it a popular fish for any aquarist.
This fish has an elongated body shape, with one merged anal fin, a relatively small dorsal fin and large caudal fin. The caudal and dorsal fins have a slightly light grey almost black angle. And the upper part of the head, above the eyes and around the mouth, sometimes can be a reddish colour.
Their body may seem slightly narrowed towards the back, this allows them to move around more smoothly, their scales are also very compact and lie near each other. Due to this, they look slightly translucent.
They are a golden-maple to a fiery red colour, sometimes with a saturated orange inclination and their eyes are usually black with an orange rim.
| Quick Facts | |
|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Hyphessobrycon amandae |
| Other Names | Fire Tetra |
| Classification | Actinopterygii |
| Order | Characiformes |
| Family | Characidae |
| Genus | Hyphessobrycon |
| Origins | South America |
| Temperament | Peaceful |
| Aquarium Level | Bottom - Middle |
| Difficulty | Beginner - Intermediate |
| Shoaling | Yes |
| Best kept as | Groups 6+ |
| Diet | Omnivore |
| Reproduction | Egg-Scatterer |
| Lifespan | 2 - 3 years |
| Water Parameters | |
|---|---|
| Water Type | Freshwater |
| PH | 5.0 - 7.0 |
| GH | 5 - 17 |
| TDS | 18 - 179 |
| Temperature | |
| 73 - 84℉ 22.8 - 28.9℃ | |
Natural Habitat
Ember Tetras can be found mainly in Central-Western Brazil in the Araguaia River basin in South America
They inhabit in rivers, lakes and streams with slow-moving and low currents consisting of branches, fallen logs, and leaf litter, causing the water that they live in to be slightly acidic because of the abundance of tannins. Their water is commonly termed blackwater as its dark appearance also serves as camouflage for the fish which live within it.
The areas they are found in are often surrounded with plenty of plants and trees, providing them with shade.
Other Tetras of interest
What to feed the Ember Tetra
Ember Tetras are not particularly fussy eaters. Feed them with tropical flakes or granules as the staple of their diet and occasionally give them frozen, freeze-dried or live foods such as brine shrimp, daphnia, mosquito larvae or bloodworm as a treat, this will bring out the best colours of these fish.
How to Sex the Ember Tetra
Determining the sex of the Ember Tetras is reasonably challenging for the untrained eye.
Males display a much brighter colouration than the females, and the females are larger are more rounded than the males.
How to Breed the Ember Tetra
It is relatively easy to breed Ember Tetras, spawning occurs frequently and doesn't require much intervention on your part.
All you will need is a separate tank with females and males, dim lighting, a water ph of around seven and the temperature should be a few degrees higher than their usual range. You will also need some plants for the female to lay her eggs on, or you could use a mesh at the bottom of the tank, here some eggs may drop into which will be safe from the parents. It would be best if you also conditioned the fish with live foods for a couple of weeks prior. This will help to encourage the spawning process.
Once spawning has occurred, both parents will leave the fry to fend for themselves. It would be best if you used this opportunity to move the babies to a fry tank where you can help them grow and to avoid them being eaten, before introducing them to the standard tank.
After around three days, the juvenile fish will be free swimming and will start to look for their food.