All fish / Characidae

Cochu's blue tetra

Boehlkea fredcochui

Also known as blue tetra, cochu's tetra, blue king tetra, cochui tetra, cochus blue tetra, fredcochu tetra, ブルーテトラ, 蓝帝灯, 蓝国王灯

A slim, active tetra whose body shines with an iridescent sky blue sheen that looks strongest under subdued light and dark substrate. It is kept for its unusual colour and lively shoaling behaviour in planted community tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

4.5 cm

Temperature

22 to 27 °C

pH

5.5 to 7.5

Smallest tank

80 litres

Keep as

Shoal of 8 or more

Diet

Omnivore: quality flakes and micro pellets with frozen or live bloodworm, daphnia and brine shrimp

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

3 to 5 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Upper Amazon basin in Peru, Colombia and Brazil (Marañón and Solimões drainages)

Breeding

An egg scatterer that spawns among fine-leaved plants in soft, acidic water, and the adults will eat the eggs. It is bred only occasionally in home aquariums, and most fish on sale are wild caught or farmed.

Good to know

Kept in small groups it can nip fins, so avoid slow fish with long fins and keep a good-sized shoal. Wild-caught fish can be delicate when first imported, so quarantine them and acclimatise them carefully.