All fish / Melanotaeniidae

Dwarf Neon Rainbowfish

Melanotaenia praecox

Also known as neon rainbowfish, dwarf neon rainbow, praecox rainbowfish, praecox rainbow, dwarf rainbowfish, neon dwarf rainbowfish, diamond rainbowfish, ปลาเรนโบว์นีออน, ネオンドワーフレインボー, ikan pelangi neon, pelangi praecox, 电光美人

A small, active rainbowfish with a shimmering metallic blue body, and red or yellow fins depending on whether it is a male or a female. Males grow deeper bodied with age and put on bright displays to each other. It is kept for its colour, hardiness and peaceful nature, and suits planted community tanks well.

Care at a glance

Care level

Easy

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

5 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

6.5 to 7.8

Smallest tank

80 litres

Keep as

Shoal of 6 or more, ideally with more females than males

Diet

Omnivore: quality flakes and small pellets, frozen bloodworm, brine shrimp and daphnia, plus some vegetable matter

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

4 to 6 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Mamberamo River basin, northern West Papua (Indonesian New Guinea)

Breeding

An egg scatterer that lays a few eggs each day over several days among fine-leaved plants or spawning mops. Breeding is easy, but the tiny fry need infusoria or liquid fry food at first before moving on to baby brine shrimp.

Good to know

It is a quick, steady swimmer and needs a tank with plenty of open swimming space and a well-fitting lid because it can jump. Fish kept in poor conditions or on a poor diet lose colour.