All fish / Crenuchidae

Black Morpho Tetra

Poecilocharax weitzmani

Also known as black morpho tetra, morpho tetra, weitzman's tetra, black darter tetra, poecilocharax, ブラックモルフォテトラ, 黑魔幻灯, 魏氏宝莲灯

A small blackwater characin in which males show a dark body with a metallic blue sheen, a tall flag-like dorsal fin and orange-edged fins, while females are plainer brown. It is kept for its striking colour and interesting male display behaviour in dim, soft-water biotope tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

4 cm

Temperature

22 to 27 °C

pH

4.5 to 6.5

Smallest tank

60 litres

Keep as

Group of 6 or more, ideally with several females per male

Diet

Carnivore: small live and frozen foods such as daphnia, cyclops, artemia nauplii and bloodworm; often refuses dry food

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

3 to 5 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Upper Rio Negro and Orinoco basins (Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela) and the upper Amazon in Peru

Breeding

Males guard territories and spawn with females in caves or among leaf litter, and the male tends the eggs. It has been bred in captivity only occasionally and needs very soft, acidic water and plenty of live food.

Good to know

Almost all stock is wild caught and imports are often weak, so quarantine carefully and keep it with very calm tankmates. It does poorly in hard or alkaline water and in bright, bare tanks.