All fish / Characidae

Ifati Penguin Tetra

Thayeria ifati

Also known as penguin tetra, ifati tetra, hockey stick tetra, thayeria ifati, ペンギンテトラ, 企鹅灯

Ifati Penguin Tetra — Photo: Staatliche Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen Bayerns, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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A slim silvery tetra with a bold black stripe running along the body and bending down into the lower tail lobe, giving a hockey stick look. It often rests at a slight head-up angle and is kept for its lively shoaling behaviour in planted community tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level: Easy
Temperament: Peaceful
Adult size: 5 cm
Temperature: 22 to 28 °C
pH: 6 to 7.5
Smallest tank: 80 litres
Keep as: Shoal of 8 or more
Diet: Omnivore: small flakes, micro pellets, frozen and live bloodworm, daphnia and brine shrimp
Swims: Top of the tank
Lifespan: 3 to 5 years
Water: Freshwater
Wild range: Upper Amazon basin and Guianas region of South America

Breeding

An egg scatterer that spawns among fine-leaved plants and gives no parental care. Breeding is fairly easy in a separate soft-water tank if adults are removed after spawning and the fry are raised on infusoria.

Good to know

Often sold mixed up with the common penguin tetra, Thayeria boehlkei, and Thayeria obliqua, which look very similar. Keep a tight lid as these fish can jump.