Nannostomus unifasciatus
| Common Names: | One-lined Pencilfish |
| Synonyms: | Poecilobrycon unifasciatus |
| Family: | Lebiasinidae |
| Category: | Characins |
| Distribution: | America - South; Mainly Brazil, Bolivia, Venezuela, and Colombia. |
| Main Ecosystem: | Stream; They live in small rivers and streams. They can be found in still waters near the shore, amongst groups of plants. |
| Temperament: | Timid; Can often be intimidated by boisterous tankmates. These fish will not bother other species. |
| Diet: | Ominvore; These fish feed mainly on small insects and crustaceans in the wild, but will supplement that with algae. |
| Care: | Hardy fish, as long as their needs are met. They should be kept in planted tanks (live plants are preferred, but not mandatory) with a relatively low surface current. It is best to have plant cover towards the top of the tank, as this is where these shy fish spend most of their time. They like soft, acidic water, and prefer calm tankmates. These fish need clean tanks, so regular water changes are a must. They do not tolerate ammonia or nitrite well at all, and don't care much for nitrates, eithe |
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| Potential Size: | Male: 6.6cm (2.6") Female: 6.6cm (2.6") |
| Water Region: | Middle, Surface; They like to hover near vegetation close to the surface. |
| Activity: | Diurnal; They go into a state of suspended activity at night. |
| Gender: | Mature females are broader and plumper than males, and also grow approximately one cm longer. Both sexes can attain the same coloration, including the red patterning on the caudal fin and blue fringes on the pelvic and anal fins. Dominant males will have more brilliant colors than submissive ones, and the same applies to females. Males of this species often chase and nip at females, though they will harass each other as well. Also, female fish will nip each other, and occasionally even males. T |
| Breeding: | Somewhat difficult to accomplish in home aquaria. These fish must be conditioned to induce spawning, and should be placed in a seperate tank for the purpose of breeding. The tank should have soft, acidic water, with a fairly warm temperature and densely-planted areas. The fish should spawn when ready, and will scatter their eggs amongst the plants. The parents should be removed from the tank as soon as the act is over or the eggs will be eaten. The eggs should hatch in one or two days, and the f |
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| Comments: | Great fish for a peaceful community tank. They are inoffensive and tend to keep to themselves. These fish exhibit natural-seeming behaviors when kept in planted tanks, in that they hover (as is common with pencilfish) and browse on algae. Many pencilfish are often carried in stores infrequently, and these are no exception. They have a reputation for being delicate fish, but can be cared for easily if no major disasters happen in their tank. |
| Main Colours: | Brown, Black, White |
| Markings: | Striped Horizontal |
| Mouth: | Normal |
| Tail: | Concave |
| Search: | Show similar species Find compatible species |
| Image Credit: | sirbooks |
| Submitted By: | sirbooks |
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