Cardinal fish
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Cardinal fish ( Tanichthys albonubes ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Tanichthys albonubes | ||||||||||||
| Lin , 1932 |
The cardinal fish ( Tanichthys albonubes ) is an ornamental fish from the order of the carp-like (Cypriniformes). It belongs to the carp family (Cyprinidae) and to the subfamily of the Bärblinge (Rasborinae). He is also known in German as a cardinal or little cardinal . It was first introduced in Germany in 1938 by the Hamburg Aquarium and originally comes from southern China.
The specific epithet albonubes is derived from the Latin albus , white and nubes , cloud and describes the location of Baiyunshan Mountain (White Cloud Mountain).
Appearance
Cardinals are 2.5–3.5 cm tall. The body is brown-green to gray-green in color with a lighter belly. The males are clearly darker and more intensely colored than the females. The fins are greenish in color with varying degrees of red and white-green fin tips. The caudal fin contains a conspicuous black spot at the base. The body contains a conspicuous light strip in the longitudinal direction.
The protruding lower jaw is chisel-shaped, the lips are thin, and there are no barbels on the mouth . There is no lateral line organ , the number of scales in a lateral longitudinal row is 30–32.
Fin formula : D III / 6, A III / 7–8, P I / 9–11, V I / 6.
Distribution, existence and endangerment
The cardinal fish is endemic to southern China and distributed disjointly . The main distribution area is near the Tropic of Cancer (Tropic of cancer), north of Guangzhou . It occurs in mountain streams of the Baiyunshan Mountain (White Cloud Mountain), in the area of Huaxian , near Guangzhou in the province Guangdong and at Halong in the province Quảng Ninh in Vietnam . The species appeared to be extinct in the wild; no specimens have been found in the wild since 1980. It was not until September 2003 that a small, isolated population was discovered in a mountain body north of Guangzhou. Further wild populations have been reported on Hainan Island and from a coastal river that flows into Halong Bay in Quảng Ninh, Vietnam. Populations of the species near Hong Kong and Shenzhen may have become extinct. The cardinal fish is considered rare, but due to its small size it can easily be overlooked.
Reproduction is easy in captivity , but the cardinal fish is not very productive in the wild. The species is endangered by the destruction of forests and soil erosion from irrigation dams, as this changes the natural waters. Another problem is the diversion of watercourses for irrigation of rice fields.
Way of life
In the wild, the cardinal fish inhabit clear, slowly flowing, densely vegetated streams. It feeds on plankton , meiobenthos and the larvae of aquatic insects.
Keeping in the aquarium
Cardinals have been successfully bred around the world for many years. In addition to the trunk shape, there is also a long-finned veil shape. Since the animals are frugal, robust and available almost everywhere for little money, they are a very good alternative to red neon ( Paracheirodon axelrodi ) and neon tetra ( Paracheirodon innesi ) if the water is too hard for these tetra . As a result, the species has also been given the nickname “worker neon”. Cardinal fish prefer cool temperatures of up to 20 degrees and water values of 6-8 pH and <30 water hardness . While the cardinal fish show a relative insensitivity to fluctuations in water values, high temperatures cause them problems. If they are exposed to a water temperature of over 23 degrees for a long time, they are quickly prone to illness. Cardinals should not be kept in groups of less than 10–12 animals and, like all fish, not in tanks less than 60 cm in length. If the tank is too small or there are too many males, the males tend to fight for rank at times. The species should only be kept together with other small and peaceful species. Cardinals themselves do not show any aggression towards other fish, except for young animals, which could possibly be regarded as food. In addition to the water values mentioned above, you need both heavily overgrown zones in the aquarium and free swimming space for your well-being. They accept vegetable and animal foods as well as feed flakes, feed granules and any frozen food they can handle. Due to the small mouth size, Cyclops and small water fleas are recommended . In warm summer months, healthy populations can even spend the summer in sufficiently deep garden ponds. Breeding takes place almost by itself. Mating can be triggered even if the water temperature rises briefly. The young hatch from the eggs after 36 to 72 hours and are raised first with infusoria or powdered food and then (after 12-14 days) with newly hatched Artemia . The animals are free spawners , brood care does not take place. Adult animals occasionally chase after their brood despite an abundant supply of live food . With suitable water values and a varied diet, the animals can live up to 9 years.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Achim Paululat, Günter Purschke: Dictionary of Zoology. Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3827421159 , p. 49.
- ↑ a b c d Xu-Fang Liang, Guo-Zhu Chen, Xiang-Lin Chen, Pei-Qi Yue: Threatened fishes of the world: Tanichthys albonubes Lin 1932 (Cyprinidae). 2007. In: Environ Biol Fish (2008) 82: 177–178 doi : 10.1007 / s10641-007-9286-6 Online (PDF; 84 kB)
- ↑ a b c Tanichthys albonubes in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2012.2. Posted by: K. Cui, 2011. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
