Pointed tetra - Nannostomus eques

Pointed Mouth Ornamental Tetra - Nannostomus eques

The slender and quite lively Slanting Tetra or Sharpmouth T etra(Nannostomus eques) is a small freshwater fish from South America, where it is common in the Rio Negro, the Amazon and Guyana, and lives in small heavily weedy waters with black water and very acidic, very soft water. This interestingly patterned, very slender tetra grows to about 5 cm in length. Nannostomus eques belongs to the slender tetras. Their preferred position at the water surface has earned them the name Slender Tetra.

Slanting tetras are characterized by their striking pointed mouth and an interesting coloration, which looks completely different during the day than at night. The body is covered with horizontal light and dark stripes during the day. At night, however, the fish show two vertical dark stripes on a light background.

The coloration is more intense in the males of the Spitzmaul ornamental tetra; the anal fin is brown reddish, and the pelvic fins have bluish white tips. Females are more bulbous than the torpodo-shaped slender males.

Nannostomus eques is a rather lively group fish, interacting very actively with conspecifics and forming territories. Not only do the males form territories, but the females also stake out territories for themselves. These territories are defended by the Spitzmaul Ziersalmlern, but the fish are not very aggressive and usually do not hurt each other. The imponier behavior of this slender tetra is absolutely worth seeing!

We recommend a group size from 10 Nannostomus upwards, so that the lively interactions can be spread over more animals. The lively Nannostomus eques needs an aquarium with space - from 80 cm edge length, well planted, but also with proper swimming space. In very soft, humic-rich water with a pH of 5.5 to 6.5 and at a temperature of 22-28 °C the beautiful slender tetras feel well.

Nannostomus ornamental tetras are not aggressive towards other fish species in the community aquarium , so you can easily socialize these great Nannostomus with rather lively, but peaceful fish in the aquarium. For particularly quiet or shy fish, however, the little bullies are not a suitable company. You can even keep the fast, surface-oriented tetras with peaceful dwarf shrimp in the aquarium. Baby shrimp are sometimes preyed upon and eaten; the sharp-mouthed ornamental tetra tends not to go after adult dwarf shrimp and large shrimp species such as Amano shrimp.

Breeding Nannostomus eques is a bit more complicated; in the breeding tank, the water must be very soft, rich in humic substances, and have an acidic pH of 4.5 to 6.5. Darkening with floating plants is helpful. Broad-leaved plants such as various Anubias encourage the females to spawn. Stock the breeding tank with a breeding pair or one male and two to three females. Plenty of fresh live food such as rich black mosquito larvae will quickly bring the tetras into spawning mood.

The parent fish will eat the spawn and later the young; therefore, remove the breeding fish from the rearing tank after spawning. The larvae of the Pointed Tetra hatch after 1-2 days. After they have swum free you can feed them with finest live food like slipper fish, artemia euplii or rotifers and raise them.

In the wild, the slender Sharpshout Tetra eats mainly approach food from the water surface. In nature it also eats insect larvae, worms or small crustaceans. In the aquarium, high-quality flake food or granulated food for small omnivorous ornamental fish has proven to be well suited for feeding this rather uncomplicated eater. From time to time you should supplement the diet of Nannostomus eques with fine live food and frozen food.

Our food recommendation: The NatureHolic Main Feed is a professional staple food for all aquarium fish. We supply Hauptfeed in the form of a soft granulate, which thanks to its grain size of half a millimeter can be easily ingested by small to medium-sized fish. The soft consistency resembles the texture of insect larvae in nature and protects the fish mouth from micro-injuries.

Our plant recommendation: Use for planting NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planarians and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free of algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend when keeping fish the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.