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- Item no: 7116
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from over 3,000 reviews "Water values: | soft to medium hard |
Difficulty: | 2 - Normal |
Temperature: | 25-30 °C |
Feature: | Interesting coloring |
Behavior: | Quiet |
Fish group: | Spikefish |
Diet: | carnivore - meat eater |
Aquarium size: | 54 l (approx. 60cm) |
Breeding: | medium |
with shrimps?: | with dwarf shrimp, offspring may be eaten |
Origin: | Asia |
Final size: | 1-4 cm |
Visual effect: | Especially colorful |
Planting possible?: | Yes |
with snails/shells?: | Yes |
with large crabs?: | No |
with fish?: | conditional* (see description) |
with dwarf crabs?: | No |
Pelvic region: | Center |
with crabs?: | No |
The Spotted Blue-eye, with its flighty behavior, counts as a "butterfly of aquaristics" and is also called Gertrude's Blue-eye. The nickname of this Pseudomugils gertrudae is derived from the name of the wife of the German zoologist Merton, who visited the Aru Islands in Indonesia, where the blue-eyes were first found. The Spotted Blue-eye can vary in color depending on where it is found, but the Blue-eyes offered in the trade are mostly offspring. In their habitat they inhabit sometimes very acidic rainforest streams and also swamps with muddy bottoms of rotting leaves, branches and roots as well as herbaceous shore zones, where they both forage and spawn.
The body, just 3 cm long, is usually grayish-silver, but can also be turquoise. The head and belly are yellow-orange. The pectoral fins have yellow or white tips and are "used over the head" (which is why Gertrudes are affectionately called "aquaristic butterflies" ). The dorsal fin is bipartite, the first of which is lanceolate pointed, the second rounded. Both exhibit a spotted pattern. The pelvic fin is also elongated in males, with the first two fin rays white; likewise, the anal fin, which begins exactly at the level between the two dorsal fins, has a first fin ray that is white in color and also has linear spots. The caudal fin is triangular, semi-transparent and also spotted. Since these blue-eyes are found in different habitats, they are tolerant of water parameters. In the aquarium they are pretty to look at and absolutely peaceful animals.
Males and females differ mainly in color: only the males have elongated fins, as well as colored fin tips and spots. The females do not have these, also their color is somewhat paler, moreover, they sometimes become roly-poly.
Gertrude's blueeyes are adhesive spawners that can be brought into the mood by means of temperature increase, acidic water and proper live food and freeze feeding. The males court the females intensely by circling them, teasingly nudging them in the flank, and most importantly, frantically spreading all their fins over and over again to attract attention. When the female is ready to spawn, she disappears into the spawning substrate, preferably java moss, but also fontinalis and mates there by standing parallel to the male and both releasing egg and sperm with trembling movements. The egg has adhesive filaments that pull directly tight to the spawning substrate when touched. The eggs are about 2 mm in size, transparent and very hard. Since bluegills are more or less thorough spawn predators, the spawn substrate should be removed from them at least every three days and hatched separately in a bowl. To prevent spawning fungus, willow bark, alder cones or sea almond leaves should be added here. The larvae hatch after about 12-14 days depending on the temperature and still feed on their yolk sac during the first two days. The larvae are tiny and almost invisible to the naked eye. They can be fed with infusoria and from about 5-7 days with freshly hatched Artemia nauplii. The fry grow very slowly and should not be reintroduced to their parents until they are about three months old.
The aquarium of Gertrude's Blue Eyes should have structure in the form of dense planting in places with stem plants, but also various mosses . Also some corners may be designed very shady, for example in the form of floating plants. Although the blue-eyes are not big distance swimmers and rather stay in the group mostly in one place, where they eat together or bale, nevertheless they should be granted swimming space. Even though they are very tolerant in water values, it is recommended to keep them rather acidic with a total hardness of 2-20° dGH, KH 0-6, pH 6,0-7, temperature 24-27° C. As in their habitat, the animals tend to stay in low flow areas, so an airlift filter is already sufficient.
Gertrudes blue eyes are peaceful group fish, which can be socialized with other peaceful fish. Since they are usually rarely shy, they can be kept with Kilifish (ex. Aphyosemion gardnerii), Luminous Eyefish (ex. Poropanchax normani), various Dwarf Beardies and Tetras, as long as they are not fin eaters. Dwarf shrimp are usually not bothered by them, but their preference for Artemia nauplii may sometimes cost a shrimp juvenile. Due to their large fins, the company of dwarf shrimp is rather inadvisable. In the aquarium they get along well with dwarf armored catfish such as Corydoras hastatus or C. pygmaeus.
Blue-eyes have a pronounced affinity for small live foods, such as fresh Artemia nauplii and Cyclops. Daphnia and white live mosquito larvae are partially spurned. At Frozen food they prefer black mosquito larvae, Tubifex are eaten rather rarely. Otherwise they can be accustomed very well to dry food, here should be paid attention to a very small grain size. Plants are usually not eaten.
Our food recommendation: The professional NatureHolic Nanofeed is a staple food for all small aquarium fish. This mini fish food and rearing food is a fine soft granulate which, thanks to its softness, resembles the consistency of tiny crustaceans and insect larvae and protects the delicate mouth of nanofish and fish fry from micro-injuries.
Our plant recommendation: For planting, use 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 for fish keeping 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.
Scientific name: | Pseudomugil gertrudae |
German name: | Gertrude's blue-eye, spotted blue-eye |
Difficulty level: | for beginners |
Origin/Distribution: | Aru Island |
Coloration: | silver-gray to yellow base color with elongated spotted fins |
Age expectancy | 2-3 years |
Water parameters: | GH 2-20, KH 2-10, pH 6,5-7, temperature 24-27° C |
Tank size: | from 54 l |
Food | Carnivorous |
Breeding | medium |
Behavior | very peaceful |
Group size | at least 10 animals |
Further information | Ten typical aquarium fish for beginners and alternatives to them, Tips for acclimating fish to the aquarium, Feeding aquarium fish properly - cheap food and what it can do |
- Item no: 7116
- EAN No.: 7427061496703
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