Red Eye Tetra Breeding Guide

How to breed Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae: sexing, conditioning, a dim soft-acidic spawning tank, and rearing the fry that hatch in 24-36 hours.

Overview

Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae is a robust characid recognised by the red marking on the upper eye and a black band at the tail base. It is an egg scatterer with no parental care that spawns in soft, slightly acidic water.

Sexing

The female is a rounder-bodied fish when in breeding condition; males are slimmer.

Conditioning

Condition the fish with plenty of small live foods. They can be spawned as a group of about half a dozen of each sex, or in pairs after conditioning the sexes separately and selecting the fattest female and best-coloured male.

Breeding Setup

Use a very dimly lit tank of about 18 x 12 x 12 inches with water at pH 6.0-7.0, gH 1-10 and 80-84 °F (27-29 °C). Provide fine-leaved plants such as java moss or spawning mops, or a mesh base allowing eggs to fall through, plus a gently bubbling air-powered sponge filter.

Spawning Behavior & Trigger

Introduce a conditioned pair in the evening; spawning typically takes place the following morning. Group spawning in a larger tank is also effective.

Egg & Fry Care

The adults will eat the eggs given the chance and should be removed as soon as eggs are noticed. Eggs hatch in 24-36 hours and the fry become free-swimming 3-4 days later. Offer infusoria-type food for the first few days, until the fry can accept microworm or brine shrimp nauplii.