Red Rasbora

In 1904 Duncker described Red Rasbora. This fish is greatly popular, small and pleasing to the eye. It is a delightful fresh water fish and does very well in most community settings. It reaches to the size of about 1.5 inches or 4 cms. Its scientific name is Rasbora heteromorpha. Its other common names are Dwarf Red Rasbora and Harlequin. If you want to know more about Red Rasbora, go through the following account.

Geographical distribution

Red Rasbora is found in slow moving water bodies in South East Asia, particularly Thailand, Indonesia, Malayasia and Sumatra.

Diet

Red Rasbora is an omnivorous fish. It should be fed with prepared as well as fresh foods. Live foods form an essential part of its diet. Be careful not to overfeed it with live foods or else, it will refuse to eat prepared foods. It likes to eat crustaceans, flakes, insects, Drosophila and insect larvae.

Breeding

Breeding Red Rasbora is little exigent. Keep the water conditions soft and acidic so that they are willing to spawn. The male directs the female to his selected location, almost always underneath a broad leaved plant. The two spawn and eggs stick to the leaf. Then fry emerge in a few days. It seems that they take so much care in depositing the eggs but it appears that they forget all of it and gobble their eggs and fry if not removed The fry can swim freely 3-5 days later and can be fed with infusoria, roftiers, and liquid foods.

Physical Description

Body of Red Rasbora is elongated and has a forked tail. Color of its body is pale pink to bright red. It has a convex belly area. A prominent black wedge covers the rear half of the body. The Red Rasbora is often confused with its two close relatives-the Espei Rasbora and the Glowlight or the Hengel’s Rasbora. To identify your Red Rasbora, notice some slight differences. The Red Rasbora is pale pink to bright red, and is much stocker than its relatives. Black mark or wedge of Red Rasbora is much closer to a triangle shape and has a blue tint.

Tank Set up

Tank of Red Rasbora should measure 28 inches or 71 cms. There should be 20-25 gallons or 75-98 liters of water. You should provide dark substrate and cover of floating plants in the tank. This fish likes a heavily planted tank. Leave ample space for swimming at the middle and top levels. Peat filtration is recommended. Its water preferences are pH should be 5-7 (6.2), 0-6 dH and temperature should be73-79 degree F or 23-26 degree C. It prefers soft and slightly acidic water.

Social Behavior

Red Rasbora is a non-aggressive and schooling fish. It should be combined with the fish of same size and active schooling fishes. It does well with companions like Loricarids, Loaches, Corydoras, Rasboras, Danios, Colisa, hatchetfish and Apistogramma.

In best conditions, Red Rasbora will be dark maroon pink and its black marking will be dark and appear smooth. It appears fairly vibrant in aquariums in rare cases. It lives 3-5 years and at times 6 years. A shoal of this fish brightens up your aquarium. It is a sensitive species and makes a good tank mate. So now you know about Red Rasbora; don’t delay in bringing it to your aquarium.