Kerry

The Kerry or Purple Emperor Tetra, scientific name Inpaichthys kerri, belongs to the Characidae family. A miniature fish with an original coloration, this primarily applies to males. Easy to keep, unpretentious, easy to breed. It gets along well with other non-aggressive species of a similar or slightly larger size.

Habitat

It comes from the upper basin of the Madeira River – the largest tributary of the Amazon. It lives in numerous river channels and streams flowing through the rainforest. The water is opaque, very acidic (pH below 6.0), colored light brown due to the high concentration of tannins and other tannins released during the decomposition of organic matter (leaves, branches, tree fragments, etc.).

Kratke informacije:

• Prostornina akvarija - od 70 litrov.
• Temperatura – 24-27°C
• Vrednost pH - 5.5-7.0
• Trdota vode – mehka (1-12 dGH)
• Vrsta podlage - peščena
• Osvetlitev - umirjena
• Somornica – ne
• Gibanje vode – nizko/zmerno
• Velikost rib je do 3.5 cm.
• Hrana - katera koli hrana
• Temperament - miren, miren
• Ohranjanje v jati vsaj 8-10 posameznikov

Opis

Adults reach a length of about 3.5 cm. A wide horizontal dark stripe runs along the body, the color is blue with a purple tint. Males are more brightly colored than females, which often have a modest brown with a yellowish tinge. Due to the similarity in color, they are often confused with the Royal or Imperial Tetra, and the almost identical name adds confusion.

Hrana

Accepts all types of popular dry, frozen and live foods. A varied diet, such as flakes, granules combined with bloodworms, daphnia, etc., promotes the appearance of brighter colors in the coloration of the fish.

Vzdrževanje in nega, ureditev akvarija

A flock of 8-10 fish will require a tank with a volume of at least 70 liters. In the design I use a sandy substrate with numerous shelters in the form of snags or other decorative elements, dense thickets of plants that can grow in dim light. To simulate natural water conditions, dried fallen leaves, oak bark or deciduous tree cones are dipped to the bottom. Over time, the water will turn into a characteristic light brown color. Before placing the leaves in the aquarium, they are pre-washed with running water and soaked in containers until they begin to sink. A filter with a peat-based filter material can enhance the effect.

Another design or its complete absence is quite acceptable – an empty aquarium, however, in such conditions, the Purple Imperial Tetra will quickly turn into a gray nondescript fish, having lost all the brightness of its color.

Maintenance comes down to regular cleaning of the soil from organic waste (excrement, food residue, etc.), replacing leaves, bark, cones, if any, as well as weekly replacement of part of the water (15–20% of the volume) with fresh water.

Vedenje in združljivost

Peaceful schooling calm fish. They do not respond well to noisy, overly active neighbors such as Barbs or the African Red-Eyed Tetra. Kerry is perfectly compatible with other South American species, such as small tetras and catfish, Pecilobricon, hatchetfish, as well as rasboras.

This species has an undeserved reputation as “fin clippers”. The Purple Tetra does have a tendency to damage the fins of its tankmates, but this only happens when kept in a small group of up to 5-6 individuals. If you support a large flock, then the behavior changes, the fish begin to interact exclusively with each other.

Vzreja / vzreja

Pojav mladic je možen tudi v običajnem akvariju, vendar bo njihovo število zelo majhno in se bo vsak dan zmanjševalo, če jih ne presadimo pravočasno v ločen rezervoar. Da bi povečali možnosti preživetja in nekako sistematizirali postopek vzreje (drstenje ni bilo spontano), je priporočljivo uporabiti drstitveni akvarij, kjer so odrasle ribe nameščene v času parjenja.

Običajno je to majhna posoda s prostornino približno 20 litrov. Dizajn je poljuben, glavni poudarek je na podlagi. Da bi zaščitili jajca pred zaužitjem, je dno prekrito z mrežo z drobnimi očesi ali z drobnolistnimi rastlinami ali mahovi (na primer javanski mah). Alternativni način je, da položite plast steklenih kroglic s premerom vsaj 1 cm. Osvetlitev je pridušena, od opreme zadostujeta grelec in preprost zračni filter.

Spodbuda za začetek sezone parjenja je postopna sprememba parametrov vode v skupnem akvariju na naslednje vrednosti: pH 5.5–6.5, dH 1–5 pri temperaturi približno 26–27 °C. Osnova prehrane naj bo zamrznjena ali živa hrana.

Previdno opazujte ribe, kmalu bodo nekatere od njih postale opazno zaobljene - to so samice, ki so otekle od kaviarja. Pripravite in napolnite drstni rezervoar z vodo iz skupnega rezervoarja. Tja dajte samice, naslednji dan pa nekaj velikih samcev, ki izgledajo najbolj markantno.

Ostaja počakati, da pride do drstenja, njegov konec lahko določijo samice, močno bodo "izgubile težo", jajčeca pa bodo opazna med vegetacijo (pod fino mrežo).

Ribe se vrnejo. Mladice se bodo pojavile v 24-48 urah, po nadaljnjih 3-4 dneh bodo začele prosto plavati v iskanju hrane. Hranjenje s posebnimi mikrohranili.

Ribje bolezni

Uravnotežen akvarijski biosistem z ustreznimi pogoji je najboljša garancija pred pojavom kakršnih koli bolezni, zato, če je riba spremenila vedenje, barvo, nenavadne lise in druge simptome, najprej preverite parametre vode in šele nato nadaljujte z zdravljenjem.