Colombian Tetra (Hyphessobrycon columbianus)

The Colombian tetra (Hyphessobrycon columbianus) is a sturdier, larger option than the neons and cardinals it usually sits beside. It comes from northern Colombia, and the colour scheme is unusual for a tetra: a silvery body with a strong blue sheen over the back and shoulders, set against blood-red anal and caudal fins. The contrast is at its sharpest under good lighting and it holds well in ordinary tap water, which is not something you can say of every South American tetra.

Aquarium care

• Reaches roughly 5 to 6 cm.
• Hardy and adaptable; a reasonable first tetra.
• Keep a group of at least six, and preferably more.
• Active mid-water swimmer that needs open space.
• Omnivorous: flake, pellets, frozen bloodworm and brine shrimp.

Worth knowing before you buy: this is a boisterous fish and it will nip trailing fins, particularly if kept in a small group. Keep the numbers up and it stays focused on its own kind. Suitable tankmates are similarly robust and similarly short-finned, such as barbs, danios, larger rasboras and corydoras. Angelfish, bettas and fancy guppies are a poor match.

Stock rotates with each shipment, and livestock is sold for local pickup at our Lethbridge store. See the current tetras.