False eightstripe barb - Eirmotus octozona

Food and feeding
Although these fish will accept quality flake or small pellets these should be varied on a regular basis with live or frozen foods to get the best colouration from the fish. Daphnia and brine shrimp are greedily accepted.

Origin
Asia; they are found in Western Malaysia.

Sexing
Males are slimmer than the females and will display a red tinge to their fins when in top condition.

Breeding
Add Java moss or spawning mops to the breeding tank to provide spawning sites. The eggs will be scattered around the spawning medium and once spawning is complete, the parents should be removed. The eggs will hatch in 3 days and a few days later the fry will be free swimming. At this stage they can be fed on Infusoria until large enough to accept newly hatched brine shrimp.

Lifespan
The expected life span for this fish is 6 years.

Short description
These fish are not ideal for community tanks as they have a shy nature and will not compete for food. It is better to keep them in a species tank and always keep them in a small group of at least 8 specimens.

Pictures
Bought by aqua-fish.net from jjphoto.dk.