Celestial Pearl Danio Care and Breeding Guide

Aquarium fish hobbyists and enthusiasts prefer the Celestial Pearl Danio for its rather beautiful appearance. It is a unique freshwater aquarium fish native to Thailand and Myanmar both countries having locals there using it as a delicacy.

The sexes of the fish are easy to distinguish and therefore when it is time to breed them, the work is so easy. Caring for the fish is not easy and therefore you will need to think twice if you wish to keep it for the first time. You may need the advice of an experienced aquarist for you to effectively keep this fish in a tank at your home.

Appearance of Celestial Pearl Danio

The male and female species of the fish appear so beautiful but there are various characteristics in both sexes that will make you differentiate them.

The males

The males of the celestial pearl danio have a somewhat midnight blue color that appears deep with a series of pearlescent spots clearly visible on the flanks and arranged in arrow like lines. The ventral fins of the males of the fish are solid red but occasionally may be seen to have dots or red color.

The males have bellies that are bright red with the dominant of them having the capability of flashing a unique red stripe of light on their back. This unique flash of light that can be seen running on the back of the fish, from the head all the way down to the dorsal fin. It is claimed that this unique phenomenon sometimes seen on some male danios signals their quest to court a female danio.

The females

The female celestial danio fish have an overall golden blue sheen with some pearlescent spots which are not as bright as those of the males. The females have their bellies showing an orange color with the ventral fins appearing somewhat clear. At the onset of spawning, the females will exhibit a dark spot near the anal fin.

Habitat

The fish is a native of the Asian continent specifically the River Salween in Myanmar. The fish are fresh water dwellers and therefore if you are to keep them in a tank, you will use freshwater. The fish have been found to easily adapt to aquarium life as long as the conditions there are made perfect for them to thrive in. Ensuring that the condition of the tank is kept to near those of their natural habitat in the river can greatly assure your success with this fish.

Please also ensure that important things such as pH, hardness and cleanliness are well maintained in the tank for the good health of the fish.

Tank requirements

The Celestial Pearl Danio is a highly adaptable fresh water aquarium fish that will easily survive in a number of waters found in different parts of the world. A number of experienced aquarists from around the world say that the fish can just be reared in water that has a neutral pH or slightly above it. Just ensure that he water has got low conductivity with low carbonate content.

You can take a look at some basic tank requirements for the fish below:

• Ensure that you keep the temperature of the tank to 80° Fahrenheit or below. Anything that exceeds this will not be conducive to the fish because in the wild they are accustomed to cold temperatures.
• Celestial pearl danios can be kept in groups in the same tank as long as the tank is one that can hold at least 20 gallons of water. Please note the fish species enjoy it more when they have sufficient space to swim.
• Having lots of plants in the tank will greatly help to make the aquarium be more natural to the fish inside.
• When it is time you wish to breed the fish, ensure that you only have the male and female species of the fish in the tank at that time.
• If you wish to mix the fish with other types of fish in the same tank, ensure that you bring in just small fish with bodies similar to them.
• The pH of the tank water should be maintained at 7 or can be a little higher with a hardness that is medium.
• Ensure that the water in the tank is properly filtered and kept clean. Frequently changing the water is advised though.
• The tank can be lit with bright LED light as long as it doesn’t go overboard.

Feeding

The fish is an omnivorous and is known to feed on other small animals they come across while in the wild. Their mouths are relatively small in size therefore they majorly feed on small critters which they can be fed even when they are in aquarium.

Below are some other foods you can give them if you are keeping them in the tank:

• Fish flakes although they need to be crushed to make it easy for them swallow as they have relatively small mouth.
• They can as well be fed krill that is frozen, this is said to help the fish show a red color that makes it elegant.
• If you need to feed them live fish, giving them brine shrimp that have just been hatched can do the trick.
• Other kinds of live foods to give them may include; daphnia, grindal worms, and moina.

Breeding

Celestial pearl danio usually breeds easily whether in the wild or even if in the aquarium. There are other reports that suggest that the fish can breed on a daily basis. The females usually lay eggs that are not so many in numbers like other fish species do. If you wish to have the females lay more eggs, you can condition the tank with the necessary temperature and pH.

During the mating season, the males will go after females although such courtships are usually not materialistic in terms of spawning. Fortunately, the male fish will go over the eggs of the female where she has laid them and then fertilize them.