Again we can announce a first import: Moenkhausia nigromarginata. For the first time ever we received some of these tetras described in 1994. The species reaches a length of about 5 cm. Striking are the blue eye, the blue back in incident light and the – sometimes more and sometimes less visible – zigzag bands on the belly. This tetra comes from the drainage of the upper Rio Tapajós in Brazil and was caught together with Moenkhausia rubra.
Very interesting is the escape behavior of this species, which may explain why the animals did not appear in the hobby so far: when they feel threatened, M. nigromarginata shoot towards the ground and try to push themselves, lying on their side, under stones, roots and the like. This looks quite alarming for the keeper, who naturally fears that the animals would injure themselves in panic or become trapped in such a way that they would not be able to get out of the self-imposed trap again. But this worry is unfounded. Once acclimated, M. nigromarginata is no more skittish than other tetras.
All in all an interesting new form, which will surely find its followers.
For our customers: the animals have code 268852 on our stocklist. Please note that we supply exclusively to wholesalers. Only available in small quantities!
