The rainbowfish of the genus Chilatherina are found exclusively in New Guinea. The genus differs from the closely related genus Melanotaenia mainly in its jaw structure. To date, 11 species have been assigned to Chilatherina. One of the peculiarities of some species of this genus is that they change color strongly at an advanced age. Otherwise, everything that applies to Melanotaenia also applies to the care and breeding of Chilatherina.
Gerald Allen, who has made a great contribution to modern rainbowfish systematics, writes in his 1981 revision of Chilatherina: “Typically these fishes prefer sections of the stream which afford maximum exposure to sunlight. The substratum generally consists of gravel or sand, frequently littered with leaves or log debris. Food items include filamentous algae, small crustacea, terrestrial insects such as ants and beetles, and various aquatic insect larvae. Sexual maturation occurs in most species at a relatively small size, usually about 35-40 mm SL in females and 45-55 mm SL in males. Gravid females deposit several eggs each day which adhere to aquatic vegetation by means of a thread-like filament. Hatching occurs in about 15 days at 22°-24°C. The fry grow rapidly and may attain sexual maturity by the end of their first year.“ Allen distinguished 6 species at that time. The species named in his honor, Chilatherina alleni, was described in 1997 by David S. Prize on the basis of 13 specimens of 44.1-82.6 mm standard length (i.e. without caudal fin). These specimens came from a tributary of the Aiborei River in the Siriwo catchment area, Irian Jaya. The strain currently represented in the hobby probably goes back to the collection by Johannes Graf and companions from the Wapoga River in 2008. The species is therefore also popularly known as the “Wapoga rainbowfish”.
Fortunately, Chilatherina alleni is one of the relatively few species of rainbowfish that already look very attractive when half-grown. The fish photographed for this post are only 4-5 cm long. The fish become more and more beautiful as they get older. The maximum length of this peaceful animal is around 9 cm.
For our customers: the animals have code 409912 on our stocklist. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Literature:
Allen, G. R. (1981): A revision of the rainbowfish genus Chilatherina (Melanotaeniidae). Records of the Western Australian Museum v. 9 (pt 3): 279-299
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
