Alfaro turquoise
Turquoise Alfaro or Knife Alfaro, scientific name Alfaro cultratus, belongs to the Poeciliidae family. A hardy and unpretentious species, does not impose special requirements on its content. It is poorly represented in the retail network, but it is quite widespread among private aquarists.
Habitat
It is widely distributed in numerous reservoirs of Central America on the territory of the modern states of Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. It lives in small rivers, streams, ditches, backwaters in areas with slow and medium currents.
Requirements and conditions:
- The volume of the aquarium – from 50 liters.
- Temperature – 24 – 28°C
- Value pH — 6.0–8.0
- Water hardness – soft to hard (5-20 dGH)
- Substrate type – any
- Lighting – moderate
- Brackish water – no
- Water movement – light or moderate
- Size – up to 7 cm.
- Meals – any
Description
Outwardly, an unremarkable fish. The coloration is light grey. At a certain angle, a bluish tint appears. Fins are translucent. The body is somewhat elongated, males look slimmer than females, the latter are noticeably larger.
Food
They accept all types of dry, frozen and live food. At home, the best solution is to use several types of food from well-known manufacturers, alternated throughout the day. Feed two or three times a day in the amount eaten in 5 minutes. Any uneaten food should be removed.
Maintenance and care
Alfaro turquoise thrives in a wide range of pH and GH values, so there are no problems with the preparation of water for the aquarium. It is enough to use tap water, previously settled for about a day. The minimum set of equipment consists of a filter, an aeration system, a heater and a lighting system. Weekly maintenance consists in replacing part of the water (15–20%) with fresh water. Soil cleaning as silting.
The design forms areas with dense vegetation and free areas for swimming. Floating plants are welcome. Another decor may consist of roots and snags of trees, heaps of stones.
Behavior
It can show aggression towards relatives, but this rarely ends with injuries. Compatible with other species, provided they are larger. It is not recommended to settle small fish.
Breeding / breeding
Breeding Alfaro turquoise in a home aquarium does not cause much trouble. There is no need to create special conditions, spawning can take place in a common aquarium at any time during the year. An adult female is capable of carrying up to 100 fry. When they are seen in the aquarium, it is advisable to transplant them into a separate tank, for example, a three-liter jar. Feed micro food.
Fish diseases
In a balanced aquarium ecosystem, disease outbreaks are extremely rare. Problems arise only in advanced cases: high levels of waste pollution, poor irregular nutrition, contact with already sick fish, etc. For more information on symptoms and treatment methods, see the Aquarium Fish Diseases section.
