Serpae Tetra (Red Minor Tetra)

Hyphessobrycon eques

The Serpae Tetra or Red Minor Tetra (*Hyphessobrycon eques*) is an extraordinarily robust Characin with an incendiary color, characterized by a deep blood-red livery with a conspicuous comma-shaped (or rhombus-shaped) black spot just behind the gill cover. The fins, dark and bordered with a blinding white, are often held rigidly open in ritual threat poses, making the school constantly on display. Reaching 4 cm (1.5 inches) and possessing a very tall and compressed silhouette, it is a visually magnificent fish and almost indestructible in terms of water parameters. Nevertheless, it is notoriously famous in the aquarium hobby for being an unrepentant 'fin-nipper': if kept incorrectly, it will destroy the fins of any other slow or veiled tank mate.

Family: Characidae
Origin: Sud America (Bacino amazzonico in Brasile, Perù, Paraguay, Bolivia e Argentina settentrionale)
Tank use: Used in 0 tanks

Temperature

22 °C - 28 °C

5 - 7.5

Water type

Freshwater

Tank level

Zona media e inferiore. Si muovono a scatti rapidissimi perlustrando le macrofite e le fronde basse delle piante.

Adult size

4 cm

Description

Continuous Dancing Skirmishes:

They will be the most lively and choreographic school you will have. Males will challenge each other almost every hour swimming parallel in a circle facing each other, vibrating and fully opening their red-black fins to look huge and threaten each other. No one gets hurt in these bloodless ceremonial brawls, but the visual spectacle is guaranteed.

Care and observations

The Terror of Long-Tailed Fish (Fin Nipping):

Behind that wonderful fiery red hides a terrible character. Serpae are famous all over the world for being "fin nippers". If you buy them to put them in your first aquarium together with slow fish with veil fins (like the Siamese Fighting Fish/Betta, Male Guppies, Gouramis or large Angelfish), it will be a carnage. The school of Serpae will chase the slow fish all night repeatedly biting its fins until they pluck it bloody, causing fatal fungal infections. INSERT THEM ONLY WITH SHORT AND FAST FISH (like Danios, Rasboras or Corydoras).

The Secret to Making Them Harmless (Minimum 10 Fish):

There is only one trick to neutralize their aggressiveness and make them wonderful fish: the number. If you buy only 4 or 5, out of boredom they will go crazy picking on all the other fish. If you buy a bunch (from 10 to 15 individuals), they will create a rigid hierarchy in which they will spend all day fighting solely among themselves, chasing each other and parrying blows within their own school, without paying the slightest attention to the other guests of the tank.

Clear Water Fades Them:

Do not worry about the pH (they tolerate tap water), but worry about the color. If you have white rocks, light sand and a very strong daylight, your Serpae will never be blood red, but a sad pale pink. They become fiery red only in aquariums densely shaded by tall plants or in dark water (with peat) where they feel calm.

Fish profile

Temperament: Aggressivo e Morsicatore (Fin-nipper). Stabiliscono rigide gerarchie interne. I maschi passano il tempo a scontrarsi a pinne spiegate. Se in gruppo numeroso (10+) le aggressioni restano all'interno del branco. Se tenuti in piccoli numeri (sotto i 6), diventeranno veri sicari per gli altri pesci.
Diet: Onnivoro/Micropredatore. Estremamente voraci e competitivi sul cibo (spesso i primi ad arrivare mangiando a morsi frenetici in superficie). Fiocchi, granuli affondanti, daphnia e, in particolare, chironomus vivo (bloodworms) per esaltare il pigmento rosso sangue.
Tank level: Zona media e inferiore. Si muovono a scatti rapidissimi perlustrando le macrofite e le fronde basse delle piante.
Minimum group: 10
Adult size: 4 cm
Minimum tank: 80 L
GH: 2 dGH - 15 dGH
KH: n/a
TDS: n/a
Conductivity: n/a
Sex ratio: Grande branco Tassativo (Minimo 10, idealmente 15 esemplari). Essenziale per disperdere la loro violenza intrinseca. Maschi più magri, di un rosso più acceso (spesso bordeaux) e con bordi neri/bianchi delle pinne molto più definiti. Femmine rotonde, leggermente sbiadite e più grandi.
Feeding frequency: 1-2 volte al giorno, lanciando abbondante cibo in modo che si sparpagli, riducendo l'aggressività durante il pasto.
Bioload: Medio-Basso
Flow: Corrente Debole o Moderata. Evitare flussi torrenziali costanti.
Reproduction: Facili riproduttori in vasche fittamente piantumate. Abbandonano le uova tra le piante a foglia fine (come il muschio di Giava). Essendo voraci predatori delle loro stesse uova, le femmine gravide devono essere trasferite in vasche con griglie di fondo se si vuole salvare la covata commerciale.
Compatibility: Mantenimento complesso a causa della propensione al 'fin-nipping'. IL DIVIETO ASSOLUTO: MAI con pesci a pinne lunghe (Guppy, Betta Splendens, Scalari o Gourami): li lasceranno spennati a sangue in 48 ore. Convivenza adatta solo a pesci altrettanto aggressivi, robusti e senza pinne fluenti: Barbi Tigre, grossi Danio, Corydoras veloci e Ciclidi Nani (Ramirezi) sapendo farsi rispettare.

Image gallery

Licensed images linked to the species or, when marked, to the closest representative taxon.

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Live aquarium/observation photo from iNaturalist for Hyphessobrycon eques.