White Cloud Mountain Minnow

Tanichthys albonubes

The White Cloud Mountain Minnow (*Tanichthys albonubes*) is one of the great 'vintage fish' of fishkeeping, as well as one of the most misunderstood. Due to its romantic name and its appearance (an iridescent green-bronze body crossed by a neon stripe, with flaming red and white fins in males), in the 1930s it was called "the poor man's Neon". Today we know that it is a magnificent fish with an essential peculiarity: it is NOT a tropical fish. It is a cold-temperate water fish, rustic, peaceful and almost indestructible if not boiled alive in modern heated aquariums.

Family: Cyprinidae
Origin: Asia (Torrenti montani della provincia di Guangdong e Montagna della Nuvola Bianca in Cina, Vietnam)
Tank use: Used in 0 tanks

Temperature

14 °C - 22 °C

6 - 8

Water type

Freshwater

Tank level

Zona superiore e media. Pattugliano instancabilmente la colonna d'acqua chiara, spesso orientati controcorrente.

Adult size

4 cm

Description

Variants and Wild Extinction Risk:

In stores you will often find the "Long-fin" variant or the beautiful "Meteor" variant (Albino/Gold). Curiously, while today it is one of the most common and cheapest fish in stores around the world (all captive-bred), in its native mountain in China it was literally declared extinct in the wild for over 20 years due to tourist pollution (a tiny wild strain was rediscovered in an isolated area in 2003).

Care and observations

It's Not a Tropical Fish (Turn Off the Heater):

The number one cause of premature death for these formidable fish is heat. They live in cool mountain streams in China. If you buy them to put them at 28°C (82°F) along with Amazonian fish, their metabolism will go into overdrive: females will not produce eggs, they will discolor and die in less than a year (instead of 5-7). Your home aquarium at room temperature (18-22°C / 64-72°F) is literally perfect. No heater plug needed.

The Summer Miracle (Outdoor Mini-Ponds):

Being extremely cold-resistant, in Europe and North America many breeders move them from May to October into small planted tubs on balconies or gardens (Mini-Ponds). As long as the water temperature does not go below 10°C (50°F), they will thrive outdoors, eating mosquito larvae, taking on intense colors in the sun and reproducing spontaneously in abundance.

Fin Parades (Male Sparring):

Another reason never to buy just 2 or 3 is the show you would miss. The males of the school spend hours pulling alongside each other and fully extending their red dorsal fins to impress the females (a peacock-like parade). It is a bloodless behavior that enlivens the tank, but a school of at least 8-10 elements is needed.

Fish profile

Temperament: Totalmente pacifico e gregarissimo. I maschi ingaggiano continui "sparring" innocui dispiegando le pinne rosse al massimo come ventagli per impressionarsi a vicenda (una vera danza stupenda).
Diet: Onnivoro. Non esigenti. Accettano mangime in scaglie sbriciolato di base, ma è vitale integrare con cibo vivo/congelato per mantenere i colori brillanti: daphnia, artemia e larve rosse di zanzara (chironomus) sono perfette.
Tank level: Zona superiore e media. Pattugliano instancabilmente la colonna d'acqua chiara, spesso orientati controcorrente.
Minimum group: 8
Adult size: 4 cm
Minimum tank: 60 L
GH: 5 dGH - 19 dGH
KH: n/a
TDS: n/a
Conductivity: n/a
Sex ratio: Gruppi numerosi misti. I maschi sono molto più slanciati e incredibilmente più colorati; le femmine sono paffute e con tinte più smorzate.
Feeding frequency: 1-2 volte al giorno. Sono mangiatori di superficie veloci, spesso lasciano poco a pesci di fondo lenti.
Bioload: Basso
Flow: Corrente da Moderata a Forte (vivono in torrenti montani a scorrimento veloce)
Jump risk: Covered tank required
Reproduction: Dispersori di uova (egg-scatterers) estremamente prolifici. Tra i pesci ovipari più facili da riprodurre: basta un fitto cespuglio di muschio di Giava, acqua fresca (20°C) e, al contrario di molti altri ciprinidi, non è raro che i genitori ignorino le proprie uova e lascino sopravvivere gli avannotti in acquario di comunità se ben piantumato.
Compatibility: NON ABBINARE a pesci tropicali classici (Discus, Ramirezi, Neon) a causa della netta incompatibilità termica. Coinqulini ideali per i Nuvola Bianca sono altri pesci d'acqua fredda asiatica: Danio Zebra, Hillstream Loaches (Sewellia), *Puntius conchonius* (Barbo Rosato) e pesci del Paradiso (*Macropodus*).

Image gallery

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

Primary

Generated via Deepmind Antigravity AI

Licensed live observation photo for Tanichthys albonubes. Matched to Tanichthys albonubes.

Aquarium/live image selected via Openverse. Matched to Tanichthys albonubes.