Bronze featherback

Care at a glance

Overview

A midwater predator reaching about 35 cm, it needs at least 300 litres with cover, subdued light and a lid. Keep it at 24 to 28 C and pH 6.0 to 7.5. It is fairly peaceful for its size and can be kept in a group, but it will eat small fish, so pick tankmates it cannot swallow. Feed prawns, earthworms and frozen meaty foods, usually after lights-out.

In the wild

The bronze featherback is a knife-shaped fish with a long undulating fin running the length of its underside and a small, almost absent dorsal fin. It is a nocturnal predator that hangs quietly among wood and plants by day. Its body carries a soft bronze sheen.

Good to know

Notopterus notopterus belongs to the Old World knifefish family Notopteridae and reaches around 35 cm in aquaria, larger in the wild. It can breathe air using a modified swim bladder. Adults produce sounds and guard their eggs.

Did you know

Featherbacks swim forward and backward with equal ease by sending waves along the long fin beneath the body.

Related species

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