Delta killifish

Care at a glance

Overview

The delta killifish is a large, handsome semi-annual killi kept as a single pair or a harem of one male to two or more females. It patrols the middle and lower water among tall plants and roots, and like its relatives it jumps, so keep the lid tight. It is mostly peaceful and best suited to a species tank or the company of small, calm fish that will not compete with it. Feed generously on live and frozen foods such as bloodworm, brine shrimp, daphnia, and whiteworm, with some dry food taken. A pair needs a tank of at least about 54 liters, and more space suits a harem or a long term group.

In the wild

This killifish is found only in the swamps of the Niger Delta in Nigeria, in raffia swamps and the boggy edges of forest brooks where the water is soft, dark, and slow. Give it a shaded, planted tank with a dark base, wood, and leaf litter, and keep the current low. Hold the water soft and acidic to neutral, about pH 5.5–7.0, and warm at 20–25 C, using leaves or peat to keep the tannin stain it lives in.

Good to know

Fundulopanchax deltaensis belongs to the family Nothobranchiidae and reaches about 8 cm, one of the larger fish in this group. It is a semi-annual soil spawner: eggs are buried and given a damp incubation of several months before hatching, a slow routine that puts breeding at a moderate level. Radda described the species in 1976, naming it plainly for the delta that holds its entire range.

Did you know

Its whole natural range is the swamp country of a single river delta, so this fish and the Nigerian oil fields share almost the same small map, and habitat loss there is a genuine concern for the species.

Tank mates

Delta killifish is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the middle. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.

• 

  Mandarin rhinogobius

  Rhinogobius brunneus

  Freshwater

  2.4 in (6 cm)14 gal (54 L)64–75°F (18–24°C)
• Chiangmai stream goby

  Rhinogobius chiengmaiensis

  Freshwater

  2 in (5 cm)14 gal (54 L)64–75°F (18–24°C)
• Tiantian barb

  Pethia tiantian

  Freshwater

  1.8 in (4.5 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–77°F (20–25°C)
• Rosy loach

  Petruichthys sp. 'rosy'

  Freshwater

  1.2 in (3 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)
• Filament moth catfish

  Hara filamentosa

  Freshwater

  2.4 in (6 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)
• Elongate moth catfish

  Hara horai

  Freshwater

  3.1 in (8 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–79°F (20–26°C)

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator

Common questions

Related species

• Arnold's killifish

  Fundulopanchax arnoldi

  Freshwater

  3 in (7.5 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–77°F (20–25°C)
• Fallax killifish

  Fundulopanchax fallax

  Freshwater

  3.5 in (9 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–77°F (20–25°C)

• 

  Amiet's lyretail

  Fundulopanchax amieti

  Freshwater

  2.8 in (7 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–77°F (20–25°C)

• 

  Plumed lyretail

  Fundulopanchax filamentosus

  Freshwater

  2.4 in (6 cm)20 gal (75 L)68–75°F (20–24°C)
• Walker's killifish

  Fundulopanchax walkeri

  Freshwater

  2.4 in (6 cm)14 gal (54 L)68–77°F (20–25°C)

• 

  Steel Blue Killifish

  Fundulopanchax gardneri

  Freshwater

  2.2 in (5.5 cm)21 gal (80 L)70–79°F (21–26°C)