Dwarf scissortail rasbora

Rasbosoma spilocerca

Also known as Spottail scissortail

FreshwaterFish

Dwarf scissortail rasbora (Rasbosoma spilocerca) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 72–81°F (22–27°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 1.3 in (3.2 cm)
Minimum tank: 11 gal (40 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: No record
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Mekong basin
Family: Danionidae

Overview

A true nano schooler that shows best in a group of eight or more, when the fish drift together in midwater and flick their forked tails in constant small signals. It is peaceful and very small, so its companions should be equally tiny and calm, along the lines of chili rasboras and pygmy species; it also does well in a tank of its own. Feed only small foods, such as micro pellets, crushed flake, and frozen or live baby brine shrimp, daphnia, and microworm. A gently filtered, planted tank of around 40 liters is plenty.

In the wild

The dwarf scissortail lives in shallow, sluggish waters of the lower Mekong basin, in swamps, marshes, and flooded grassland thick with plants. Give it a densely planted tank with soft, gentle filtration, since strong current is not to its liking, plus a dark substrate and some leaf litter. Keep it at 22 to 27 degrees Celsius with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5.

Good to know

Rasbosoma spilocerca is a danio-family rasbora, Danionidae, that stays around 3 centimeters and is the only species in its genus. Rainboth and Kottelat described it in 1987; the name spilocerca means spotted tail, for the dark mark at the base of its forked caudal fin. Its spawning is not recorded in the hobby.

Did you know

For all the emphasis on its flicking scissortail, the fish is actually named for the small dark spot at the root of that tail, the mark that the Latin name points to.

Tank mates

Dwarf scissortail rasbora is a peaceful, schooling species that keeps to the middle. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.