Glowlight carplet

Horadandia atukorali

Also known as Green carplet, Rice fish carplet, Ceylon dwarf barb

FreshwaterFish

Glowlight carplet (Horadandia atukorali) — (c) Frank M. Greco, some rights reserved (CC BY) · cc-by

Care at a glance

Temperature: 75–82°F (24–28°C)
pH: 6.0–7.5
Adult size: 1.2 in (3 cm)
Minimum tank: 11 gal (40 L)
Temperament: Peaceful
Social behavior: Schooling
Swim level: Middle
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Lowland wetlands of Sri Lanka
Family: Danionidae

Overview

A tiny, peaceful schooler best kept in numbers, a dozen or more, alongside other small and gentle fish; in a group it stays confident and out in open midwater. Its size keeps its tankmates to the smallest and calmest species, and dense planting doubles as spawning cover and as places to shelter. Feed small foods, such as micro pellets, crushed flake, and frozen or live cyclops, daphnia, and baby brine shrimp. A well-planted tank of around 40 liters with subdued light suits it.

In the wild

The glowlight carplet lives in weedy lowland wetlands, coastal swamps, and paddy margins of western Sri Lanka, in still or slow, sometimes slightly brackish water. Give it a gently filtered, heavily planted tank with a dark substrate and soft light. Keep it warm, 24 to 28 degrees Celsius, with a pH of 6.0 to 7.5.

Good to know

Horadandia atukorali is a member of the danio family, Danionidae, and one of the smallest of all, reaching only about 3 centimeters. Deraniyagala described it in 1943 and named it for the Sri Lankan naturalist who first pointed the fish out to him. A glowing line runs down each flank, giving the trade name; it is an egg-scatterer, so its breeding rates as moderate.

Did you know

Despite the name carplet, this three-centimeter fish will move into faintly brackish coastal water, a salt tolerance most of its freshwater relatives do not share.