Loreto tetra

Care at a glance

Overview

Keep loreto tetras in a shoal of at least 8 to see their tight schooling behavior. They are peaceful, active, and undemanding as long as the water is soft and clean. They make good companions for other small, gentle characins and dwarf cichlids.

In the wild

Occurs in soft, often tannin stained streams and tributaries of the upper Amazon in Peru. These are calm, shaded waters with sandy bottoms, wood, and leaf litter. The fish shoal in the open middle water.

Good to know

Hyphessobrycon loretoensis is a slim, silvery tetra with a dark lateral line and a small tail spot. It reaches around 3.5 cm and is often confused with the similar Peruvian tetra. Both come from the same broad region of Peru.

Did you know

The neat black and silver stripe pattern makes a large school look like a single shimmering ribbon when the fish turn together.

Related species

• 

  Black Neon Tetra

  Hyphessobrycon herbertaxelrodi

  1.4 in (3.5 cm)16 gal (60 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)

• 

  Flag Tetra

  Hyphessobrycon heterorhabdus

  1.4 in (3.5 cm)16 gal (60 L)70–81°F (21–27°C)

• 

  Black phantom tetra

  Hyphessobrycon megalopterus

  1.4 in (3.6 cm)17 gal (65 L)70–82°F (21–28°C)

• 

  Peruvian tetra

  Hyphessobrycon peruvianus

  1.6 in (4 cm)16 gal (60 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Red phantom tetra

  Hyphessobrycon sweglesi

  1.6 in (4 cm)15 gal (55 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)

• 

  Rosy tetra

  Hyphessobrycon rosaceus

  1.6 in (4 cm)15 gal (55 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)