Spotted pyrrhulina

Pyrrhulina spilota

Also known as Blotched pyrrhulina, Four spot splash tetra

FreshwaterFish

Spotted pyrrhulina (Pyrrhulina spilota) — The Wet Spot Tropical Fish · Used with permission

Care at a glance

Temperature: 73–81°F (23–27°C)
pH: 5.5–7.0
Adult size: 2.8 in (7 cm)
Minimum tank: 20 gal (75 L)
Temperament: Mostly peaceful
Social behavior: Social
Swim level: Top
Difficulty: Medium
Breeding: Medium
Rarity: Rare
Origin: Ucayali basin, Peru
Family: Lebiasinidae

Overview

A lively surface fish related to the pencilfishes, best kept as a small group so its natural behaviour comes out. Keep several together, with more females than males, since males display and spar with each other over territory near the top of the tank. It is generally peaceful but is an active, sizeable characin, so pair it with calm mid and lower fish rather than very tiny or very timid ones. Feed floating and near-surface foods: flake, small floating pellets, and frozen or live foods such as bloodworm, daphnia and mosquito larvae. It is a surface dweller and a jumper, so give it a well-covered, planted tank of around 75 liters with open water at the top and floating cover.

In the wild

The spotted pyrrhulina comes from the upper Amazon in Peru, around the Ucayali and Maranon, where it patrols the still surface of shaded backwaters over soft, very acidic water. Keep it warm, about 23 to 27 C, and soft and mildly acidic, around pH 5.5 to 7.0. Give it a planted tank with floating plants and broad-leaved plants near the surface, dark substrate and gentle filtration, with a tight lid since it will jump.

Good to know

Pyrrhulina spilota is a member of the family Lebiasinidae and reaches about 7 centimeters, a bronze fish blotched with wine-red, males the more strongly marked. It is a surface-oriented insectivore. Breeding is of moderate difficulty: the female lays a clutch of eggs on a submerged leaf or broad plant, and the male alone guards and fans them until they hatch.

Did you know

Pyrrhulina belong to the same family as the splash tetras, the fishes famous for laying eggs on leaves above the waterline. This one keeps the leaf-spawning habit but lays below the surface, and keepers often use it as a dither fish to coax shy dwarf cichlids into the open.

Tank mates

Spotted pyrrhulina is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the top. These picks match on water type, temperature, pH, size and temperament.