The Black Phantom Tetra. Their Discovery, Natural History & Care Info! Hyphessobrycon megalopterus

Overlooked Gems: The Black Phantom Tetra. Natural History & Care Info! (Hyphessobrycon megalopterus)


black phantom tetra (Hyphessobrycon megalopterus), from the greek meaning large fin! or as we know them the black phantom tetra, a typical peaceful, small and inexpensive fish.

Part of the Genus name of Hyphess-o-brycon is from Greek and translares to "of lesser size" . The Genus is wide spread and found from Mexico to Southern Argentina. And includes some of our hobbies most beloved species of tetras. Out of those 156+ species are the ember, Buenos Aires, black neon, red & black line tetra, lemon, flame and bleeding heart to name just a few.

Which all happen to be small omnivores which reduce via egg scattering.


Discovered in 1915 by Carl.H. Eigenmann
German-American ichthyologist of the late nineteenth and early twentiet centuries, who, along with his wife Rosa Smith Eigenmann, and his zoology students is credited with identifying and describing for the first time 195 genera containing nearly 600 species of fishes of North America and South America.

Especially notable among his published papers are his studies of the freshwater fishes of South America, the evolution and systematics of South American fishes,
He was also the first dean of the IU graduate school from 1908 to 1927. In addition to his duties at IU, Eigenman was honorary curator of fishes at the Carnegie Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to 1918.

Remembered for his 5 volume series of
Eigenmann's five-volume work, The American Characidae, it Arguably his most significant work. It dealt with the newly outlined idea of "degenerative evolution" based on his studies of blind cave fishes found in parts of North America and in Cuba

Phantom is native to a rather large range:

It is native to the upper Paraguay basin and upper Madeira basin (including Guaporé, Mamore and Beni) in Brazil and Bolivia. It's most well known habitat is known as the Pantanal and is home to the most diverse aquatic plant ecosystem in the world with over 280 species of emersed and submerged plants.

Their tank should reflect this dimly lit aquatic world, which is a tangle of plants, woody debris, dried leafs, a sandy substrate and scattered stones. With a temperature range of 68 to 84 degrees. A hearty fish, to be sure. I

This means they tend to live in soft acidic waters which change depth drastically with seasonal rains. While they enjoy acidic water and tannins they can also thrive in aquaria at ph ranges between 5.0 and 7.5 and tds up to around 300 ppm, however reproduction will likely require the lower ends of this range.

The black phantom tetra's natural diet consist of small crustaceans, insects, and worms. In captivity they are unfussy eaters and often can be quite excitable feeders, coming to the surface to greet their owners.

Behavior and tank size:

These are a great community species and only reach about an inch and a half maximum in length. besides also typically being only a few dollars per fish, they are also exceptional for being abke to be kept happily in small shoals, unlike many other tetra species. 4 or 5 individuals can be kept in a 10 or 15 gallon tank, but a 20long or larger makes for much more peaceful tanks and dynamicBehavior!

While it is not particularly colorful, it makes up for this by its display behavior: the males are territorial and defend their space against their neighbors by presenting themselves in profile with the dorsal and anal fins fully extended, and the dark color intensified, making the edging of the body patch stand out prominently. Sometimes they exchange blows which can tear the fins, but this damage heals quickly. Unlike other tetras who prefer to live in large shoals, they will also do fine when kept in a group of four or five individuals, making them suitable for smaller aquaria. There should still be enough space for the males to stake territories and present themselves to best effort, however.

Reproduction

The Black phantom tetra is an egg-scattering species. To stimulate breeding, ideally you should seperate males and females for 10 to 15 days and feed them live or frozen food high in protein.

Then place a group of males and females into a spawning tank where the pH is carefully lowered to about 5.5-6, the general hardness or tds is very low (50 to 100ppm) . The breeding tank should have plants, both rooted and floating, and low light, with marbles or stones at the bottom as seen in my videos on other egg scatterers.

A female black phantom tetra will produce about 300 eggs. These fish will eat their own eggs and fry, so the parents are usually removed after spawning.

The fry are TINY and require being fed infusoria (protozoa) for the first 2 to 4 weeks. After which they can be fed Commercial fry foods of suitable sizes, however live baby brine encourage growth and vivid markings.