Neon tetras are small characins from the soft, shaded blackwater streams of the upper Amazon, known for the blue and red stripe along their flanks.
In a tight school under good conditions they show their colour best.
Though cheap and widely available, they are more demanding than their price suggests.
They need a mature, stable aquarium and the security of a large group, and they are often lost early in newly set-up or under-stocked tanks.
Housing
Keep a school in a cycled, planted tank of at least 57 litres (15 gallons), held at 21-26C (70-79F) in soft, slightly acidic water.
Neons colour up and feel safe in dim, well-planted surroundings with darker substrate and gentle filtration.
Stability is essential; they do poorly in newly cycled tanks or fluctuating parameters.
Add them only to a mature aquarium, keep nitrate low with weekly water changes, and avoid bright, bare setups that leave these shy fish stressed and washed-out.
Diet
Neons are micro-predators and omnivores with small mouths.
Feed a finely crushed flake or micro-pellet staple and supplement frequently with small frozen or live foods such as daphnia, cyclops, microworm, and baby brine shrimp to maintain colour and condition.
Offer tiny pinches once or twice daily, only what is eaten quickly.
Their small size makes overfeeding easy and quickly fouls the soft, lightly buffered water they prefer, so feed sparingly and remove any uneaten food.
Health
Neon tetra disease, an incurable parasitic wasting illness causing fading colour, curved spine, and lumps, is the species' notorious affliction.
There is no cure, so prevention through quarantine, low stress, and removing affected fish is essential to protect the school.
Mass production has weakened many farmed lines, so neons are best added to mature tanks and acclimatised slowly.
Common stress-related issues include ich and fin rot; stable, soft water and an established aquarium give the best resistance.
Temperament
Neons are peaceful, timid schooling fish that should be kept in groups of at least eight to ten, ideally more.
In small numbers they become stressed, pale, and reclusive, while a large school is more confident and coordinated.
They suit calm community tanks with other small, gentle species and should never be mixed with large or aggressive fish that may eat them.
Their nervous nature means sudden movements and bright bare tanks leave them hiding rather than displaying.
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate