Pseudomugilidae
Pseudomugil
3.50 cm
size can vary between individuals and males are slightly bigger.
Semi-aggressive, Peaceful, Community
Forms a hierarchy with a single dominant male. Generally very peaceful and timid but males can be somewhat aggressive to other males and similar sized fish. Aggression is limited to flaring and occasional nipping. More aggressive when stressed. Can be kept with dwarf shrimp.
Omnivore
38.00 L
50.00 cm x 25.00 cm
18.0 C - 27.0 C
preferably soft, pH 5 to 7.2, low nitrate and no nitrite or ammonia, generally pretty adaptable
Surface
Needs a very densely planted tank and doesn't like bright light. Also needs to be kept in a group of at least 6 (preferably bigger) as it is a social fish. Try to have more males than females since the males are much more aggressive. Males have an iridescent blue stripe that they use to display by swimming into patches of direct light and letting it reflect off of them, so include a patch of open water and direct light in the tank for them to do this. This stripe can be used to distinguish them from their extremely rare relative, P. paskai. Pseudomugil luminatus is often mislabeled as Pseudomugil paskai or "Paskai rainbows" but the true P. paskai may not even be in the hobby. They enjoy water flow as long as it's gentle and they often play in it around filters, bubblers, and new water being added to the tank. They usually live for 1-4 years.
Egg-scatterer
Eggs are laid individually. They usually spawn first thing in the morning. Females lay eggs near the surface that stick to spawning mops and dense vegetation, then males fertilize the eggs. Both parents abandon the eggs afterwards and are likely to come back and eat them by the end of the day. Each fish spawns nearly every day, and eggs can easily be moved to separate tank. They're very robust and hard to break. Eggs can be continually removed from the tank but some people instead move the entire shoal into a separate tank for a few days, let them lay eggs, and then move them back to the original tank so whatever eggs they left behind can hatch. Some fry may survive in very densely planted tanks without being separated from the adults. Eggs usually take about 2 weeks to hatch.
3 fry
Conditioning with lots of live food may help but generally they will breed readily any time they're happy and provided with a place to lay eggs.
Fry are very small at first and need to be fed tiny protein rich foods like infusoria and vinegar eels. They need warmer temperatures than adults (24 to 27 C). They reach maturity in about 6 months.