The zebrafish has been a traditional inhabitant of many aquariums since the century before last. These unusual, fun and lively creatures are adored by connoisseurs of aquarium fauna for their beautiful colors and energy. Why else are zebrafish so interesting?
The appearance and content of zebrafish
Zebrafish have a unique striped color with bright red belly and back. This vibrant coloration is provided by the intense synthesis of fluorescent red protein in their muscles. Danio are famous for their great peacefulness and unpretentiousness - even a five-liter jar of clean water is quite suitable for them as a house. There are also albino zebrafish, which do not synthesize black pigment. Albinos are almost transparent, and their eyes have a rich red color, which gives them a rather creepy look.
In wildlife, zebrafish are kept in flocks, so they should be kept in an aquarium by 7-9 individuals.
Zebrafish are completely non-conflicting, so they can be easily combined in one aquarium with non-aggressive tetras, catfish, neons, ancistrus, swordtails, lalius and gourami. However, when keeping veiled zebrafish, it must be remembered that they cannot be kept together with aggressive fish such as barbs, which can bite off the zebrafish from their long veil fins. The zebrafish are quite compatible with invertebrate shrimps, ampullia and snails.
Features of zebrafish
In the homeland of zebrafish (Indochina), representatives of their genus inhabit slowly flowing and stagnant bodies of water, as well as rice fields flooded with water. All zebrafish are narrow-bodied small fish that scurry in the water at great speed, observing a certain order when moving. So, the most dominant fish in the flock always swims in a horizontal position, which allows you to quickly escape from the enemy or grab prey, instantly moving up or down.
Some species of zebrafish (for example, Malabar zebrafish) even have some subordination in their flocks, reminiscent of a strict army charter.
The rest of the zebrafish in the school swim with less or greater inclination of the front of the body down and forward. The angle of inclination is always determined by the rank of the fish in the flock - for example, the second after the dominant zebrafish swims with a slight inclination. All fish following her in rank swim according to the decreasing of their authority in the schooling hierarchy. At the same time, the dominant individuals strictly monitor the observance of subordination and keep in the middle of their flock. As a result of such an alignment of forces, the head of the flock and his entourage are less likely to die in the mouths of predators, fleeing from them behind a living barrier, which is made up of the lower ranks and the weakest zebrafish.
