Not every aquarist knows about such a fish as the piranha Natterera - it is the usual or red piranha. Which is not surprising. Its content is associated with many serious problems, which significantly reduces the popularity of fish. But still, to learn more about it will be interesting to many readers.
Habitat
To begin with, we will decide where the piranha of Nutterra is found. Like all representatives of this bloodthirsty family, it lives in South America, mainly in Venezuela, through whose territory the Amazon carries its waters. Also, fish can be found in Orinoco and La Plata.
They live mainly in flocks, and quite rather big - from 250 to 1500 individuals! It is not surprising that a bunch of hungry fish in a matter of minutes leave only a mountain of bones from a huge buffalo. Perhaps, in many ways it is the red piranha that all this kind of fish owes its formidable fame.
Appearance
Now let's see what piranha looks like. Her body is high, slightly flattened on the sides. The tail fin is large and powerful, which allows it to make sharp jerks in pursuit of prey, as well as when evading more dangerous predators.
The body of young individuals is painted in a bluish-silver color. The back has a more saturated color. The whole body is covered with dark spots of a fairly regular shape. The ventral and anal fins are reddish.
Over time, the color of the fish changes to silver gray. Heels are not so noticeable anymore, but golden sparkles appear - in good light it looks just great.
Most individuals do not grow more than 20 centimeters in length. However, sometimes there are exceptions, however, only in nature, in the open and with good feeding. In this case, the fish can grow up to 30 centimeters. Such individuals weigh about a kilogram.
The head is large, and the jaws are powerful. Piranha's teeth are very long - up to five millimeters! Closing, they can cut off everything that the fish grabbed. Moreover, the jaws not only close, but also move from side to side like a clipper, cutting off hard fibers, cartilage, skin and thin bones. And when they feel the blood, the fish literally go crazy, tearing any prey regardless of size.
Suitable aquarium
Before you start this fish, make sure that you can provide it with suitable conditions. Still, it is quite exotic and whimsical to the conditions of detention.
You need to start with the fact that the aquarium should be large enough. For a couple of fish you will need a capacity of 80-100 liters. But piranha is best kept in flocks of at least 8-10 pieces. Accordingly, the aquarium needs more spacious. Of course, you can choose a smaller option. But then they will grow quite small, and they will not be able to boast of good health, longevity.
Fine pebbles or coarse sand - of course, washed and disinfected by boiling, is suitable as soil. It is also advisable to supplement the aquarium with snags - there are a lot of them in the piranha habitual habitat, so it is worthwhile to recreate the most suitable conditions as accurately as possible.
Algae are necessary. Moreover, it is desirable to give preference to unpretentious plants - hornwort, elodea and the like. The fact is that piranhas sometimes like to prove themselves as gardeners. They just bite plants, which can lead to more whimsical algae to death.
Plastic algae is also not a panacea - they can not resist powerful teeth.
Otherwise, everything is pretty standard - good aeration, using only clean, settled water and weekly replacement of one third of its volume.
As you can see, the content of Nutterer's piranha is not difficult, so any more or less experienced aquarist will cope with the task.
How to distinguish a male from a female
Fish become sexually mature at about a year and a half. But sexual dimorphism is not too pronounced - you need to look closely to distinguish between males and females. The first ones are a little smaller, and the second ones are a little slimmer. In addition, the anal fin is round in females, and slightly pointed in males.
They breed extremely rarely in aquariums. If only because this requires a really large capacity - from 500 liters or more. Not every aquarist, even an experienced one, can boast of having such a vessel. Therefore, most fish sold in aquariums are caught in the wild.
How to feed them
It is very important to determine the diet. However, everything is quite simple here. What do piranhas eat in the wild? Right, raw meat. Therefore, in the aquarium you need to provide exactly the same menu.
A good choice will be fish, as well as minced fish. Sometimes you can diversify the diet of lean beef. However, feeding piranhas with animal meat is often not worth it. This can result in digestive problems as well as obesity. The meat must be deep frozen before feeding in order to destroy the parasite eggs, if any.
Young growth can be fed with small earthworms, bloodworms and tubule.
Large pieces of meat are suitable for adults. You need to give a little. The pieces that fell to the bottom, they probably will not collect, they will rot and spoil the water. Therefore, immediately after feeding should be cleaned.
Make sure the fish are full. Otherwise, the risk of cannibalism is high. A few piranhas may well break the weakest of the pack to enjoy it.
Which neighbors to choose
It's silly to argue - the piranhas in the aquarium look very elegant. But still, two fish in an aquarium with a capacity of 100 liters - obviously somehow not enough.
But you need to choose your neighbors very carefully. They will not tolerate large cohabitants and will kill them pretty quickly, so you should choose only fish that are inferior in size to piranhas. For example, predators usually don’t touch neon zebrafish, guppies and pecilia neon. The main thing is that the piranhas do not starve, otherwise the neighbors will be considered from a gastronomic point of view. But barbs and swordsmen can cause serious problems. These fish are used to moving swiftly, and sometimes to arrange real swaras. Surprisingly, with all its bloodthirstiness, Nutterer's piranhas cannot boast of strong nerves. If the neighbors constantly frighten them, the fish may well get sick from constant stress, which will lead to their death.
It will also be useful to think about the possibility of establishing small catfish - for example, speckled. They spend most of the time at the bottom, and they cannot boast of large sizes. They will feel great and at the same time eat up the remains of the piranha meal, the owner will not have to clean the aquarium every day.
Conclusion
Now you know much more about Nutterer's piranha — its habits, lifestyle, and needs. So, you can provide the fish with suitable conditions for a long life.