Myloplus schomburgkii
The Myloplus schomburgkii or Myleus ribbonfish occurs naturally in several river basins located in Venezuela, Peru and Brazil. Although this fish belongs to the piranha family, it is herbivorous, unlike its aggressive relatives. The Myleus shomburgka lives in areas densely overgrown with a variety of aquatic vegetation. In collections of aquarists these fish are quite rare.
Myloplus schomburgkii has a disc-shaped body. The main body colour is silvery. The body perimeter and fins have a reddish tint. In the middle part of the body is a wide vertical band of black.In males, the dorsal fin is more pointed than females. The maximum size in an aquarium is 12 cm, but in nature the fish can be up to 40 cm in length.
It is advisable to keep the fish in a group of at least five in a fish tank of at least 300 litre. They are peaceful fish, so they can easily be kept in a common aquarium with other larger peace-loving fish. Do not keep with smaller fish, as they will sooner or later be eaten. Mileus shomburgka mainly occupy the upper and middle layers of water, so if they are combined with other fish to choose their species that spend most of the time at the bottom. Larger, peaceful catfish are a good choice.
Myloplus schomburgkii herbivorous fish, so most types of aquarium plants will be eaten, or severely damaged. In this regard, it is desirable to apply artificial analogues, or plant stiff-leaved plants, such as anubias.
Water parameters: temperature 23-27° C, hardness dH 1-10°, pH 6.0-7.0. Aeration, filtration and a weekly change of 1/3 of the aquarium water to fresh water is necessary. It is very important to keep the aquarium water clean, as the fish are very sensitive to high concentrations of organic compounds in it.
Dimmed lighting and shelter in the form of large stones and snags will make the fish less fearful. The aquarium should also be covered with a lid or cover glass from above, as these fish are very fast and can literally fly out of the aquarium if startled.
The diet of the fish consists mainly of plant food: chopped courgettes, cucumbers, peas, herbs. They are also given spirulina flakes, bloodworms, small shrimps and artemia nauplii.
Reproduction
There is no information about the successful breeding of Myloplus schomburgkii under aquarium conditions.