Rainbowfish
Encyclopedia
The rainbowfish are a family of small, colourful, freshwater
fish
that are found in northern and eastern Australia
and New Guinea
and in the Southeast Asian islands.
The dominant rainbowfish genus and its many species derive their generic name Melanotaenia from the ancient Greek melano (black) and taenia (banded). Translated, it means "black-banded", and is a reference to the often striking lateral black bands that run along the bodies of those in the Melanotaenia genus.
Rainbowfish are popular aquarium fish along with blue eyes
(genus Pseudomugil), which are another small, colourful fish found in a similar range and habitats. Rainbowfish populations in the wild have been severely affected by the aggressive introduced
eastern mosquitofish
(Gambusia holbrooki).
FishBase
lists 71 species in seven genera, but many species likely remain undiscovered:
Fresh Water
Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
that are found in northern and eastern Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and in the Southeast Asian islands.
The dominant rainbowfish genus and its many species derive their generic name Melanotaenia from the ancient Greek melano (black) and taenia (banded). Translated, it means "black-banded", and is a reference to the often striking lateral black bands that run along the bodies of those in the Melanotaenia genus.
Description
Rainbowfish are usually less than 12 centimetres (4.7 in) in length, with some species measuring less than 6 centimetres (2.4 in), while one species, Melanotaenia vanheurni, reaches lengths of up to 20 centimetres (7.9 in). They live in a wide range of freshwater habitats, including rivers, lakes, and swamps. Although they spawn all year round, they lay a particularly large number of eggs at the start of the local rainy season. The eggs are attached to aquatic vegetation, and hatch seven to 18 days later. Rainbowfish are omnivorous, feeding on small crustaceans, insect larvae, and algae.Rainbowfish are popular aquarium fish along with blue eyes
Pseudomugilidae
The Blue-eyes are the family of atheriniform fish, the Pseudomugilidae, related to the rainbowfishes. They inhabit fresh and brackish water in Australia and New Guinea. Blue-eyes are small fish, typically no more than in length...
(genus Pseudomugil), which are another small, colourful fish found in a similar range and habitats. Rainbowfish populations in the wild have been severely affected by the aggressive introduced
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
eastern mosquitofish
Eastern mosquitofish
The eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, is a species of freshwater fish that is closely related to the western mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis. It is a member of the family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes...
(Gambusia holbrooki).
Species
FishBase
FishBase is a comprehensive database of information about fish species . It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web...
lists 71 species in seven genera, but many species likely remain undiscovered:
- Genus Cairnsichthys
- Cairns rainbowfishCairns rainbowfishThe cairns rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is endemic to Australia.-References:* Wager, R. 1996. . Downloaded on 4 August 2007....
, Cairnsichthys rhombosomoides (Nichols & Raven, 1928).
- Cairns rainbowfish
- Genus ChilatherinaChilatherinaChilatherina is a genus of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family.It contains the following species:* Axelrod's rainbowfish * Bleher's rainbowfish * bulolo rainbowfish...
- Chilatherina alleni Price, 1997.
- Axelrod's rainbowfishAxelrod's rainbowfishAxelrod's rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Distribution: Chilatherina axelrodi are found in the Yungkiri stream in the north western part of Papua New Guinea...
, Chilatherina axelrodi Allen, 1979. - Bleher's rainbowfishBleher's rainbowfishBleher's rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. Distribution: Bleher’s rainbowfish is found in both Australia’s Lake Holmes and the lower Mamberamo system of West Papua in Indonesia...
, Chilatherina bleheri Allen, 1985. - Bulolo rainbowfishBulolo rainbowfishThe bulolo rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. Distribution: Bulolo Rainbowfish are found in the fast flowing, rapid water of the mountain streams in the Markham and Ramu river systems of north-eastern Papua New Guinea. It was first collected in 1934 and then not again...
, Chilatherina bulolo (Whitley, 1938). - Highlands rainbowfish, Chilatherina campsi (Whitley, 1957).
- Silver rainbowfish, Chilatherina crassispinosa (Weber, 1913).
- Barred rainbowfish, Chilatherina fasciata (Weber, 1913).
- Lorentz's rainbowfish, Chilatherina lorentzii (Weber, 1907).
- Chilatherina pricei Allen & Renyaan, 1996.
- Sentani rainbowfishSentani rainbowfishThe sentani rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is endemic to West Papua in Indonesia. Its natural habitat is a freshwater lake called Lake Sentani.-Source:...
, Chilatherina sentaniensis (Weber, 1907).
- Genus GlossolepisGlossolepisThe Glossolepis is a genus of the family Melanotaeniidae - the Rainbowfishes. It includes nine species** Doritys rainbowfish, Glossolepis dorityi Allen, 2001.** Red rainbowfish, Glossolepis incisus Weber, 1907....
-
- Glossolepis dorityi Allen, 2001.
- Red rainbowfish, Glossolepis incisus Weber, 1907.
- Sepik rainbowfish, Glossolepis kabia (Herre, 1935).
- Leggett's rainbowfish, Glossolepis leggetti Allen & Renyaan, 1998.
- Spotted rainbowfishSpotted rainbowfishThe spotted rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea.-References:* Allen, G. 1996. . Downloaded on 4 August 2007....
, Glossolepis maculosus Allen, 1981. - Mamberamo rainbowfish, Glossolepis multisquamata (Weber & de Beaufort, 1922).
- Tami River rainbowfishTami River rainbowfishThe Tami River rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is found in West Papua in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.-References:* Allen, G. 1996. . Downloaded on 4 August 2007....
, Glossolepis pseudoincisus Allen & Cross, 1980. - Ramu rainbowfishRamu rainbowfishThe Ramu rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea.-Source:* World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. . Downloaded on 4 August 2007....
, Glossolepis ramuensis Allen, 1985. - Lake Wanam rainbowfishLake Wanam rainbowfishThe Lake Wanam rainbowfish is a species of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea. Another of the critically endangered Rainbowfish, The Lake Wanam Rainbowfish is found in Lake Wanam, a small lake located above the Markham River Valley in Eastern Papua New Guinea...
, Glossolepis wanamensis Allen & Kailola, 1979.
- Genus Iriatherina
- Threadfin rainbowfishThreadfin rainbowfishThe threadfin rainbowfish or featherfin rainbowfish, Iriatherina werneri, is a rainbowfish, the only species in the genus Iriatherina...
, Iriatherina werneri Meinken, 1974.
- Threadfin rainbowfish
- Genus MelanotaeniaMelanotaeniaMelanotaenia is a genus of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family.-Species:* New Guinea rainbowfish, Melanotaenia affinis * Ajamaru Lakes rainbowfish, Melanotaenia ajamaruensis Allen & Cross, 1980...
- This genus has a separate species list page located hereMelanotaeniaMelanotaenia is a genus of fish in the Melanotaeniidae family.-Species:* New Guinea rainbowfish, Melanotaenia affinis * Ajamaru Lakes rainbowfish, Melanotaenia ajamaruensis Allen & Cross, 1980...
.
- This genus has a separate species list page located here
- Genus Pelangia
- Pelangia mbutaensis Allen, 1998.
- Genus Rhadinocentrus
- Ornate rainbowfish, Rhadinocentrus ornatus Regan, 1914.
External links
- ANGFA - Australia New Guinea Fishes Association, an international organization responsible for the quarterly publication of the color journal Fishes of Sahul and a quarterly newsletter devoted to the keeping and discussion of native fishes in Australia and New Guinea (the geographical region known as Sahul).
- Home of the Rainbowfish - Adrian Tappin's extensive information pages which promote the aquarium keeping, study and conservation of the rainbowfish species of Australia and New Guinea, and provide free and valuable information to the general public.
- Rainbowfish Species Easy to use information on keeping Rainbowfish in the aquarium.
- Rainbowfish discussion forum