Aquarium fish comet: care, content

The fish of the comet, which belongs to the Karp family, is considered to be an ornament of any aquarium. In addition, this peaceful creature perfectly coexists with many, the same quiet neighbors.

Fish comet, a photo of which you can see below, like all lovers of underwater inhabitants with a bright color. Comet is beautiful and also unpretentious in care. This species was bred by selection, and today it is well known all over the world.

View History

Until now, the exact origin of the fish has not been established. The comet, according to some sources, appeared in the USA in the early eighties of the XIX century thanks to the efforts of the breeder Muletta. But in the book Aquaria, which was published in 1898, the comet is called Japanese fish. There is also an explanation that she got to America in 1872. Moreover, Mullet in his book, which was published in 1883, also confirms its Japanese origin.

Nevertheless, the Japanese do not pretend to be the developers of this kind. Therefore, experts tend to believe that Mullet brought the American species from individuals brought from Japan. Today, there is no exact data on the question of which fish participated in breeding in the United States.

External Features

The fish comet (aquarium) has a bright and memorable appearance. Her body is slightly elongated, with a splendid forked tail, which is usually several times the size of the body. It is from its length that the price of this fish depends - the longer it is, the more expensive the individual is.

Grace the appearance of the comet add elongated lower and dorsal fins. The length of the fish is 18 centimeters. It refers to the long-lived aquarium. With due care she lives 14 years. The fish of a comet can have a different color - from light yellow with small white impregnations to very dark, almost black. The color is influenced by:

• Illuminance of the aquarium;
• feed;
• Varieties and number of plants;
• Presence of shaded areas.

And although the coloring can be quite diverse, fish of particular value are of particular value, in which the color of the fins differs from the color of the body. Yellow, silvery or golden individuals are common today. Silvery comets on the body have orange spots.

Very valuable is a silvery comet with a bright red tail. Much more often this species has a red-orange corpuscle with impregnations of yellow or white. It is interesting that because of lighting or nutrition this fish is able to change its color. To keep it in its original form, you must follow the simple rules of its content. We will talk about them further.

Fish Comet: Content

Comet is quite comfortable in a common aquarium (in the presence of quiet neighbors). The favorite occupation of these beauties is to dig in the ground. Despite all the unpretentiousness in the content of these fish, there is one feature of their behavior that can cause problems for the owner - often they jump out of the aquarium. And the rest of the content of comets is not difficult. They can be kept even in small artificial ponds in the country.

A comet fish at home is found in aquariums with a volume of at least fifty liters. The size of the container largely depends on the density of its population, which must be taken into account. The more spacious the aquarium - the more comfortable your comet will feel. When increasing the number of underwater inhabitants, do not forget about the aeration of water. Ground in the aquarium can be large sand or gravel.

Plants

A comet fish needs large-leaf plant species. More precisely, they are suitable for any, but more gentle varieties of a comet quickly spoil. In addition, natural waste accumulates on their surface, giving the aquarium an untidy look. Therefore, it is better to use plants with stiff leaves and sturdy roots. The most suitable ones are sagittaria, egg capsule or elodea.

Lighting

Comets prefer natural lighting. At the same time they should have shelter, in which the fish sometimes hide.

Temperature conditions

In spring and summer, the water temperature is recommended to be maintained at about +23 ° C, and in winter it is lowered to +18 ° C. The acidity is standard - 6-8 pH. If you notice that usually active fish become lethargic, add 5 grams of salt per liter of water to the water. Weekly water changes are necessary (up to 20%). Its stiffness can vary from 8 to 25 dH.

Feeding

The comet does not suffer from a lack of appetite. Moreover, she is gluttonous, and if you feed her enough, you can provoke a variety of intestinal diseases. Therefore, it is necessary to comply with the norm and timing of feeding.

The diet should contain both vegetable and live food. Its number should not exceed three percent of the weight of the fish. This is the daily rate. Feed the comet twice a day - in the morning and in the evening. It is advisable to do this at about the same time. The feeding takes 10 to 20 minutes. After the end of the meal, the remains of food from the aquarium are removed.

Compatibility

A comet is a wonderful fish, which has a peaceful character. It perfectly coexists with many peace-loving species of underwater inhabitants. The exception is only aggressive and too small fish, which the comet can accidentally swallow.

For this species suitable calm catfish, which not only will not cause scandals in the underwater world, but also will clean the aquarium.

Reproduction

These beautiful fishes reproduce well at home. To do this, you will need a spawning aquarium, in which it is necessary to create a favorable microclimate.

The capacity for spawning should be at least thirty liters, with small-leaved plants and sandy soil. The water temperature is maintained at about +26 ° C. To stimulate spawning, it needs to be heated, gradually increasing its values by 5-10 ° C per day.

For spawning, two males at the age of two and one female are selected. At first they are planted for 2 weeks in different aquariums and well fed with their usual food. Then the fish are sent to spawning grounds. After the temperature reaches comfortable for spawning values, males begin to actively show signs of attention to the female, driving it along the aquarium.

Caviar eggs are scattered throughout the aquarium. Most eggs lay on plants. During spawning, the comet produces up to 10 thousand eggs. In this case, a protective mesh for caviar should be placed on the bottom of the container, which develops within four days. On the fifth day fry appears. They should be fed with live dust. After their appearance, manufacturers should be removed from the spawning grounds.