Lake Kubutu Rainbow Fish – The Turquoise Beauty
A highly active fish, like the other rainbows, the Lake Kubutu Rainbowfish, or the Turqouise Rainbow, is a very colorful and rather hardy fish making it rather ideal for the home aquarium – only problem, it is not readily available.
Their upper body is turquoise blue, which fades to a silvery white towards the lower part ofthe body. There is also a very dark-blue bar running down the center of the body. As they become older, like the neon rainbow, their body becomes deeper, and their snout more prominent. Their colours too might change. The male, as in most Rainbowfishes, is a little larger than the female.
Living upto about 5 years, the Lake Kubutu Rainbow can grow upto about three to four inches in size.
Aquarium Setup
Hailing from Papua New Guinea, this is a rather peaceful fish, which does bother other similarly sized fish – however, its quick movements may be irritating to other slow moving fish. Ideally, keep it in a large tank with moderate rock and live plants and plenty of space to swim in. Keep in shoals of at least 6. They can withstand a wide range of temperatures, but should be kept in water in a range between 68 and 76 degrees Fahrenheit. The pH level of their water should be slightly alkaline, with a range between seven and eight.
Feeding your Lake Kubutu Rainbow
They eat pretty much anything – give them a variety of foods such as flake, live food (bloodworms, glass worms, brine shrimp and tubifex worms), freeze dried, as well as vegetable based foods in the diet.
Breeding
Spawning typically occurs sometime between October and January. While spawning, the male is, quite literally a rainbow of colours, with his forehead going a really bright orange in colour and then flashing various shades of blue, green, purple and violet. These colour changes may last up to about 1 second for each shade but continually change whilst the male is spawning which in turn can last for 30 minutes or more. Spawning may take place at any time of the day. While breeding, keep them in a tank away from other rainbows, as cross-breeding could take place. Also, make sure you remove the spwaning pair as soon as the spawning is over, else they are apt to eat the eggs.
Either use a well planted tank for breeding, or keep a mop or java moss ready to capture the eggs once they have been fertilised.
Roughly 100 to 150 eggs will be produced, with hatching taking about 5 to 7 days at 27 C and up to 15 days at around 20 C.
Fishy Facts
Common Names: Lake Kutubu Rainbowfish, Turquoise Rainbow, Blue Rainbowfish
Scientific Name: Melanotaenia lacustris
Origin: Lake Kutubu, Papua New Guinea
Adult size: 4 inches (9.5 cm)
Care: Easy to Intermediate
Tank setup: 36 inches (90 cm) minimum, well planted with live plants
Social life: Should be kept in groups, with at least 2 females for every male.
Gender: Males have more brilliant coloring, taller body.
Breeding: Egglayers
Diet: Give them a variety of foods such as flake, live food (bloodworms, glass worms, brine shrimp and tubifex worms), freeze dried, as well as vegetable based foods in the diet.
Temperature: 68 and 76 degrees Fahrenheit
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