Home > Mexican Cave Tetra
Fish Characins
The Mexican Cave Tetra (Astyanax mexicanus or Astyanax fasciatus mexicanus) is a small freshwater subtropical fish belonging to the characin family, Characidae, with other tetras. Originating in the Neueces, lower Rio Grande, and Pecos Rivers in Texas as well as the central and eastern parts of Mexico, this fish is reasonably popular among aquaristsAn aquarium is a clear-sided container (typically constructed of glass or high-strength plastic) in which water-dwelling plants and animals (usually fish) are kept in captivity. The term is also used of a public establishment that maintains a number of aq. This is especially true of the variant that, in its wild state, lives in deep caveAlternate meanings: Cave (disambiguation A cave is a natural underground void. Cave types and formation Caves are formed by geologic processes. These may involve a combination of chemical processes, tectonic forces and atmospheric influences. Primary caves and has lost the power of sight and even its eyeThis article refers to the sight organ. See Eye (disambiguation) for other usages. human eye. Note that not all eyes have the same anatomy as a human eye. An eye is an organ that detects light. Different kinds of light-sensitive organ are found in a varies. The fish can still find its way around by means of its centreline , which is highly sensitive to fluctuating water pressure. Apart from the unusual feature of its blindness, it is not considered an attractive fish - it is devoid of distinctive colouring and therefore appears as uniformly pale pink. The two varieties (with and without eyes) are still closely related and can interbreed. It will grow to a maximum length of 4.7 inchAn inch is an Imperial unit of length. Sweden also briefly had a "decimal inch" based on the metric system: see below for more. According to some sources, the inch was originally defined informally as the distance between the tip of the thumb and the firses (12.0 centimeterscm redirects here, alternate uses: cm (disambiguation A centimetre (symbol cm American spelling: centimeter is an SI unit of length. One centimetre is: one-hundredth of one metre one-tenth of a decimetre ten millimetres. millimetre << centimetre << decime).
The Mexican Cave Tetra is a peaceful species that spends most of its time in the mid-level of the water above the rocky and sandy bottoms of pools and backwaters of creeks and rivers of its native environment. They natively live in a subtropical climate and prefer water with a 6.0 - 7.8 pH, a water hardness of up to 30.0 dGH, and an ideal temperature range of 68 - 77 °F (20 - 58 °C). In the winter they migrate to warmer waters. Their diet is consists of insects, crustaceans, and worms, although in captivity they are omnivorous.
