Fishes of a scalar

Scalaria ordinary (Latin Pterophyllum scalare) - aquarium fish of the family of cichlids. The homeland of these fish is the Amazon river basin, which is in South America. Scalarians prefer slow flowing rivers with abundant vegetation.

Scalaria ordinary grow to 12-15 cm in length and up to 25 cm in height. Their body resembles a rhombus, on the sides it is almostflat. Dorsal and caudal fins of the scalar have a triangular shape, strongly elongated. Males are larger than females, they have longer dorsal fins, and forehead wider and steeper.

The scalars reach puberty at the age of about 10 months. They form monogamous couples for life. If one of the partners dies, the second will never form a new pair.

The average lifespan of the ordinary scalar in the aquarium is 10 years. The most common are the five main varieties of coloring of the common sclera, hatched by breeders:

• marble scalar;


• the zebra scales;


• gold scalar;


• scalar daisy chain;


• scalar black.

Have marble scalars On the body there are scattered black strokes and spots, gold scalars the main body color is golden pink. Loop scalars have especially long fins, zebra scales have more than the usual scalars of vertical bands. And, finally, black scalars are painted in velvet-black color.

Fish skalariya well get along with some representatives of their own family - cichlids. Also, the scalar can be kept together with lorikariovymi somami, iris, representatives of labyrinthine aquarium fish. However, it is best to place an adult pair of scalars separately.

For the maintenance of small fishes, a small aquarium with a minimum volume of 100 liters is needed. The height of the water column should be at least 40-50 cm. The water parameters for the fish of the scalars are as follows:

• temperature 24-27 ° C;


• acidity 6.5-7.5 pH;


• rigidity 6-15 °.

Water in the aquarium with fish skalaria must be filtered, subject to aeration. Weekly it is necessary to substitute a third of water in the aquarium. Fish scalyari need bright lighting, and plants for the aquarium are better to pick up with large and stiff leaves.

Feed the fishes of the skalarians with live or frozen fodder: bloodworm, koretra, daphnia, cyclops. Feed the fish of the scalar should be twice a day, on average giving 15-20 pieces of small bloodworms per adult.

Adult scalars can not be overfed - this threatens them with the most real obesity. Especially careful and careful to feed the scalar before spawning.

In some cases, in order to stimulate spawning,fish of the scalar are recommended their enhanced feeding with a simultaneous increase in the water temperature and a decrease in its rigidity. However, if the scalar is too abundant to feed during this period, the fry from the spawn that they swarm will not hatch.

Fish scalyarii - one of the most beautiful aquarium fish. Their unusual body shape, beautiful coloring are very attractive. Therefore, if you are looking for interesting fish for your aquarium - fish scaly is just for you!