Any other brackish rainbow fish

[subopposite]

Saw that Celebes Rainbowfish could be kept in brackish waters. Are their other rainbowfish that can be kept in brackish as well, like a neon dwarf rainbowfish. Just curious as I like some of the rainbowfish out there. Thanks.

 

[dale_d_h]

was looking for the same advice,
which rainbows are brackish fish?

 

[Marine/Freshwater?]

Most rainbow fish are not brackish and prefer a lower ph. However rainbowfish are a type of silverside. I have kept brackish silversides at 1.005. They are beautiful.

 

[eschaton]

As I understand it, most true rainbows can live in low-strength brackish - say 1.003 or so.

 

[nmonks]

Almost none of the commonly traded rainbowfish -- whether Madagascan, Celebes, Australian, or New Guinean -- are actually brackish water fish. The one exception is Melanotaenia nigrans, which does occur in brackish water in the wild. But this species isn't common in the trade.

Some may tolerate salt up to a point, the SG 1.003 suggested by eschaton above sounds fair to me, but it doesn't benefit them in any way. This is contrary to what was often published in the 80s and early 90s, suggesting that some species (like the Madagascan rainbow for example) need salty water. They do not.

If you wanted to add rainbows to a low-end brackish system, at least choose species that don't prefer soft/acid water. I'd recommend something like Melanotaenia maccullochi or Melanotaenia fluviatilis; these are hardy, robust species that aren't too fussy about water chemistry.

Cheers, Neale