Melanotaenia picta (sp. "Aru II)

The "Painted" Rainbow from the Aru Islands, aptly named due to it's wide array of colors, Melanotaenia picta will provide you with hours of sparring activity and flashes of color throughout the day! Being a close relative of the Melanotaenia trifasciata of Australia, this fish will exhibit a lot of similar behaviors and characteristics to the blue fish from "Cato River," "Habgood River," and a few other locales, such as the reflective blue "guanine"-like sheen in the scales, the larger, dominating sizes as well as their ability to grab your attention by flickering and pulsing their melanophores while putting on a show for adversaries or mates in the aquarium.

This fish is said to get 4.5 inches or larger in adequately sized aquariums and can even surpass 6 inches in some cases. Being a fast-growing (ironic, right? Since it's a rainbowfish?) and larger species, a minimum aquarium length of 3-4 ft will provide ample space for individuals to thrive and put on their best displays for you to enjoy!

Photo by Jason Liang