Aquatic Predators: Datnioides Microlepis - Aquatic Predators

Species Name: Datnioides Microlepis

Common Name: Indonesian Datnoid

Size: Up tp 18 inches. A relatively slow-growing fish.

pH: 7.0-8.0

Minimum Recommended Tank Size: At least a 75 gallon tank for and adult fish.

Native Location: South East Asia, Borneo, and Sumatra
Temperature: 76-80F is preferred, although temperatures up to 86F can be tolerated

Diet: Carnivore. Readily takes feeders, but is very easy to get onto prepared and frozen foods. Foods I have had success with include frozen market shrimp, freeze-dried krill, sinking shrimp pellets, bloodworms, black worms, earthworms, and carnivore pellets.

Breeding: Has yet to be successfully recorded in captivity.

Gender Differences: No known methods of sexing.

Aggression: Usually a semi-aggressive fish with others that are not small enough to be eaten. Most aggression, if any, will be seen during feeding time. Can be aggressive toward others of its species until a hierarchy is established among the group.

Notes: This is a very fun fish to keep. They will come up to the front of th tank and beg for food almost every time you pass by it. Another interesting things about this fish, is that they can change their overall color very quickly, depending on their mood. Their colors can range from almost completely brown when threatened, to muddled stripes when mellow, to radiant gold with sharp black stipes, during feeding time. Also, the number of stripes any individual fish has can vary greatly. Four bars, three bars, split bars, and partial bars, and spots between the bars are some of the possibilities that you may encounter. Most fish have a one kind of pattern on one of their flanks, and another on their other flank.

Profile Credit: Ming
Photo Credit: Dracofish