Yellow Phantom Tetra Care Guide - Aquarium Tips, Diet & Breeding

The Yellow Phantom Tetra, Hyphessobrycon roseus, is a small and graceful characin with a warm yellow to golden body, translucent fins and a subtle dark marking around the dorsal-fin area. Its delicate colouration is most striking when the fish are settled in a mature aquarium and viewed as a group.

These peaceful tetras are active but not especially boisterous, spending much of their time in the middle levels of the aquarium. In a shoal they display more confident behaviour, with males often spreading their fins and briefly sparring without causing serious injury.

In the wild, they inhabit quiet, shaded streams and tributaries flowing through tropical forest. Leaf litter, submerged roots and tannin-stained water create a visually complex habitat with subdued light and plenty of cover.

Yellow Phantom Tetras are often kept for their gentle temperament and understated beauty. Their colours can vary with mood, age, water conditions and background, becoming richer when the fish feel secure and are maintained in a well-established community.

Yellow Phantom Tetras are native to northern South America, particularly the Guyana Shield region, where they inhabit slow-moving forest streams and tributaries. They are associated with the tropical freshwater systems of Guyana and nearby areas.

A group of Yellow Phantom Tetras should be kept in an aquarium of at least 60 litres, with a recommended footprint of around 60 x 30 cm to provide uninterrupted swimming space. Use gentle filtration, subdued lighting and a dark, fine-grained substrate, with driftwood, leaf litter and dense plants arranged to create shaded retreats while leaving open water at the front. A mature, stable aquarium with secure cover is ideal.

Up to 4 cm (1.6 in) in adult length. Males are usually slightly smaller and slimmer than females.

Yellow Phantom Tetras are omnivores and should receive a varied diet of quality micro-pellets or crushed flakes supplemented with small frozen or live foods. Daphnia, baby brine shrimp, cyclops and bloodworm are useful additions, particularly when bringing fish into breeding condition. Offer small portions that they can consume quickly, as their small mouths are not suited to large foods.

Yellow Phantom Tetras are peaceful community fish and suit similarly calm tankmates such as small rasboras, other gentle tetras, pencilfish, small Corydoras and peaceful dwarf suckermouth catfish. They can also be kept with non-aggressive invertebrates, although very small shrimp fry may be eaten. Avoid large, predatory or fin-nipping fish, as well as highly boisterous species that may outcompete or intimidate them.

Yellow Phantom Tetras are egg-scattering fish that can be bred in a separate, dimly lit breeding aquarium. Use soft, slightly acidic water and provide fine-leaved plants or spawning mops for the eggs. Condition a group with small live or frozen foods, then introduce ripe adults. The eggs usually hatch within a day or two, after which the fry can be raised on infusoria or other very fine first foods. Remove the adults after spawning, as they may eat the eggs.

Males are generally more slender and may show longer, more strongly developed fins, while females have a fuller body, especially when carrying eggs. The difference is subtle outside of mature, well-conditioned fish.