Serrasalmus medinai – Medina’s Piranha
Serrasalmus medinai was officially described in 1965 by Ramírez. Their common name is simply Medina’s Piranha.
Description
Juveniles have a silvery ground color, with only a little red on the gill covers. The flanks are covered with small black dots, and the head is pointed (concave). The dots fade as the fish ages and eventually disappear completely.
The dots are replaced with iridescent silvery scales. The red color on the gills extends to the entire gill cover and abdomen. In some fish, the red color extends all the way to the anal fin, in others the coloration is limited to the head and gills. The anal fin itself is red, as are the pectoral fins. The pelvic fins are transparent grey with sometimes a red tinge. The dorsal and adipose fins are a dark transparent grey. The caudal fin is dark grey to black, with a vertical white band down the center. The eyes are yellow, and in adults, a dark “humeral spot” forms behind the gill covers.
Adults can grow up to 20 centimetres long.
Deviating/unique Appearances:
• Yellow eyes.
• Shoulder patch.
• Black caudal fin with white vertical band in the centre.
Origin
Deeper rivers, lakes, and pools in Venezuela.
Diet
Fish (fillets, frozen fish such as smelt, live *), shrimps, mussels, earthworms and mealworms, insects, pellets.
* When feeding live fish, a number of things should be considered: First, all fish can introduce diseases and/or parasites into the aquarium, including goldfish, windes and other commonly used cold water fish as well as tropical fish. It is therefore also advisable to keep food fish in a quarantine aquarium for a week or 2, in order to ‘flush out’ the sick and weakened specimens. In addition, it should be taken into account that goldfish and close relatives are not particularly nutritious. A diet that usually consists of live fish is therefore not recommended. All the more so because goldfish and other Cyprinidae (carp-like) contain hormones – so-called “Thiaminase / Vitamin B1 inhibitors” – that paralyze the production of certain growth-stimulating substances in predatory fish. A very one-sided goldfish diet can therefore lead to growth and development disorders!
It may take a while for the fish to accept prepared food: if this is the case, make sure the fish is well fed with live food and then introduce a fasting period of a week to 12 days. During this period, provide the desired prepared food while the lighting is dimmed or turned off. If it doesn’t work the first time, supplement with live food and try again. Piranhas can go without food for a number of weeks without any problems, so the fish is not in any danger during this “cure” (with the exception of specimens smaller than about 8 centimeters!).
The Aquarium
Young Serrasalmus medinai can be kept in an aquarium of at least 60x30x30 centimeters. For adult specimens, an aquarium of at least 120x45x50 centimeters is required.
Temperature: 24 – 30°C
pH: 5.5 – 7.5
Compatible Species
Aided by its similar appearance, Medina’s Piranha is often found in the wild near schooling Pygocentrus cariba and lives to a large extent on the fins and scales of this species. In addition, this species also feeds on the fins of other fish species, as well as small fish, crustaceans and insects. For this reason, this species should be kept solitary: due to its parasitic lifestyle, no other fish, let alone other piranhas, can be kept in the same aquarium, with the possible exception of nocturnal Catfish such as Plecos and Thorny Catfish.
Comments
In pet shops, piranhas are regularly offered under the name Medina’s Piranha: however, these are almost always a different species, Serrasalmus sanchezi (known in the past as Serrasalmus spilopleua CF – CF = complex form). True Medinai are extremely rare, as the area where they live is rarely commercially fished and the export of tropical fish from Venezuela is strictly regulated.
Video
Author
Jonas Hansel – Piranha-info.com
Copyright image
Screenshot from upper video
