Hatchetfish

Hatchetfish comes from the family Gasteropelicidae and is divided into 3 genera: Carnegieella, Gasteropelecus and Thoracocharax. The differences in care are minimal. The most important differences for the buyer is often the appearance and the fish are often sold under the names: Silver or Common Hatchetfish (Carnegiella martha) and the Marble Hatchetfish (Carnegiella strigata). The belly of the Silver Hatchetfish is of course silver. The belly of the Marbled Hatchetfish is brown marbled, see also the photos below. The genus Gasteropelecus contains the largest hatchetfish and is offered less often: the Gasteropelecus grows to about 6 centimeters and the Gasteropelecus maculata even reaches 9 centimeters; The hatchetfish from the Carnegiella genus remain somewhat smaller, to about 4.5 centimeters.

This genus has a very large distribution area in South America and is found, for example, in the Amazon region, Guyana, Venezuela, Colombia and Peru.

As the name suggests, the fish has a hatchet-shaped appearance, it has a straight back and its chest hangs low like a hatchet. The pectoral fins are very strong, allowing the hatchetfish to swim very quickly and even get out of the water so that it can make a small glide. In the wild they do this in entire schools at a time to escape predators. It is clear that the aquarium must be provided with a good cover to prevent them from jumping out of the aquarium. It is also a schooling fish, so keep at least 6 fish together; rather even more.

The hatchetfish mainly lives in the upper layer of water and likes slightly subdued light. Floating plants that it can hide under are certainly used and also benefit its color. If the lighting is too bright, its color pattern will fade. In general it is also a shy fish, so give it plenty of hiding places in the form of plants and floating plants and do not keep it together with overly aggressive fish.

This genus lives in the upper layer of water and its food must be adapted to this: black mosquito larvae, floating dry food, fruit flies, dry-frozen brine shrimp and dry-frozen red mosquito larvae, as long as it is not too large and floats.