The Spotted Cardinalfish is a rainbow of playful colors. It has a greenish-yellow face, bright orange eyes, and a silver-based body dressed with a bold black scalar margin and a posterior dotted with orange polka-dots. Though its bold coloration may stand out, Sphaeramia nematoptera has a peaceful nature that lets it blend perfectly into any community saltwater aquarium.
For the best care, the Spotted Cardinalfish should be kept in small schools in suitably sized aquariums of at least 30 gallons. Because the Spotted Cardinalfish is a slow and methodical swimmer, it should be housed with peaceful tankmates and offered a plethora of hiding places amongst rockwork or plants. Most Spotted Cardinalfish will tend to hide in sea grass or other plants. Some may also camouflage themselves against long spined sea urchins.
Like many other schooling fish, the Spotted Cardinalfish will form a strict hierarchy when kept in small groups within the aquarium. However, unlike some social fish, this member of the Apogonidae family does not use aggression to exert dominance over other cardinalfish.
The Spotted Cardinalfish requires a well balanced diet of meaty foods such as feeder shrimp, flake foods, pellet foods, marine flesh, bloodworms, and depending on its size, live feeder fish.
Approximate Purchase Size: Small: 3/4" to 1-1/4" Medium: 1-1/4" to 2-1/4"
Testimonial By:
Testimonial:
Houston B Nashville, TN
These little guys are so cute! I have one as of now (I am going to get more soon), and he comes out at about 6:00 pm or so even if the main lights are still on - he comes looking for food! I would recommend getting a small LED lunar light so you can see these guy's nocturnal instincts. They are carnivores so you may need to have frozen or live foods for them, but they are a joy to have!
I have a school of 7 pajama cardinals and they are a great addition to my tank. There are three males in the school and the biggest is almost 3-1/2 inches! They truely are beautiful fish. Very hardy and a great addition to any aquarium!
Very peaceful and very relaxed. They school together, and reside in the top part of the tank. I get a lot of compliments on the looks of these little guys.
These little guys are very peaceful. They school together, so a group of 3 or more is a good idea. They are very neat to look at because of their color markings. I would recommend to anyone looking for peaceful fish. I have had a problem in the past getting them to stay alive for 14 days, but Drs. Foster and Smith have taken care of all my problems as usual. You can't beat a 14-day guarantee. I wouldn't buy from anyone else. I finally have 3 of these guys thriving in my 55 gallon, and they are beautiful fish.
really cool fish. mien likes my Chinese Dragon Bubbler. I accidently broke it, however, I leaned it over and it is his new home. Great fish to have for a peaceful tank.
Great fish. Get one right away! They are so cool and colorful. I have had mine about 2 months and it is doing fine. I totaly recomend this fish and Doctors Foster and Smith! Happy Fish!
