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Encyclopedia / Tetras / Ansorge's neolebias
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Ansorge's neolebias

Neolebias ansorgii · Neolebias

Peaceful but shy.

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3.5 cmBody length, without tail ✓
24–28 °CTemperature ✓
5–6pH ✓
40 LSmallest tank ✓
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Tank mates
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Not recommended
  • Tinfoil barb eats animals up to about 5 cm. Ansorge's neolebias only grows to 3.5 cm.
  • Only a narrow pH range suits both: exactly 6.
Not recommended
  • White cloud mountain minnow needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while Ansorge's neolebias is tropical.
  • They need different temperatures (24–28 °C vs 14–22 °C). No setting suits both.
Not recommended
  • They need very different water (pH 5–6 vs 7.5–8.5).
With conditions
  • Only a narrow temperature range suits both: 24–25 °C.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow pH range suits both: exactly 6.
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible

106 species in our list are a good match.

Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. ✓ means a source backs it; ? means no reliable source yet. See sources

Care and water

Hardness ✓5–12 dGH
Group size ?6 or more
Temperament ?Peaceful
Swims at ?Middle
Care level ?Hard
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan ?Unknown
Size in shops 2–3 cm
Growth Medium

Behavior

Peaceful but shy.

Food

Small frozen and live foods.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

Males are slightly smaller and much more colourful than females, with a bright red belly in breeding condition; females are plainer and rounder.

Health

Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.

Breeding

Egg-scatterer · Hard

A rarely bred egg scatterer. Put a well-conditioned pair in a small, dimly lit tank with a mesh base and clumps of plants, in very soft water below pH 6. The parents eat eggs, which the mesh protects.

Pairing

Buy a group of 8-10 and let them pair up; condition for two weeks on live and frozen foods.

Setup

15-20 L bare tank with very soft, acidic water (pH 5.5-6.5), spawning mops or java moss, a sponge filter and low light.

What starts it

Soft acidic water, a slightly cooler water change and dim light with gentle morning sun.

Eggs

Usually 50-100 eggs, up to 300 over several days; they hatch in about 24 hours and fry swim freely 2-3 days later.

Raising the fry

Feed infusoria or green water for days 1-3, then newly hatched brine shrimp and microworms. Keep light low early on; grow out in a larger tank.

Common mistakes
  • Using hard tap water
  • Keeping the tank bright
  • Leaving adults with the eggs
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionAfrica – Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of Congo & DR Congo
Rivers and lakesCoastal and Congo basin swamps
HabitatShallow, heavily vegetated swamps
Native rangeAbout 800 km across
See it on the world map

The story of the ansorge's neolebias

A tiny, colourful African characin from the Niger Delta to the lower Congo, including Cameroon. It is very shy and does best in a dimly lit, densely planted tank, ideally on its own; it often looks plain in shops but colours up well.

George Albert Boulenger described this tiny fish in 1912, naming it after William Ansorge, a British doctor and explorer who collected many African fishes. It lives in shallow, plant-choked swamps. Breeding males glow red-orange, making it a jewel for small planted tanks.

First described by George A. Boulenger in 1912. Named for Named after British explorer William J. Ansorge.

  • It reaches only about 3.5 cm long.
  • Males turn red-orange in breeding colours.
  • It scatters its eggs among fine-leaved plants.

Sources

14 facts checked with sources