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Encyclopedia / Killifish / Beira killifish
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Variations

1 kinds · tap one for a closer look

Beira killifish

Nothobranchius rachovii · Rachovii, Rachow's nothobranch, Bluefin notho

Males are aggressive with each other; keep one male with 2-3 females in a small tank.

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6 cmAdult size ✓
20–24 °CTemperature ✓
6.5–7.5pH ✓
40 LSmallest tank ✓
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Tank mates
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Not recommended
  • Giant gourami eats animals up to about 10 cm. Beira killifish only grows to 6 cm.
Not recommended
  • They need different temperatures (20–24 °C vs 26–30 °C). No setting suits both.
Not recommended
  • Oscar eats animals up to about 12 cm. Beira killifish only grows to 6 cm.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow temperature range suits both: 23–24 °C.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow temperature range suits both: exactly 24 °C.
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible

261 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 ✓3–10 dGH
Group size ✓2 or more
Temperament ?Semi-aggressive
Swims at ?Middle
Care level ✓Moderate
Diet Carnivore
Lifespan ✓0.5–1 years
Size in shops 3–5 cm
Growth Fast

Behavior

Males are aggressive with each other; keep one male with 2-3 females in a small tank.

Food

Live and frozen foods such as bloodworms, daphnia and brine shrimp.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

Males are larger with alternating light blue and orange-red bars on body and fins, an orange-red head and a black-edged tail; females are plainer with a reflective light blue spot on each flank scale.

Health

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

Breeding

Annual egg-burier (peat spawner) · Hard

Annual killifish: the pools dry out each year, the adults die and the eggs survive in the dry mud until the rains return 5-6 months later. In aquaria it spawns into peat, and the eggs need months of damp storage.

Pairing

One male with 2-3 females.

Setup

Bare 20 L tank with a bowl of sterilised peat for spawning; soft water.

What starts it

Warm water, live food and peat.

Eggs

Store the eggs in damp peat at about 21-25 °C for 5-7 months before wetting them to hatch.

Raising the fry

Baby brine shrimp from day one.

Common mistakes
  • Short dry period
  • Hard water
  • Too many males
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionCentral Mozambique
Rivers and lakesLowlands around Beira
HabitatSeasonal pools in coastal floodplains
Native rangeAbout 250 km across
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The story of the beira killifish

A colourful annual killifish described by Ahl in 1926 from near Beira, Mozambique, and named after the German aquarist Arthur Rachow. Males are barred in blue and orange-red. It lives in floodplain pools that dry out every year.

German zoologist Ernst Ahl described this killifish in 1926. Its blue-and-red patterned males are among the most colourful annual killifish.

First described by Ernst Ahl in 1926. Named for Named after German aquarist Arthur Rachow.

  • It is an annual fish living in pools that dry each year.
  • Its eggs rest in the mud during the dry season.
  • It has a short natural lifespan of under a year.

Sources

15 facts checked with sources