1 kinds · tap one for a closer look
Peaceful and active at the surface; keep a group and a lid.
This one is best kept on its own, or with its own kind.
Peaceful and active at the surface; keep a group and a lid.
Flakes, frozen foods, mosquito larvae and small live foods.
Tap a food to see what it is.
Males have iridescent gold or blue flecks, 7-11 faint dark bars and red dots on the sides, and rows of red spots on the tail; females and juveniles lack the bars, gold flecks and red spots but may have small bluish spots.
Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.
Egg-layer (mop spawner) · Easy
Lays eggs one at a time on plants, floating-plant roots or spawning mats, attached by sticky threads; spawning season April to September in the wild.
A group; one male with 2-3 females.
40 L planted tank with spawning mops.
Warm water and live food.
About 10-20 eggs a day for about a week; eggs hatch in about two weeks. Young mature at around 10 months.
Baby brine shrimp from day one.
A hardy topminnow of the southeastern USA with iridescent gold flecks; researchers at Louisiana State University are working on captive breeding so the ornamental trade need not rely on wild-caught fish.
Albert Günther of the British Museum described the golden topminnow in 1866. It is a native North American killifish that cruises just under the surface among water plants, picking off insects. Native-fish enthusiasts in the US keep and breed it, and it adapts well to unheated aquariums and ponds.
First described by Albert Günther in 1866. Named for 'chrysotus' comes from the Greek for gold, for its golden sheen.
12 facts checked with sources
Günther, 1866 (as Haplochilus chrysotus). Placed in subgenus Zygonectes (Ghedotti & Davis 2013).
Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes: Fundulus chrysotus · FishBase: Fundulus chrysotus summaryLegacy had no family; value is new.
FishBase: Fundulus chrysotus summary · Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes: Fundulus chrysotusNo Seriously Fish profile. FishBase max 8.5 cm TL (total length); NC Wildlife 1.5-3.5 in (3.8-8.9 cm), so the larger figure is backed by two sources. Common length about 4 cm TL; legacy 7 cm is a typical large adult.
FishBase: Fundulus chrysotus summary · North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency)FishBase 18-25 °C. Legacy 28 °C upper bound not supported by any fetched source. Subtropical fish of the US Gulf coastal plain; wild waters swing seasonally.
FishBase: Fundulus chrysotus summary · North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency)Wild lifespan about 2 years (Foster 1967). Legacy 3-5 years is not supported; captive fish may live somewhat longer but no source says so.
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency) · US Fish & Wildlife Service: Ecological Risk Screening Summary, Golden Topminnow (2024)A true topminnow with an upturned (supraterminal) mouth (FWS).
US Fish & Wildlife Service: Ecological Risk Screening Summary, Golden Topminnow (2024) · North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency)Legacy had no range field.
FishBase: Fundulus chrysotus summary · North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency)Legacy is broadly right for males, but the small blue spots are a female/juvenile mark. Legacy 'females a bit larger' not confirmed by any source.
US Fish & Wildlife Service: Ecological Risk Screening Summary, Golden Topminnow (2024) · Fetterman & Green (LSU AgCenter Aquaculture Research Station), World Aquaculture Society abstract: female Golden Topminnow reproductionMatches legacy 'Lays eggs in plants or mops'.
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency) · US Fish & Wildlife Service: Ecological Risk Screening Summary, Golden Topminnow (2024) · Fetterman & Green (LSU AgCenter Aquaculture Research Station), World Aquaculture Society abstract: female Golden Topminnow reproductionLegacy '10-30 eggs per day; incubation 10-14 days' is close; source gives 10-20 a day and ~14 days.
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency)Gold flecks and hardiness confirmed. The legacy claim that it 'does well in unheated tanks and garden ponds' is not directly sourced (FishBase calls it subtropical; LSU spawned it in outdoor pools).
North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission: Golden Topminnow (state wildlife agency) · Fetterman & Green (LSU AgCenter Aquaculture Research Station), World Aquaculture Society abstract: female Golden Topminnow reproduction