SCIENTIFIC DATA

Order
Cyprinodontiformes

Family
Nothobranchidae

Genus
Nothobranchius Peters 1868

Type Species
Cyprinodon orthonotus Peters 1844

Nothobranchius is a group of annual killifish found primarily in East Africa, although many species have been found in several countries including Congo Republic, Sudan and Ghana.

    Nothos, as they are commonly referred to, inhabit temporary ponds, pools of water and rivers in savannah lands throughout their range.  In these areas there is a wet season and a dry season.  This is often best illustrated by the annual migration of huge herds of fauna as the seasons change.

     Nothos lay their eggs in the substrate during the wet periods.  During the dry season, the existing water dries out and becomes dessicated. The eggs remain in the dried and cracked soil and incubate using a process known as diapause.  When the rains return and the pools are again filled with water, the eggs hatch and the next generation of fish contines.

     In the home aquaria, this is duplicated by allowing the Nothos to breed is a media such as peat moss of coconut fiber, then drying the media to a moistness approximating tobacco.  The media is then placed in a plastic bag and stored in an incubator for a designated period of time ranging from 3 to 9 months depending on the species. 

    The media is placed back into water at the end of incubation.  Within 24 hours the first fry should appear and then they will need to be raised until breeding size.  Each species has specific care required.