Lowe's tetra
Hyphessobrycon loweae
This is a tiny Upper Xingu tetra that can glow gold in the right light, with males showing that cool elongated dorsal fin. It does best when you keep a real group and give it a calm, planted setup so it feels bold enough to come out and color up.
Lowe's tetra features a slender body with a prominent iridescent blue stripe and a distinctive red-orange hue on its fins.
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Quick Facts
Size
3.2 cm
Temperament
Peaceful
Difficulty
Intermediate
Min Tank Size
20 gallons
Lifespan
3-5 years
Origin
South America
Diet
Omnivore/micropredator - small pellets/flake, frozen foods (daphnia, cyclops, brine shrimp), live foods
Care Notes
- Keep Lowe's tetras in a real group - 8-12+ is where they stop acting jumpy and start showing better color. A 20 long (or bigger) with open swimming space is way nicer than a tall tank.
- They look and behave best in slightly acidic to neutral water (around pH 6.0-7.2) with soft to medium hardness; warm-ish temps like 74-79F works well. They hate rapid swings, so keep changes steady and don't skip water changes.
- Go easy on current: gentle flow plus good filtration is the sweet spot. Give them plants, wood, and some shaded spots, but leave a clear lane across the front for schooling.
- Feeding is simple: small foods they can grab fast - good flake or micro pellets as a staple, then rotate in frozen daphnia, brine shrimp, and bloodworms. If they are picking and spitting, the food is too big.
- Tankmates: other calm small fish and peaceful bottom dwellers (corys, otos, small rasboras) work great. Avoid fin-nippers and big mouths (serpae tetras, larger barbs, most cichlids) because these guys are not built for drama.
- They can get nippy if the group is too small or the tank is cramped, so if you see chasing, add numbers and break up sight lines with plants. A tight lid helps too - they will jump when spooked.
- Breeding is doable but not automatic: use a separate tank with a mesh/marbles and clumps of fine plants, dim light, and very clean soft water. Condition the adults on live/frozen foods, then pull the parents after spawning because they will snack on eggs.
Compatibility
Good Tankmates
- Other small, chill tetras (ember tetra, neon tetra, rummynose) - they all do the same mellow schooling thing, so nobody gets stressed out. Just keep Lowe's in a proper group so they do not get timid.
- Small rasboras (harlequin, hengeli/espei) - peaceful midwater fish that will not try to boss them around, and they match the same calm community vibe.
- Corydoras catfish - classic combo. Corys hang on the bottom, tetras cruise the middle, and they basically ignore each other in a good way.
- Otocinclus - great if the tank is mature. Oto's are gentle little algae grazers and Lowe's tetras will not hassle them.
- Small, peaceful dwarf cichlids (Apistogramma or a chill pair of rams) - works in my experience when the tank has plants and hides. Just watch spawning time because any dwarf cichlid can get spicy near a nest.
- Honey gourami or sparkling gourami - mellow centerpiece fish that will not view them as food and will not outcompete them too hard at feeding time.
Avoid
- Fin-nippers and hyper fish like tiger barbs or serpae tetras - Lowe's are peaceful and can get stressed, and the constant chasing turns a calm school into a bunch of hiders.
- Big-mouthed predators (angelfish once they size up, larger cichlids, most puffers) - if it can fit a tetra in its mouth, it will eventually try. Even 'community' angels can decide tetras are snacks as they mature.
- Aggressive territory holders like convict cichlids or crabby larger barbs - they do not belong with a soft, peaceful tetra. You will see pinned fins and the tetras will stop schooling normally.
Where they come from
Lowe's tetra (Hyphessobrycon loweae) is one of those smaller South American tetras that comes out of soft, tea-colored waters - think slow forest creeks with leaf litter, roots, and not a lot of current. They are used to dim light, tannins, and lots of cover. If you have ever kept other Hyphessobrycon species, the vibe is pretty familiar.
They color up way better in a slightly darker, more natural-looking tank. Bright, bare tanks tend to wash them out and make them skittish.
Setting up their tank
Give them room to school and a sense of safety. I have had the best luck keeping them in a planted tank with open swimming space in the middle and cover around the edges. They are not picky about decor, but they are picky about feeling exposed.
- Tank size: 20 gallons long or bigger is where they start acting relaxed (a smaller tank can work, but you will see more spooking and pecking).
- Group size: 10-12+ if you can. Six is the bare minimum, and you will notice a difference when you go bigger.
- Filtration: gentle to moderate flow. If your filter turns the tank into a river, baffle it or aim the output at the glass.
- Plants and cover: stems, floating plants, and some wood or rooty hardscape. Leaf litter (catappa/oak) is a nice bonus.
- Substrate: anything works, but darker substrate makes them look sharper and keeps them calmer.
Water-wise, they do best in the usual tetra range: warm, clean, and on the softer side. If your tap is hard, they can often adapt, but you will get better behavior and fewer random losses if you avoid big swings and keep nitrates low.
If they are hiding all the time, add floating plants and turn the lights down a notch before you start chasing numbers. Shade fixes a lot with this fish.
What to feed them
They are easy to feed once they settle in. Mine took small pellets and flakes quickly, but they really pop and fill out better with some frozen or live food mixed in.
- Daily staple: a small, high-quality micro pellet or fine flake (something that fits their mouth).
- Color and conditioning: frozen daphnia, baby brine shrimp, cyclops, and finely chopped bloodworms.
- If they are shy eaters: live baby brine shrimp is basically a cheat code to get everyone feeding.
Watch overfeeding with rich foods like bloodworms. They will gorge, and then you are dealing with bloaty-looking fish and dirtier water.
How they behave and who they get along with
Lowe's tetras are classic midwater schoolers. In a big enough group they do that nice loose-shoal thing, and the males will do little displays without it turning into real fighting. In a too-small group, they get nippy and nervous. That is usually a stocking problem, not an attitude problem.
- Good tankmates: other peaceful small tetras, rasboras, pencilfish, small hatchetfish, Corydoras, Otocinclus, calm dwarf cichlids (like apistos) in the right setup.
- Use caution with: long-finned fish (they may fin-nip if cramped), very boisterous barbs, and hyperactive danios in a small tank.
- Avoid: big, fast predators and anything that can fit them in its mouth.
If you see fin nipping, the two quickest fixes are (1) bump the group size up and (2) add more line-of-sight breaks with plants or wood. Rearranging the tank also helps reset the pecking order.
Breeding tips
They are egg scatterers, and the adults will snack on eggs and fry if they get the chance. Breeding is doable if you set up a separate little spawning tank and keep things soft and dim. If you try to do it in the community tank, you might get an occasional survivor, but do not count on it.
- Spawning tank: 10 gallons with a sponge filter, heater, and very low light.
- Egg protection: a mesh layer, marbles, or a thick clump of moss so eggs fall out of reach.
- Water: warm and soft helps. If you can add a bit of RO or rainwater (clean and safe), it usually bumps your odds.
- Conditioning: feed the adults frozen/live foods for a week or two.
- After spawning: pull the adults. Eggs typically hatch in about a day or so, and fry go free-swimming a few days after that.
- First foods: infusoria, rotifers, or commercial fry food for tiny mouths, then baby brine shrimp once they can handle it.
A little tannin (leaf litter or a small bag of peat in the filter) can make the spawning tank feel right to them and can also help keep fungus down on the eggs.
Common problems to watch for
Most issues I have seen with this species come from stress: too much light, too little cover, too small a group, or water that is swinging around. Fix the setup and they usually settle fast.
- Hiding and washed-out color: usually bright light or not enough cover. Floating plants help a ton.
- Fin nipping: small group, cramped tank, or too few sight breaks.
- Ich after purchase: common tetra problem when they are stressed from shipping. Quarantine if you can.
- Unexplained losses in the first 2 weeks: often a mix of shipping stress and water parameter shock. Slow acclimation helps, and keep the tank calm.
- Bloat/constipation: too many rich foods, not enough variety. Try daphnia and smaller portions.
They do not love sudden changes. Big water changes, blasting the tank with brighter lights, or chasing them around with a net can set them back. Small, steady routines work better with this tetra.
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