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Duboulay's Rainbowfish
Melanotaenia duboulayi (Castelnau, 1878)
A 7cm long Duboulay's Rainbowfish from a tributary of Maguires Creek, New South Wales, March 2002. View larger image. View this fish caught on the north-eastern New South Wales fieldtrip.
A 4.5cm long Duboulay's Rainbowfish from the Wilson River, New South Wales, 1998. The fish is in an aquarium. View larger image.
Duboulay's Rainbowfish is olive brown above, silvery on the sides and white below. There is a dark stripe along the side and a red spot on the upper operculum. The scale margins are brownish.
Males have a series of red stripes along the sides of the body and red spots on the dorsal, anal and caudal fins. When males display to females, all their fins, with the exception of the pelvics, have black margins. The fins of females and juveniles are clear.
Duboulay's Rainbowfish grows to 9cm in length but individuals of 6cm to 7cm are more common.
This species is endemic to (only known from) Australia. It is found in coastal freshwaters from southern Queensland to northern New South Wales.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. 1982. Rainbowfishes of Australia and Papua New Guinea. Angus & Robertson. Pp. 141. (as M. splendida fluviatilis)
- Allen, G.R. 1989. Freshwater Fishes of Australia. T.F.H. Publications. Pp. 240.
- Allen, G.R., Midgley, S.H. & M. Allen. 2002. Field Guide to the Freshwater Fishes of Australia. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 394.
- Allen, G.R. in McDowall, R.M. 1996. Freshwater Fishes of South-Eastern Australia. Reed Books. Pp. 247.
- Merrick, J.R. & G.E. Schmida. 1984. Australian Freshwater Fishes. Biology and Management. John R. Merrick. Pp. 409.
