• Scientific name: Gymnocorymbus ternetzi
• Common name: Gold Skirt Tetra, Black-skirt Tetra, White-skirt Tetra
• Group: Characins
• Habitat: South America; Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay
• Size: 6 cm
• Biotope: Shaded calm water of the Rio Negro and Rio Paraguay watersheds.
• Social behavior: A generally peaceful fish that appreciates being in a school of 5 or more.
• Diet: This tetra should eat most common aquarium foods. Flakes, frozen, freeze dried and may nibble at some aquarium plants.
• Breeding: Quite easy
• Tank: Minimum 120 litres
• Population: 8-10 fishes for 120 litres
• Decoration: Lot of plants, roots
• Temperature: 26-28°C
• pH: 6-8
• Hardness: 5-20 NK°
• Lifespan: 3-5 years

Description: Tall and highly compressed they are noted for their curved anal fin which is quite long. It is almost as long as the entire rear half of the body. In the Goldskirts there are no easily identifiable sexual differences. The female Blackskirt is bigger and more robust than the male.

Although their natural colour is a very becoming pearly white these Tetra's are often sold as a coloured fish. The common names for these coloured fish reflect the dye colour, Blue fish are called Blueberry tetra's, Purple fish are Grape tetra's, Orange/Yellow fish are Mandarin or Tangerine tetra's, etc. The dye process is not nearly as stressful as the process undergone by painted Glassfish and instead of lasting only a couple months can last for up to a year. (I currently have two of the coloured tetra's, a Blueberry and a Strawberry).

Goldskirts are a wonderful fish for beginners and are also a great choice for pretty much any habitat. They are a small fish who are not all that finicky about their water conditions and will live in water with a pH of anywhere between 5.8 and 8.5 (mine are kept at a neutral pH of 7). As long as you keep up with regular water changes (I currently change about 25% every three weeks) they'll live a long and happy life. These tetras, unlike most, can be a bit aggressive. They are an active fish and prefer to be in groups of three or more. They are wonderful in a species tank but also do well in a community tank of other similarly sized and larger fish.

The Goldskirt Tetra is difficult to breed in only that it is next to impossible to tell the differences between the sexes. They are an egg layer and have no special requirements. If breeding is your goal with these pretty little fish I'd recommend purchasing a community of at least six and just hoping for the best.