Care
The Black Tiger Badis is known from mountain stream areas in Myanmar where temperatures and water levels vary seasonally. Collection data mentions small, turbid pools with plenty of vegetation and debris. These are probably connected and flowing during the rainy season.
These diminutive badids are an ideal choice for small, heavily planted aquaria. The tank must be mature and have myriad of hiding places amongst driftwood and thick vegetation, which should include floating species to help diffuse the light. Indian Almond Leaves (Terminalia catappa) are also very much appreciated as leaf litter, but these must be replaced on a regular basis as they gradually decompose. Filtration should be good but water movement gentle. Badis should ideally be maintained in pairs, or in a harem situation with one male and several females if you can find them - they're not imported as frequently as the more colourful males. Rival males can be rather aggressive towards one another during the warmer breeding season, especially in smaller aquaria. However, if the tank is more spacious with plenty of cover then it may be possible to keep more than one male, as there should be ample visual barriers and room for each male to establish his own territory. Tankmates, if desired, should be small, peaceful and capable of thriving over the wide range of temperatures these fish encounter seasonally. Much attention must be paid to water quality since Badis are somewhat delicate and do not tolerate elevated nitrates or swings in water chemistry. Acclimatise very carefully.
May also be seen on sale as the Black tiger Dario and appeared with the trade names Dario sp. 'Pyjamas' and Dario sp. 'Black tiger'
Feeding
Small frozen and live foods such as baby brineshrimp (Artemia nauplii), cyclops, daphnia, and mini-bloodworm (sparingly). Some specimens may take crushed flake and micropellets, but this is not guaranteed.
Breeding
Substrate spawner which has been bred in the home aquarium. The male will set up a territory and begin a courtship display, showing off his beautiful colours to the females. If a female is receptive, she will scatter her eggs onto the substrate inside his territory, usually beneath a leaf or piece of wood. The male immediately fertilises the eggs and some spawning accounts mention an absence of any further brood care. The eggs should hatch within 2-3 days, but it may be up to a week before the fry have finished absorbing their yolk sacs and become free-swimming. The fry are tiny and initially require miniscule foodstuffs such as infusoria, until they are large enough to accept baby brineshrimp (Artemia nauplii) or microworm. The adult fish are not prone to predate on the fry, and some should make it to adulthood in densely planted set-ups. However, if you wish to raise a larger number of young, it would be prudent to move the adults to another tank once the eggs have been deposited/fertilised.
