Firefishes make great aquarium specimens and are wildly popular, be it the lower end maginificent firefish (Nemateleotris magnifica), or the higher ended helfrichi firefish (Nemateleotris helfrichi). Firefishes fall into the category of “factory made” fishes where every single piece looks almost identical from each other. If you recall the post we did earlier on the insane aberrant pink-spot firefish, you’d know that anomalies are seldom encountered in this group of aquarium staples.
However being very closely related to each other, the firefishes are bound to hybridize in the wild where their range overlaps. Especially for N. magnifica and N. decora. The pictures above are hybrids of the two and the result is a subtle blend of both species. It’s quite unusual and cool to see these hybrids pair up with their pedigree pure blood counterparts.
As far as we know, N. decora and N. magnifica seldom, it not never mix around with each other and prefer the company of their own kind. Normal or not you’ve got to love these little fish. Especially the cook islands form to the closely related N. helfrichi. Who doesn’t love the helfrichi firefish? Especially the pink headed cook island variants!
