A species that inhabits much of the Amazon basin, the Flagtail Prochilodus (Semiprochilodus insignis) is one of the most common large schooling fish in the Amazon region.

​The body of the Prochilodus Flagtail is a classical shape, with its dorsal fin area higher. Its coloring is stunning, presenting a shiny silver, with the upper part slightly darker than the lower in addition to having some black spots. The most interesting color is found in its tail, as the fish's popular name suggests. A strong red tone with black horizontal stripes is present on this one, as well as on the anal and dorsal fins.​The pectoral fins are bright red. The color of the Prochilodus Flagtail's fins is something phenomenal. As juveniles, their fins will appear almost transparent, and as they grow the red coloring will become more and more intense. 

​The species is known for jumping great heights, so you should always keep your aquarium well covered, avoiding accidents.

​Because they have two stomachs and are scavengers, they are constantly nipping at the substrate. In captivity, they will accept both dry and live food, and mainly plant foods such as spinach, lettuce, cucumber, and zucchini, and vegetable and algae-based comecial feed should be provided.

​Flagtail Prochilodus is an aggressive fish with its conspecifics. The ideal is to keep it alone or in schools with more than six individuals. ​When keeping more than six specimens together, they bring a magical look to the tank. The shoal swimming along, exhibiting its shiny scales is certainly a show in itself.

We can’t think of any species of fish that make as great of an addition to the home aquarium as the Flagtail Prochilodus. They are a highly active and extremely attractive fish with their bright shimmery scales and vibrant coloring, they are very hardy fish that do well in a wide variety of water conditions, they are compatible with a huge variety of tank mates, and they are one of the best fish for algae control. They are grazing fish that constantly clean the glass and surfaces in a tank better than most plecos and they are peaceful as well as being a very tough fish that can handle a bit of abuse, making them perfect for community tanks as well as tanks with monster fish. We actually keep at least one in almost every one of our retail tanks and personal tanks due to their unbelievable ability to keep algae under control and their wide range of compatibility with other fish. We highly recommend you do some research on this species and consider one for your home aquarium

​Scientific name:  Semaprochilodus insignis
​Common name: Flagtail Prochilodus
​Order: Characiformes — Family:  Prochilodontidae
​Distribution: South America: central and western areas of the Amazon Basin and tributaries of Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana and Peru.
​Behavior: Peaceful, but aggressive towards the same species.
​Adult Size: 10-14 in
​Life Expectancy: 8+ years
​pH: 5.5 to 7.4
​Temperature: 73 to 86 F
​Minimum size tank: 125 gallons 
​Feeding: Herbivore, detritivore.
​Reproduction: Oviparous, their reproduction in captivity is unknown, but it is known that they are free disseminators of eggs and migrate long distances in their natural environment to reproduce.
​Sexual Dimorphism: Their sexual dimorphism is somewhat difficult, although females are slightly fuller in the ventral region.
​Additional Information: Its meat is highly appreciated by the local population.
​It is a species that performs migrations of great distances in huge shoals according to the time of year. The first migration occurs in the rainy season to carry out reproduction when they migrate to the headwaters of rivers. They migrate hundreds of kilometers and are seen jumping through the rapids, in a similar way to Salmon, returning to their place of origin to spawn. After spawning, the fertilized eggs drift along nutrient-rich floodplains, functioning as a kind of nursery for the fry to develop.