Vallisneria nana 'Tiger'

Vallisneria nana

A vallisneria with ribbon-shaped leaves covered in frequent short transverse streaks ranging from red to dark brown — hence the name 'Tiger'; usually sold as Vallisneria spiralis 'Tiger', but DNA analysis (2008) showed it belongs to V. nana.

Light: medium–high
Difficulty: very easy
Height: 30 – 60 cm (12 – 24 in)
Temperature: 15 – 30 °C (59 – 86 °F)

Leaf colour: green
Plant type: rosette
Growth rate: fast
Tolerates light: medium – high
pH: 6 – 8
Carbonate hardness: 2 – 21 °dKH
Placement: background, midground
Propagation: runners
Grows emersed: no

Appearance

Light to medium green ribbon-shaped leaves are covered with numerous short transverse streaks ranging from red to dark brown — hence the name. Under strong light the base colour of the leaf can turn reddish-brown. Leaves 0.5–2 cm wide and 30–60 cm long.

Keeping

Very easy, as in the species: growth fast, light medium to bright, CO₂ 10–40 mg/l, temperature 24–29 °C. Propagated by runners.

Trade names

Usually sold as Vallisneria spiralis 'Tiger' or 'Striped', and roughly matches, in leaf width and length, the plants known as V. spiralis. But DNA analysis (2008) showed it belongs to V. nana, widespread in northern and eastern Australia; this is unexpected, since plants known in the aquarium hobby as V. nana usually have leaves only a few millimetres wide — in fact the species is highly variable and includes quite broad-leaved forms as well.

Water conditions match

The water suits 983 of 1249 species in the catalogue — these are the ones people look up most often.

Swordtail Guppies Cobra Guppy Blood Red Molly Butterflyfish Red Zebra Cichlid Julii Corydoras Red-finned Parotocinclus Gastromyzon monticola Egg-shaped Goldfish Flame Tetra Gardner's Killifish African Tetra Kenyi Cichlid Cuckoo Catfish Golden Swordtail Hypsolebias picturatus Common Zacco Labeo Bicolor Gambusia Flying barb Gastromyzon scitulus Albino Zebra Danio Geophagus Brokopondo Zebra Mbuna

Will eat this plant

These species damage plants, especially when their diet is short of vegetable food.

Bengal Loach Zebra Loach Burmese Border Loach Emperor Botia Spined Loach Marbled Headstander Pellegrin's Leporinus Leporinus striatus False Black Tetra Common Metynnis Mylossoma duriventre Red Whiptail Catfish Molly sphenops Balloon Molly Lyretail Molly Marble Molly Hi-Fin Platy Hawaii Platy Blue Platy Pintail Platy Black Platy Chocolate Molly Moonlight Gourami Melanotaenia parva

Will uproot it

These species dig through the substrate and pull rooted plants out.

Marble Loach Peacock Eel Forktail Loach Guntea Loach Long-nosed Loach Horseface Loach Pearlscale Black Moor Goldfish Shubunkin Painted Pleco Featherfin Synodontis Reddish Mystus Catfish Blue Acara Aulonocara maylandi Aulonocara multicolor Aulonocara Orchid Geophagus altifrons Geophagus winemilleri Pearlscale Cichlid Pearl Cichlid Redbelly Cichlid Red-spotted Cichlid Chuco godmanni Haplochromis philander Red Chromide Jack Dempsey cichlid

Matching water does not mean the fish will leave the plant alone.

Scientific and other names, conservation status

Other scientific names: Vallisneria nana auct. non R.Br., Vallisneria americana biwaensis, Vallisneria asiatica biwaensis, Vallisneria asiatica higoensis, Vallisneria gigantea, Vallisneria gracilis, Vallisneria natans biwaensis, Vallisneria natans higoensis, Vallisneria spiralis denseserrulata, Vallisneria spiralis subulispatha
Vallisneria nana: R. Br.
Family: Hydrocharitaceae