Alternative name Anablepsoides taeniatus.

The type locality of Rivulus taeniatus is Morelia, río Caqueta drainage, southern Colombia.

The species was discovered by Kjel von Sneidern in October 1940. The unique holotype is stored at ANSP (philadelphia) with # 71720 and is a male of 36.9 mm S.L..

Following publication by Costa et al. in 2014 <Relationships and taxonomy of the killifish genus Rivulus
(Cyprinodontiformes: Aplocheiloidei: Rivulidae) from the Brazilian Amazonas
river basin, with notes on historical ecology> Rivulus (Anablepsoides) taeniatus lives in a wide range of the Amazon basin, not only in the Colombian part but also the rivers Solimoes and Rio Branco.

The photos in this work show however another member within the genus Rivulus closer to Rivulus (Anablepsoides) erberi. To clear things out I went at the end of 2016 to South-west Colombia accompanied by Ken Normandin, USA , to visit the type locality of this species and we found Rivulus taeniatus in big numbers and free swimming in a mountain creek close to the little town Morelia. This was the first time it was found after its discovery in 1940 and description in 1944. See upper photo. The 3 other images are from the W. Costa article from 2014.

Keeping and breeding is easy but a tight fitting cover on the aquarium is necessary because their ability to jump, even through the smallest opening, is unbelievable.

This species can, if there is enough space for them, be housed in a tank with more than one male and several females. If separated before and brought together again however, they can be very aggressive towards each other and fight to become the dominant fish. The best way to produce numbers of fry is to put a pair or a trio in a small tank of about 10 litres with a small filter in it or with some aeration. On the bottom of the tank place some peat moss or dark gravel and a floating "mop" to give space for laying their eggs. The fish will, if they are fed a rich variety of live food, spawn during their whole adult life and produce daily between 5 to 15 eggs.

The eggs should be collected by hand and stored for about 14 days in a small container. Eggs are 1.6 mm and amber coloured. It is wise to add an anti fungus to the water you store the eggs in, to prevent fungal attacks.

After hatching the young fry can eat fresh artemia nauplii without any problem. It takes 4 to 5 months to raise them to maturity. Often the males far out number females. For some species this can become a major problem for the breeder, as he has to raise many fry to enable distribution of a few pairs to other hobbyists. Recent personal tests found that lower pH levels during the time of hatching gave a higher percentage of females. To achieve this I used some peat moss that I added to the container with the eggs just before they were ready to hatch. This peat moss also is a good way to prevent eggs from being attacked by fungus.

Their lifespan can be up to 3 years in captivity.

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