Zebra Danio

The zebra danio or zebrafish (Brachydanio rerio) is tropical fish belonging to the minnow family (Cyprinidae). It grows to about 6 cm, making it the largest of the danios?, and lives for around 5 years. Like other danios it is omnivorous and gets along well with other fish in community tanks. Zebra Danios serve as a common and useful model organism for studies of vertebrate? development, in part because their embryos are transparent. Thus, researchers can mutate a danio and see the effects of the genetic changes on its development. Because of this interest it has been one of the first organisms to have its genome sequenced.