My Cool water "barb" tank begins...

so after sanitizing a tank I had problem rainbows in, I'm slowly putting together an Asian tank ( since that's supposed to be where the problem Rainbows originated, my hopes are if not completely sanitary, fish of that region should be more resistant ) that, and I want to delve more into the Hillstreams, & that tank started as an Asian tank, so, I'm wanting to relocate some adult Tin Foil Barbs, out of that tank...

Kind of like a Canary in a mine, I started with 4 Algae eaters... I chose Crossocheilus reticulatus ( yellow finned spot tail algae eaters )... they have been fine in the tank for 3 days now...
FOB...


as adults, they'll get 6 inches or better, & look like this...


they have paired up, as juvenal's, with no other fish in the tank... today I expect to add the Tin Foil barbs, & expect they will school again, like on day one, once the bigger fish are added... just using this thread as a place to add pictures of the new comers, as they get here...
5 of these guys will be transferred after work today… ( older picture, their fins are full red right now )

possibly my 1st additions will be Dawkinsia assimilis ( Mascara Barbs ) one seller I use has several 4 inchers that should just about be starting to color up...


I'm also looking at adding one or two Acrossocheilus fasciatus ( Red fin Torpedo barbs )


and while they are not Asian by origin... a couple Ancistrus sp. ( long fin Green Dragon Plecos )…

When are you going to breed these fish so you can sell them and use the money to buy more fish?

maybe after I retire

If I may advise, go with panda garra instead of ancistrus. Truer to the barb region, and they won't creep out @CaptainBarnicles as badly.

I’ve already got 5 in the Hillstream tank, and Mrs. Loves them but looking for a little variety… and come on, these are “dragons” that clean the glass

Well, that went better than expected… of course the algae eaters disappeared into the roots, not knowing the big fish wouldn’t hurt a feeder guppy


A couple Spot Tails watching the big guys from behind the heater… another swimming from rootball to rootball, checking them out…



Didn’t take 5 minutes after the Tin Foils were out, for the Denisons to move to the middle of the tank

Tinfoils are veggiesaurs. The little guys will figure it out.

Funny note: When the Badgerling was about three, I had a school of tinfoil barbs in my planted 55 (I know, I know, wrong on several levels). She got it in her head that they were smoked salmon, and that we were raising them to eat. We were raising a lot of meat chickens at that phase of life, and never tried to shield her from the realities of where meat comes from, so I guess that's where she got the idea. She'd look at them swimming in the tank and whisper, "Smoked salmon. They will be so yummy."

Magnum Man said:

View attachment 352810

Click to expand...

Magnum Man said:

View attachment 352810

Click to expand...

Oh dear zombie skeleton fish from the deepest of all unholy places

Well, at 1st light, while most of the Hillstream’s aren’t active yet, the tank looks pretty empty, I’m kind of missing their activity level, as they were definitely visible, and always active, for me to watch while drinking my caffeine in the morning… I have a large Flying Fox, I thought I was going to move, and also thought about moving a mid sized Kisser Grourmi, but those are some of the most visible fish right now, and Mrs. Is complaining about me moving them… so I’m not rescaping the tank, for a few days while I decide.. I will be buying a few more Denison’s for this tank..

Tin Foils look at home in their new tank… definitely a timidly fish, in a pretty tight school yet, until they get used to the tank… they learned to work around the pagodas in their previous tank… no hard scape going into their new tank, just roots from all the Pothos vines, to move around…
I’ve been thinking of adding a hollow log, at the one end, with Anubis ryzomes stuffed into the holes, like I did when in another tank… I like this feature, but not sure if it’ll thrive with the big Tin Foils??? They pretty much destroyed my Marimo ball topiary.. but the Anubis may work??? especially if on an end, where they can’t swim around it on all sides.. this is the one in another tank

Breed them
Breed them
Breed them
Breed them
Breed them
Breed them
Breed them

seriously, breed them

I had no idea mascara barbs could look like that!!

If that smoked salmon story happens at your place, @Magnum Man , there'd be mascara running all over the tank.

Do you know what the USA needs? I'll avoid politics and say 200 more fish buyers like you to keep the ball rolling on these weird and wonderful species you like. Way cool fish.

Look at it. You:

Buy them;
Raise them;
Educate us on them;
Entertain us with them'
Dream of them;

Trans-ship them;
Hover over them;
Establish them;
Maintain them;

Nurture them;
Open our eyes to them;
Want to share them!

I don't know what else you could do.

Do the highlighted letters tell me how you really feel???

Well the Denison’s are spawn dancing this morning, with the Tin Foils out of the Hillstream tank…