Favorite Barb?

[Elrohirthehasty]

What is your favorite kind or barb and why?

 

[tangokitty]

The cherry barb, the males are striking!

 

[millym]

i love love love tiger barbs green & stripey which we've had for over 6 years now, real characters, i love the way one always has to be boss man or woman & they regulary have their dominance fights where they spin nose to nose back & forwards sometimes for ages until one gives up & retreats, also when this is going on the other barbs will hang around watching & sometimes trying to join in - hillarious to watch, especially love it when a new teeny baby upstart tries to take on a mature much bigger barb! they just cant help themselves they have to chase eachother (esp the males)

 

[oakes]

Tiger barbs also remain my favourite, but my gold barbs are growing on me. I have only had them for several months but their colours are getting really intense as they mature, especially the males.

 

[Loony Fish]

hi,
i like golden barbs, they are so pretty and peaceful and there is something else that i just like about them.

 

[simonas]

I've always liked Tiger Barbs and they look very striking in a shoal
Tinfoils also a favourite of mine and look great in a big tank. always active and they are beautiful fish IMO

 

[firefish10]

All types of tiger barbs, fun to watch

 

[Soaup]

Tiger barbs are amazing. They are very beautiful fish. Tinfoils are also great looking fish but most people dont have adaquete housing for them. They should be kept 5+ with a tank of at least 150 gallons.

 

[shibby]

green tiger barbs! though i also like rosy barbs.

 

[veil92]

My personal favorite is the Panda Barb, or Puntius fasciatus; They look great in a schoal.

 

[Nick16]

torpedo barb or red line barb or denisonii barb. they have soo many names

 

[Lateral Line]

Barbus gelius, sometimes called the Dwarf Golden Barb. A peaceful but very active sprightly little fish that stays small.

I had a huge row in the late 1980's because a person who will remain nameless, (was director of the aquarium at London Zoo, surname begins with A, anyone involved with the technical side of the hobby will now who I mean!), decided to re-classify the "species" as three distinct species. I spent about two years breeding the various "species" to demonstrate that they were all the same species with regional variation.

I also have a soft spot for Cæcobarbus geertsii, someties called the Congo Blind Barb.

I was involved in the species maintenance program for this fish in the same period. Not the prettiest of fish. The thing I remember most of all was the amount of paperwork to be done to be part of the program. Documenting the parents of each batch of fry, the gentic relationships between batches, the water chemistry to extreme precision, (the fish breed easily in tapwater for goodness sake!). I also recall the annoyance of MAFF inspections at short notice in order to maintain the licence to keep the CITES species. Was all coordinated by Reading University.

Generally, I have kept barbs for over 40 years, and rarely have been without one or more species. Barbs look like fish should look, diamond shaped with short based errect fins and scales, only Rasboras equal them in my view.

 

[Dunkal]

I like the look of the odessa barbs. I am thinking of getting either Odessa barbs, Black ruby barbs or God barbs for my 70 litre tank, not sure which ones. Any suggestions??

 

[Aqua Duck]

It's gotta be the classic tiger barb. I like their colouration and cheekiness.

 

[oakes]

Generally, I have kept barbs for over 40 years, and rarely have been without one or more species.

I have done exactly the opposite, avoiding barbs or goldfish for over 20 years, primarily because they are in the same family as the common carp which i detest. They have been such an environmental disaster here. But i think i have been unfair on the rest of the family. I have started keeping a few of the common varieties, and looking at others. It does appear that many of the barbs are active, colourful, hardy, and mature at sizes suited to the average aquarium.