Hardiest tropical fish ??

[desley]

HI all,

What is the hardiest tropical fish ?

I have not a lot of luck with the guppies where I get them from ... they breed, they die, they are just very ify.

Platties seem to do better but if I want a change ... what's the best hardy fish .. I hate seeing fish die

I need something that is for a beginner ... maybe tiger barbs ??

Tank is 22 gallons, trickle filter, aerator which can be on high and low with airstone, heater set at 28 degrees (our room temp heaps the water a bit higher most times in summer) and heater will go on most of the night in winter. I can adjust the heater but most likely temps will be at least 26 - 28 most of summer .. if not higher.

Any help in this area would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[yvez9]

try zebra danios

 

[ravekiss]

I agree Zebra Danios are not only hardy but a school of them looks amazing.

 

[Dwarfs]

Any fish can be difficult to keep alive if you haven't done proper research But I agree, danios are pretty tough

 

[Vip]

Cichlids, i change my water with cold tap water and smoke around the tanks and i have ever dropped a smoke in there without knowing, nothing kills them besides each other.

 

[CFC]

Not strictly true there Vip, dont forget that discus are also Cichlids and many of the wild caught species of Appistogramma and angelfish are equally fragile if not more so. To say that all Cichlids are hardy is a very broad and sweeping statement and just isnt true. Most tank bred Cichlid species are tough but many of their wild caught counterparts can be very delicate and need good care to keep them alive.

 

[BobK]

Danios definitely are one of the hardiest. Need to keep them in schools of at least 5 and give them a big enough tank so they have plenty of room. Sadly I only have two Zebra Danios left. But they've lived a long life of at least 4 1/2 years. Really really hardy fish and fun to watch too.

[edit] Forgot to mention they tolerate different temperatures well (within reason).

 

[Vip]

Discus mayb€, but what about th€ mor€ pow€rful cichlids lik€ Trimacs, Midas, R€d D€vils and so on? and why on €arth ar€ my €'s lik€ this?

 

[Ben]

Not strictly true there Vip, dont forget that discus are also Cichlids and many of the wild caught species of Appistogramma and angelfish are equally fragile if not more so. To say that all Cichlids are hardy is a very broad and sweeping statement and just isnt true. Most tank bred Cichlid species are tough but many of their wild caught counterparts can be very delicate and need good care to keep them alive.

agreed

a better wording to it would be that most semi-aggresive/aggresive cichlids are probably the hardiest fish.

DD

 

[plecoperson]

I wouldn't be able to say what would be the most hardy fish as they all differ, and Ive never had much luck with Danios. But my head and tail light was one of my first fish and he has been in my tank for over a year. I also like Harlequin Rasboras for their hardiness and bright colours and swordtails do well for me. but every tank is different (some dwarf gouramis can be pretty hardy too!)

 

[Vip]

thats what i was r€f€ring to anyway, larg€r on€s lik€ Trimacs or R€d D€vils, thos€ fish you just cant kill, i should of just had b€tt€r wording.

 

[Ben]

yeh,the ones that try and rip your fingers off instead. damn carless lfs

DD

 

[desley]

heaps of great responses thanks.

I have 1 zebra danio left. I had 3 .. 2 were white ones which died .. they seemed to get redish streaks and then die. I think one got a lump. It was quite a while ago now so I don't quite remember. I thought it might have been too hot for them.

The silver blue danio is really happy. Is there a difference between the white & silver blue danios ? Maybe the reason the white ones died and the blue one is OK in my tank.

Could I put 5 or 6 more zebra danios in with:

2 female platties, 1 male platty
2 male guppies, a few not sure what sex guppies as they are mid grown,
some fry which is too small to make out yet if it's platties or guppies

22 gallon tank

will the danios eat the fry?

Thanks again for the cichlids advice but I am really researching before adding anything to my tank and I think I checked they will / or might outgrow my 22 gallon tank which I can not replace with a bigger one. Maybe I am wrong but I think I am better with smaller fish. Reason being is I have enough issues with dishing out a small dead fish. I could not imagine my day if I had to dish out a large dead fish Cichlids are big fish right

thanks

 

[Vip]

80% of new worlds are large 10" and over but there are heaps of africans that are small and very very hardy, also more colorful

 

[alpha_wolf]

actually i wouldnt recommend cichlids to amateurs at all. Almost all of them if not all, require warm water always. Some can be very easy, like convicts. And besides warm water, the other important thing is that they are very territorial so that can put alot of stress on the owner(esp with small tanks) and injuries to weaker fishes.