Small Starter Fish

[steve26-2008]

My tank will be cycled soon, can anyone recommend small hardy fish tetras if possible. Does anyone know what glow light tetras are like.

 

[simonas]

glow light tetras are lovely fish especially as they get larger

what I would say if you;ve never kept fish before and the tank is newly cycled maybe try some zebra danios as your first fish. They are lovely looking active fish anyway and I;ve always found them to be amongst the hardiest fish which sometimes tetras aren;t and once your tank is slightly more mature and settled go for the tetras?

Good luck

 

[KittyKat]

In my honest opinion, zebra danios need at least a 3 ft tank, so not a fish I would recommend without knowing more about the set-up.

Glow light tetras should be fine in an average 24 inch / 2 ft fish tank. If you have a smaller tank, then I can recommend hengeli rasboras for a 18+ inch tank or espei rasboras for 12+ inch tanks. Ember tetras are also a good option for smaller tanks.

 

[steve26-2008]

Are Ember tetras a hardy fish.

 

[KittyKat]

Are Ember tetras a hardy fish.

Generally, yes.

 

[Flying-Minnow]

Hey.

I have black neons in my tank atm, they seem to be coping with setting up the tank very well, with my fish in cycle.
Maby go for something like that at first?
They're hardy little shoaling fish, and you can have as few as 4 of them if you wish, and just get other shoaling fish to join with them...

I've looked in my tropical fish a-z and this is what it says about glowlights:

Glowlights are bred by the thousand on fish farms, just for the tropical fish industry. The majority of fish we buy now are raised in this way and have been aclimatised to suit the conditions found in the average community aquarium. They are therefore an excelent choise for novice fish keepers. Buy a small shoal, feed them well and they will reward you with good colour ands plenty of activity. Although glowlights will accept all food given to them, you do need to pay some attention to the feeding regime. The fish prefer to be fed small amounts two or three times a day, rather than a single meal in the morning or evening, although they will survive on this. The little-and-often feeding really comes into play if you wish to breed them.
You should also check the fish you buy. Due to inbreeding they can sometimes exhibit deformities.

They come from Guyana in the Essequibo river

Males and females grow to 4cm(1.6in)

Water: slightly acidic to neutral, soft to slightly hard.
Temp: 23 - 28 celceus (73 - 82 f)
Food: small live or frozen aquatic invertbrates, such as daphina, mosquito lavae and blood worm, flake foods.
Min number in aquarium: 4
Min tank size: 60cm (24inch)
Tank region: Middle



Hope this helps

 

[KittyKat]

...you can have as few as 4 of them...

 

[fluttermoth]

...They're hardy little shoaling fish, and you can have as few as 4 of them if you wish, and just get other shoaling fish to join with them...

Agreed. Shoaling fish should never be kept in a group of less than 6, but the more the better. Fish will only shoal with others of their own species, not just any shoaling fish.

 

[Flying-Minnow]

Im just going by what my book says.

And that not entirely true, my friend has five neon tetras and five black neons and they happily shoal together.

As I said, I'm no expert, im just going by what my book says its written by Gina Sandford who is a breeder of fish, so if she's incorrect then why is she saying 4 fish is enough? And why does she say its ok to put 4 of each in and they will shoal together?

 

[KittyKat]

Im just going by what my book says.

Do some more research online.. never trust a single source. You would be much better off looking at 10 and taking the average, on average.

And that not entirely true, my friend has five neon tetras and five black neons and they happily shoal together.

Some similar bodied fish will school together when there are not enough of their own kind.. that does not mean that it's a good alternative to real schools

As I said, I'm no expert, im just going by what my book says its written by Gina Sandford who is a breeder of fish, so if she's incorrect then why is she saying 4 fish is enough? And why does she say its ok to put 4 of each in and they will shoal together?

That name is ringing bells over here, and not the good ones. I'll have a look at home this evening to see if I have anything by her.. but basically, it's very easy to get a book published, but that doesn't mean that it's right. I would recommend that you raid the internet for knowledge, but if you really want good books, I can recommend AquaLog and Aquarium Atlas: you will find that they will not have any stocking information (because it is usually quite silly, giving that), but they are excellent for learning how to identify fish.

 

[steve26-2008]

I'm only looking to stock cardinal tetras and maybe ember tetras are the two ok together. How many could I stock in a 48ltr tank.

 

[Aqua Tom]

Start with 6 cardinal tetras & see how you get on.


A~T

 

[KittyKat]

I'm only looking to stock cardinal tetras and maybe ember tetras are the two ok together. How many could I stock in a 48ltr tank.

+1 start with only 6 of one..

But you can expect the tank to take 6 of each easily, although I would personally recommend only 12 ember tetras and not cardinals.