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| FAQs on the Minnows called Barbs, Danios
and Rasboras Systems Related Articles:
Barbs, Danios & Rasboras, A
Barbed Response; Wrongly maligned for being fin-nippers, barbs are in fact
some of the best fish for the home aquarium by Neale Monks
Related FAQs: Barbs, Danios,
Rasboras 1, Barbs, Danios, Rasboras 2,
B,D,R Identification,
B,D,R Behavior,
B,D,R Compatibility, B,D,R Selection,
B,D,R Feeding,
B,D,R Disease, B,D,R Reproduction, |
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Fire Rasboras, sys. 7/8/09
Hello Bob and Crew
<Kevin>
Today I received some Fire Rasboras, Rasbora vaterifloris, so I mainly
wanted to run some stuff by you guys and see if you had any suggestions.
They were a special order through my work, and I decided to get them
still in the bag that they were shipped in. I know this is not something
that you generally suggest doing, but because of how sensitive they are
supposed to be I felt they would be better in my tank.
<Agreed... no sense moving them twice>
To acclimatize the nine of them to the tank I dripped them for an hour
and a half. After which I netted the and moved them to the tank. The
tank is a 5.5 gallon with a Hydro-Sponge III for filtration. The tank
temperature is 80F, pH 6.8, KH 50, GH 100, nitrite 0, and nitrate 10.
The maintenance schedule is going to be a daily water change for the 2-3
weeks that they will be in this tank. The water in the 5.5 was set up
with half rainwater, half pond water as well as some plants from the
natural pond that I have. There is live foods preset from the pond water
and plants that the rasboras have been eating already. I haven't tried
any prepared foods yet, though I was planning on mainly feeding frozen
foods to them. Any immediate concerns that you have about this temporary
set up for the Rasboras?
<Mmmm, not knowing the "type" of water they were in before... I can only
speculate... but likely this will be fine>
In 2-3 weeks time I plan on moving them to either a 20 tall or a 29
gallon, depends how fast the fish in the 29 grow. Once the rasboras are
in the larger tank I want to add some other fish with them, my main
thoughts were some harlequin rasboras and some glass catfish, which
should be compatible.
The plan was to then aquascape with wood, java fern, and some crypt
plants.
Filtration will most likely be the Hydro-Sponge hooked up to a
powerhead, as well as an Aqua Clear 30, could this be too much current
for the rasboras?
<Should be fine>
Thanks
Kevin
<Welcome! Bob Fenner>
Danios and High Alkalinity 12/30/08
Hi,
I have six cold water Danio's
<Danio rerio? The Zebra?
http://fishbase.org/Summary/speciesSummary.php?ID=4653&genusname=Danio&speci
esname=rerio>
in my four gallon tank. The tank has a filter and air pump but
no heater as of yet as the temperature seems to stay at a stable 18C.
<At
the low end... of their range>
I just tested my water and noticed that the
Alkalinity and hardness was quite high. According to the chart on the pot of
test strips my Ph level is at 6.4; my alkalinity at around 20ppm; my hardness at
14ppm;
<Mmm, unusual to have such high alkalinity, hardness coupled with low
pH>
my nitrate at 0ppm and my nitrite at 0ppm. I'm not sure whether this is
normal for the tank but I don't think it is. I cant find any chart as to what
the level should be at for these fish.
<See the Fishbase.org link above>
The other curious thing is that I actually live in a soft water area, however, I
get my water from a natural spring (Malvern Hill spring water) as this was
recommended to us by a neighbour who keeps tropical fish. Could the natural
minerals in this water be the cause of this problem?
<Problem? You do want
some buffering capacity...>
And what can I do to sort it out if it is a
problem? And what should my levels be at for these fish?
<Again... need to
know the species... is this it?>
The only information that I can find said I
should filter the tank through peat moss but as this is illegal I don't think it
is the best of ideas!
Thanks so much for your help!
Catriona
<Illegal
to use peat moss? I wonder why? Bob Fenner>
Re: Danios and High Alkalinity
12/30/08
Hi, thanks for your help I will check out the link. The
fish are sold as Danio they have a huge tank of them and they come in a variety
of colours, they are very common in the pet shops around here, especially at
Just For Pets.
<... need to know the species... Please... see the Net re...
Google, Images...>
Peat Moss is just an illegal substance in general!
<Bizarre... have used it for decades... is a component of many soils,
amendments...>
The tank at the shop is kept at 18C and they said that that
was actually just a bit warmer
than you need to keep them as they are cold
water!
<Depends... is this a circular discussion? On the species... BobF>
Re: Danios and High Alkalinity
12/30/08
http://www.dkimages.com/discover/previews/927/30009417.JPG
this is a picture of a leopard Danio of which I have two. I also have a pearl
Danio, two stripped Danio and one other which I'm not sure what variety it is!
<I see... These are social animals that really need to be in species
schools... but you don't have room for this/them in four gallons>
Peat Moss
has been illegal in Britain for years!
<Does seem odd... am going to ask a
friend, fellow WWM Crewmember if he has ideas why this is the case... Thank you,
Bob Fenner>
Re: Danios and High Alkalinity
12/30/08
Hi Bob, Catriona,
It isn't obvious to me that the use of
peat moss is illegal in the UK, although peat bogs are certainly protected
environments where limited, if any, harvesting takes place. You certainly can
buy aquarium-ready peat formulations such as Eheim EhfiTorf (a concentrated peat
granulate) in most aquarium shops.
In any case, aquarists have numerous
sustainable alternatives. Peat extracted from streams as it washes down
mountainsides naturally is one source. I use a brand called "Mountain Gold" for
rearing carnivorous plant seedlings. Coir (coconut fibre) is sold in blocks for
use in reptile and amphibian habitats and once expanded in water is an extremely
economical, highly sustainable alternative. Unlike peat, coir has only a slight
impact on water chemistry. While it certainly tints the water, it doesn't
dramatically lower pH and carbonate hardness. It's best for situations where you
want peat a decorative substrate or for spawning (e.g., with killifish) rather
than for water chemistry modification.
Since Danios couldn't care less about
water chemistry, and only care about water chemistry stability, I'd not waste my
time on any of this unless I was planning on breeding them. And even then, I'd
be using rainwater to dilute hard tap water 50/50. That produces moderately
hard, slightly basic (pH 7.2-7.5) water that suits Danio species just fine.
Cheers, Neale
<Thank you for this timely input and keen U.K. petfish insight
Neale.
BobF>
Danio stays suspended in
water 10/19/07
I searched desperately on your sight to find this specific problem and
couldn't find it.
I have 5 danios in a 10 gallon tank for 5 weeks now. They were all fine until 2
days ago, one just hovers above the gravel in front of the castle
<Danios can't be kept in a 10 gallon tank. It's too small for them. They are
hyperactive fish, and also very hierarchical, spending a lot of time chasing one
another about. In a too-small tank, the dominant fish will bully the others, and
you will find one fish dying every few weeks from stress, until eventually you
have just one or two specimens left.>
which is about 5 inches wide and never really moves much beyond the length of
the castle unless prompted by the other danios.
<"Prompted" is probably not the word: "bullied" is. I've seen this happen
before, and that is why I absolutely and categorically consider Danios
unsuitable for a 10 gallon tank. You need at least 6 specimens for their
behaviour to "be good", and they need 20 gallons of space so that they can
maintain their "personal space" without problems.>
The ammonia and nitrites and nitrates are all at 0 ppm and he shows no outward
appearances on body of being ill.
<Good.>
He doesn't look like he is suffering, just that he is bored or depressed.
<Stressed, actually.>
I did do a 30% water change and added aquarium salt, Stress coat and vacuumed
the gravel. Did another very small water change the next day.
<Why on Earth are you adding salt to the aquarium? Do you have some brackish
water fish in there as well? Freshwater fish do not want or like salt added to
the water. Assuming you have water chemistry within the range of preferences for
Danios (moderate hardness, pH 6.5-8.0) you should be fine.>
No real change. I don't know what else to do. I know the key thing is water
change, etc. I have done that and I'm at a loss.
<The issue here is social behaviour. Solution: bigger tank, add some more
specimens of the same species. This will fix the problem. Nothing else will. And
once this fish dies, another will get listless, and so on...>
Can you answer this quickly and advise specifically where I could locate my
answer. With the several feed backs on each page of your website makes It
difficult to find.
Thank you,
Irene
<Hope this helps. Cheers, Neale>
Re: Danio stays suspended in
water 10/20/07
Of all the reading I did, I saw that 10 gallon tank was sufficient for these
small fish that once they reach adult size, is 2 inches.
<Yes, this is commonly said. But it isn't true. They need swimming space.
Fishbase (the primary source of scientific fish information on the Internet)
says this about Zebra Danios -- "Aquarium keeping: in groups of 5 or more
individuals; minimum aquarium size 60 cm". I'd agree with that. 60 cm (= 24
inches) is by my reckoning a standard 20 US gallon tank. If you happen to have a
very long and wide, but shallow, 10 US gallon tank that gives the fish 60 cm/24"
of swimming space, then you might be fine. But if you have a standard 10 US
gallon tank, which is 50 cm/20" long or thereabouts, then you're out of luck
really. Funnily enough I just finished writing an article for 'Tropical Fish
Hobbyist' on stocking ten-gallon tanks, and one aspect of the article is why
inactive schooling fish, like Neons, are better than hyperactive ones, like
Danios.>
So much for doing my research.
<Research is good. But 'best practise' changes over time, and what was once
considered acceptable might not be acceptable now. And to be fair, Danios have
been kept successfully in 10 gallon tanks. I just don't consider it reliable. If
you have an aggressive male in there who wants to throw his weight about,
there's a lot of chasing, a potentially casualties.>
I even researched on the fishless cycling so these fish would never be exposed
to ammonia or nitrites and when that was finished (about 6 weeks later when
ammonia and nitrites were 0), I added them all to the tank.
<Very good.>
I guess the only way you learn with fishkeeping is through trial and error
because research obviously didn't help here.
<Indeed. My most recent experience with Danios was with six Danio choprae added
to a 10 gallon tank. Within a couple of months, the two dominant males had
killed off all their schoolmates, and all they did was chase and nip each other
all the time.>
Too many differences of opinion.
<Agreed.>
I don't have room for a 20 gal. Tank, that's why I went with the Danios.
<Ah, that's a pity. But to be fair, a 20 gallon needn't take up much more
space.>
Now what?
<Can't offer any magic bullets. Doubling the number of Danios in there might
help, by diffusing the aggression and weakening the pecking order. But that
would double to load on the filter, and worse, there's no guarantees, and you
might just end up with twice as many bullies!>
Thank you,
Irene
<For the time being, maybe just sit and wait. See if things settle down. Perhaps
the fish will all start playing nicely, and you won't have problems. Keep an eye
open for other problems that might be at work. Keep tabs on water chemistry and
quality. Try varying the diet a bit, to coax the quiet fish into activity. Live
daphnia usually do the job nicely. Good luck, Neale>
pH in water
Mr. Fenner,
I have a 20 gal tank that I started about 2 weeks ago. I set up the tank (used
tap water and treated) and let it run for a week w/out fish. On Sunday, 8/5/01,
I introduced 2 tiger barbs and 2 gold barbs. Just before I introduced the fish,
the water began to cloud up. I thought it was the level of the ph (7.6).
My questions are: 1. Is 7.6ph safe for a tank and what fish will do well?
<This pH should be fine for your barbs>
2. What could be causing the cloudiness?
<Very likely this is a "population explosion" of microbes... common when a tank
starts off sterile... as in all new. Do take care not to overfeed, and monitor
ammonia, nitrite if you can during this "break-in" period>
3. When would be a good time to introduce other fish and add plants to the tank?
<After the cloudiness is gone... likely in a week or two. Please do use our
site: www.WetWebMedia.com for more input. Be chatting, Bob Fenner>
Thank-you for your time.
Scott
Re: pH in/of water
What other types of fish could I introduce to the tank?
<A very large selection... but do take care to check on their compatibility and
average maximum size... the rasboras, Danios, larger livebearers, perhaps some
of the medium size/temperament Gouramis, loaches, many, many catfishes... Take a
look on our site under livestock selection and the various groups surveyed. Bob
Fenner>
Temporary Fish Housing (12/23/2003)
Hi-ya thanks for any help you can give me. I am wanting to move my community
tank upstairs as a larger tank has been bought for the living room to host
Discus. The tank currently running is a 35 gallon community tank. With around 15
fish, biggest of which are silver sharks ( a pair ) around 3-4 inch in length.
<Are these Bala "Sharks" (Balantiocheilos melanopterus) or Hemiodus? Either of
these will get bigger and need a bigger home. Depending on the projected adult
size of your 15 fish, your tank may be overstocked.> The other tank is a 75
gallon which is not set-up as yet. It will have an Eheim 2026 pro II for
filtration. I am wanting to move the fish into this larger tank temporarily. So
I have a couple of weeks to clean out and replace various parts of the old tank.
Just wondering how quickly I can move the fish into this new tank without
risking their health. I will start with just a couple of the more hardy fish
like the mollies and the green tiger barbs. The tank is quite large for the fish
going into it. <not really> How long should I leave the tank before any fish go
in? assuming its free from chlorine. <Seed it with water & filter material from
the 35, it will cycle very quickly and you should be able to start after just a
few days transferring a few fish every few days. And how quickly should I add
the rest? <No clear-cut formula here. Maybe 1/4 of the fish every 3-4 days. If
you can get some Bio-Spira (check Marineland's website for info), you can cycle
the tank instantly.> I will then of course have to slowly move them back to the
original. <Consider Bio-Spira> Would greatly appreciate any tips or hints you
could give me, in this stressful time for my little friends!! <Your "sharks"
would be better off in a 55G tank than a 35--they need the swimming room of a
48" long tank. Good luck, Steve Allen>
High pH, Fighting Danios
Hi guys. You have the greatest website! I got my first tank two weeks ago.
It is a ten gallon freshwater community tank, several plastic plants, 50 watts
heater, two thermometers one internal and one external, one fake rock with 3
holes on it, one undergravel filter, two inch deep gravel strata (rounded and
more or less pea sized), one aqua-tech outside power filter, one small sponge
filter. The pH of our tap water is about 7.4 to 7.6. I added water conditioner
(Tetra Aqua Safe), Stress Zyme, five teaspoons of salt for freshwater aquarium.
At the beginning the water got a little cloudy. I waited one week and added 3
Zebra Danios Next day I added one ounce of Bio-Spira freshwater bacteria from
Marineland. The water became clear again within 24 hours. The Danios (one small
male, one small female and a larger older individual whose gender is a mystery
to me) were fine. They were exploring and racing around. Then the two smaller
Danios began to dance in circles at the bottom of the aquarium. The older
individual took possession of the upper and middle part of the aquarium and
began to chase and bump-fight the small male while the small female was hidden
in the plants. Within 48 hours the small male stopped racing and eating and
died. I examined the body. There were no signs of disease or injury. The older
individual still chases the small female every time they meet. The small female
is fine but she is confined to a corner of the aquarium that is covered in
plants most of the time. She ventures out often, but she goes back when the
larger Danio chases her. When I feed the fish, I feed them very little food,
twice or once a day. I try to feed them the minimum amount of food possible. I
underfeed them because they are too busy fighting each other to eat all of it.
Although the Danios come immediately to the food, they promptly begging to fight
and some flakes end up sinking and the fish remain hungry. I worry about the
food sinking. My last pH reading is in the range of 7.6 to 8. My ammonia reading
is 0. My nitrite reading is 0.2. I have several questions:
What could have happened to the small male Zebra Danio?
<<Aggression, high ammonia, nitrites. What did your ammonia test at last week?
Must have been some, there has to be ammonia for it to be converted into
nitrite. Do you have nitrates yet? You should be testing this tank everyday.>>
What is it with the large Zebra Danio (I was told they are peaceful fish)?
<<They are not. And a toxic tank will not make them any nicer, either...>>
Could the small female Zebra Danio be hurt by constant harassment?
<<Certainly>>
Is it a good idea to add other fish to the tank?
<<No.>>
If so is this list a good list: one male Beta, two more Zebra Danios, two female
Guppies and two small Cory Cats? Are this fish too many (taking into account all
my filters and that I am willing to do a 25% water change weekly and a mayor
water change monthly)? Would they take my pH as it is? How can I modify this
list to avoid disaster?
<<Do NOT add any fish now. Your tank is still cycling. Hence the high pH, etc.
And certainly don't add all of these at one time! And definitely avoid putting
guppies and a Betta into a tank with Danios. Disaster awaits if you do.>>
Until now I have resisted the impulse of applying pH-lowering product to my tank
but What can I do with my pH (7.6 to 8.0)? Should I make a 25% water change now
(taking into account that the food keeps sinking because of the fighting of my
Danios)?
<<As I said, your pH is high because the tank is CYCLING. It will stabilize in a
month or so. Have PATIENCE, please. Do not mess with your pH, you will not be
helping your fish if you do. The pH will end up all over the place, and your
fish will end up dead from a combination of pH shock, nitrite poisoning, and
stress..>>
Finally, If Bio-Spira is so amazing, why are some dealers against it? Thank you
for your help.
<<I personally like Bio-Spira, it's an excellent product when it's being used
properly. However, results will differ from tank to tank. Dealers simply don't
like it when people with no experience try to cycle with it and end up with dead
fish, as in your case. Please do some reading, buy yourself some ammonia,
nitrite, and nitrate test kits, and be PATIENT. Test your water regularly, do
waterchanges when readings become high, and do NOT add fish until the tank has
NO ammonia and NO nitrites left. Keep two small fish in the tank during cycling.
TWO! not more! Keeping a written record of your test results will help. :)
-Gwen>>
Barbs, something bunk with their environment
Hello, wanted to now could you tell me what this is my barbs keep dying they
have there mouths stuck open no function? then they get some sort of fungus its
been going on for about two months started treating with MelaFix no results
then done everything to clean that up waited then did ick meds. still
sick repeated clean up then waited then hit them hard with paragon by
AquaTropics for wide spectrum anti-parasitic and anti-bacterial control.. still
have new case of the mouth open stuck?????? i really don't now what else to
do but dispose of these two so others wont get sick??? what could i
do. thanks
< Barbs need clean well aerated water. Check your water for ammonia and
nitrites, both should be zero. Nitrates should be below 25 ppm. If you are
convinced that it is not bacterial or protozoans then you could try and treat
for gill flukes with fluke tabs or clout.-chuck>
Kat..
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