To Be A Tinfoil, or Not To Be A Tinfoil.... - 12/13/2005
Hey guys, I saw these fish that look almost identical to a tinfoil barb.  In
the pet store they were actually considering them "tinfoil barbs", but I was
able to tell a significant difference.  The mystery fish looks and swims
similar, and they're shiny silver just like the Tinfoils.  The only
difference is that there are no red on their fins but they're fins sort of
have a pearl finish on the ends of them.  Any idea of what this fish could
be?  I want to find some info on it so I can see how big it gets,
aggressive, etc.
<Jason, does this look about right?  http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=27525 You might also do a search on http://www.fishbase.org for genus Barbonymus and genus Poropuntius to see if you find a match with any of the species listed.>
Thanks  -Jason McCorry
<Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>

Identifying the Red Glass Barb
<<Hello, JasonC here filling in for Bob while he is away.>>
Hello, I have a barb that is known as the red glass barb and recently spawned these and have thriving fry. However, I cannot find any info or the true name of these barbs. Can you help? <<Could this be the rosy barb, just misnamed? Check Bob's article: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/barbsdaniosrasboras.htm >>
Wilma
<<Cheers, J -- >>

Re: red glass barbs
No, they have the body appearance of the Puntius sachsii, with the one black
spot near the caudal fin. The males are a bright reddish orange the females
are a pale yellow. They lay eggs over a period of days, the first time I
spawned them I remove the parents that evening and had only six fry, second
time same steps - 4 fry, third attempt, left them in a tanks for 5 days and
now have around 50 fry. Not typical spawning for rosy barbs. I have seen
them listed on fish lists but not their true name.
Wilma
<Hmm, this well may be a sport of the Gold-finned barb... Please see: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/barbsdanias.htm for some pix and further input.
Bob Fenner>

Is it a tinfoil or what?
>Hi,
>>Hello, Marina available for a short time today.
>I possess what I believed to be a tinfoil, however I did at one point looked after two Tinfoils in same tank.  The problem is the two Tinfoils are Tinfoils but my one has larger scales more streamlined body but has same colouring.  Is there a variant or is it an uncommon type of barb.  
>>Difficult to say, as there are many similar barbs available in the trade.  I would venture a guess that this is actually a different species, and it's quite difficult to determine further without a picture what species it is (the problem with common names, eh?).
>It was bought as a tinfoil but I'm unsure of its id.  Also I have read that Tinfoils are best kept in groups as my one is on its own & seems to be quite happy.  Is that ok?
>>Generally true, but keeping fish is as much art as science, and if yours are happy then don't rock the boat, is my philosophy.  You can try looking at http://www.fishbase.org (though I've only used this site for saltwater specification), or use the Google bar at the bottom of the homepage for our site--MANY pictures are available, and you might find the animal you actually possess.  Best of luck, Marina

Tinfoil barb
Hi,
    I possess what I believed to be a tinfoil however I did at one point looked after two Tinfoils in same tank. The problem is the two Tinfoils are Tinfoils but my one has larger scales more streamlined body but has same colouring. Is there a variant or is it an uncommon type of barb. It was bought as a tinfoil but I'm unsure of its id. Also I have read that Tinfoils are best kept in groups as my one is on its own & seems to be quite happy. Is that ok? Many thanks P Mitchell
<I am sure there are some variations from fish to fish, but the should look pretty similar, search for tinfoil barb on fishbase.org for a positive ID.  Depending on your tank size, and assuming it is a tinfoil barb, I would go with at least 3.  Best Regards, Gage>

What it IS! Goldfin tinfoil barb, that is.
>Hi it's Paul again,
>>Hello Paul.
>Thanks for your advice.  I looked into fishbase.org & established that my fish is in fact a Goldfin tinfoil barb (Poropuntius
malcolmi) & grows to 50cm from same family order & has similar habits.  This problem has bugged me for quite a while so many thanks again for sending me in the right direction.
Best regards P Mitchell.
>>Very glad I could be of help, Paul.  May you never again be so bugged.  ;)  Marina

Lamb chop Rasbora - a Harlequin Look-Alike
Hello WWM Team,
<Hi Craig, Sabrina here, today>
Hope you can help me. I recently bought fish labeled Harlequin Rasbora. The problem is, I know what a Harlequin looks like and the reason I bought these fish was they are a Rasbora I have not seen before. I am hoping you can identify them for me.
<Will gladly try!>
They have the same colouring as the Harlequin with some changes. The blue triangle is evident as in the Harlequin, however, the same blue is also displayed in a very thin line along the anal area. The iridescent orange is a definite mark confined to the edge of the triangle and then extending past the triangle towards the gill in a definite half-circular mark. The remainder of the body colour is golden  .The body is far more slender than the Harlequin and the fins are all translucent, unlike the Harlequin which are reddish/orange. The eyes are also golden and not orange...any ideas?  Craig
<This sounds unmistakably like the "Lamb chop" Rasbora, Trigonostigma espei.  The "Harlequin" Rasbora, Trigonostigma heteromorpha, as you've mentioned, is quite a bit more common in the US, but the lamb chops do show up a lot.  T. espei will only grow to about half the size of T. heteromorpha, and is a touch more sensitive as well.  More info from fishbase on the harlequin:  http://filaman.uni-kiel.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?genusname=Trigonostigma&speciesname=heteromorpha  and on the lamb chop:  http://filaman.uni-kiel.de/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?genusname=Trigonostigma&speciesname=espei .  Be sure to make use of all the links throughout those pages if you wish to learn more detail on the fish, there is a lot of info there!  Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>

Rosy Barbs mistakenly mixed with another species?
I have a 29 gallon tank with (among others species) 5 Rosy Barbs (1 male
and 4 females).  One of the females is considerably smaller than the
others (she is also younger, so at first this did not bother me) and she
is a different shape.  Rosy Barbs are more or less symmetrical from nose
to tail; she is shaped like a Rosy in her top half, but nearly flat
along her bottom half (she's almost shaped more like my clown loaches,
although much smaller!)
<Interesting>
I became alarmed when, in addition to being smaller, I noticed that she
was behaving oddly.  She swims listlessly, and then will suddenly
perform a series of aerobatic maneuvers in just a small area of the
tank. (upside down, sideways, back and forth, loop-de-loops, etc.)
After a few minutes, she goes back to being listless.  
She doesn't race to the top of the tank to eat like the other Barbs do
either.
I looked online, wondering if she was another species accidentally mixed
in with Rosies, and her behavior was as a result of being a schooling
fish with no "friends", and found this photo:
http://www.jjphoto.dk/fish_archive/aquarium/puntius_bimaculatus.htm
which is similar, but not quite identical to my fish.
<Okay... another Puntius species>
When I researched this fish, I found they are native to Sri Lanka, and
not much else.  But I thought Rosy Barbs were native to Indonesia, which
makes my accidental theory not very likely.
<Mmm, likely both or at least the Rosies were cultured... so not wild-collected in the country of their origin>
So my question is, is it possible that she is a different species, and
if so, any theories on which one?  And, is she sick, lonely, or simply
nutty, (or perfectly normal for her species), and how do I deal with it?
Thanks,
Paul
PS: Wonderful website!!
<Thank you Paul. Yes to being (likely) a "contaminant"... an accidentally mixed in species... not able to say of course, which species... but likely another minnow/barb... can/will live with the others very likely. You can trade in, look for others of its kind, or keep and enjoy. Bob Fenner>

Re: Rosy Barbs mistakenly mixed with another species?
Thanks.
About the behavior, (assuming she is a Puntius species of Barb) is that
likely a sign of illness?  Or possibly normal?
<Possibly normal, but if illness, not contagious, but genetic, developmental in nature>
"She swims listlessly, and then will suddenly
perform a series of aerobatic maneuvers in just a small area of
the
tank. (upside down, sideways, back and forth, loop-de-loops,
etc.)
After a few minutes, she goes back to being listless.  
She doesn't race to the top of the tank to eat like the other
Barbs do
either."
Thanks again,
Paul Lord
<Welcome. Bob Fenner>