Barb Compatibility

[ns2d]

Hey guys,

I have a question regarding barbs: I currently have 2 Tiger Barbs but I understand they do better in larger groups; can I mix similar-sized/shaped barbs with them and will this fulfill the function of having more than only two (i.e. will they school?), or must they be of exactly the same species for this to work?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Wills]

Tiger barbs are naturally a shoaling fish in nature and this is something that you must replicate in your tank. In the wild they are found in hundreds so keeping as higher numbers as possible is best but in the case of most shoaling fish 6 is considered the minimum though obviously the more the better. With tiger barbs though because they are nippy and slightly aggressive fish its best to keep them in at least 10s.

How big is your tank and what other tank mates do you have?

Wills

 

[waterdrop]

Agree with the advice from Wills. Tiger barbs are among the most aggressive fish that are kept in average aquariums and often a successful use of them involves having them be the main focus of the tank and finding perhaps some bottom dwellers that they won't bother. I agree with the 10 or so minimum and they need to be all the same species and ideally even roughly the same size tigers within the group (its not for nothing they got the name )

~~waterdrop~~

 

[fluttermoth]

...they need to be all the same species and ideally even roughly the same size tigers within the group (its not for nothing they got the name )

~~waterdrop~~

And I thought it was just because of the stripes

No, I agree with you guys; I love my Tigers but I wouldn't try and keep anything much with them. Mine live in a shoal of 18 with some zebra loach (and a clown plec, but no-one ever sees the clown plec!) and that's it. They're stunning fish kept like that anyway; they're so busy, you don't need anything else in there tbh.

Just my opinion, obviously, but I really think more people should concentrate on having larger shoals of less different types; I'm sure the fish are much happier (and I think it looks better than having ones and twos of loads of types; again, just my opinion)

 

[ns2d]

The tank is about 15 gal (US). I made the mistake of actually listening to the LFS and have clearly overstocked with potentially incompatible species (2 Angels, 2 Gourami, 2 Tiger Barbs and one Bala) and made all sorts of other heinous mistakes, however I was determined not to lose any to ignorance and 6 weeks on the water chemistry is stable and they are apparently in good health.

At the moment they are all tiny and space isn't much of an issue. I isolated one Angel whom the Barbs were making miserable and more or less hand fed him until he regained some strength and courage. I also planted the tank and now he has no problem dealing with the barbs or disappearing into the foliage. I will set up a tank dedicated to the angels and buy a larger tank for the rest (90+gal) relatively soon.

Obviously I will not add any more fish until I get the bigger tank. I understand that the Bala may eventually become big and that they also do better in groups so I will adapt to that situation when it happens.

At this stage I'm just gathering info on potential solutions and compatibility. I understand also that Angels do better in groups of 3+ because of dominance issues so when I set up a tank for them I will add another.

 

[fluttermoth]

Ah, yet more bad advice from an LFS

Never mind, ns2d; at least you're trying to do the right thing; best of luck with your tank upgrades...watch out for the bala shark too; they can be aggressive when there's only one of them.

 

[Timmy_Bee]

i agree that tigers are better when in a proper shoal, but they can be quite happy in 2's or 3's - i have got 3 green tigers and 1 original tiger (had more originally ) and they are quite happy with their tank mates of other barbs (rosy, odessa, cherry) but they dont shoal much with the others.
But the greens / tiger are very happy as a group, so if you want a mixture in your shoal, i would recommed green tigers.

As you and othes have said, tigers are probs the most agressive barbs, so i would think twice about other species as tank mates

 

[ns2d]

^ Thanks for all your advice guys, I will take it all very seriously. I think I will set up a larger tank just for the barbs, predominantly (or perhaps exclusively) tiger and green tigers.

 

[fluttermoth]

Pleasure to help out mate.

Good luck with your bigger tanks; I'm sure you'll enjoy them

 

[ns2d]

Pleasure to help out mate.

Good luck with your bigger tanks; I'm sure you'll enjoy them

There's me simply wanting to put my sister's old goldfish tank to some use and one idiotic bit of advice from a LFS later and I'm going to end up with a house full of aquariums, I can see it already. Still, I've learnt too much about nitrites and ammonia to give up now; besides it's my own stoopy fault for not researching first, but I will not let the fish suffer for that mistake.

Thanks again!

 

[waterdrop]

I'll mention that a couple of significant things for the angels are that they need at least 17 inches of tank height and a minimum of roughly 30G. A 29G-tall (a popular size in the USA) is often considered the bare minimum for a pair. As you've found out, they can particularly be victims of Tiger Barbs and in fact this is one of the classic beginner mistake problems that's been around at least since the 1950's, having these two in the same tank.

~~waterdrop~~