# Can someone tell me what type of fish this is?



## 17eddyd (Mar 17, 2014)

Hey, I recently found this guy(or girl) literally on my door step. About two weeks ago someone knocked on my door and when I opened it, the fish was there. he doesn't seem to have any illnesses and he moves around a lot. Does anyone know of this fish would be okay with a beta or if he's a schooling fish? I have him in a very small 1.5 gallon because it ls the only thing I have at the moment, I'm looking forward to getting a 10 gallon and putting him with some other fish.


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## Cey (Jan 15, 2015)

That's a Black Skirt Tetra! It is a schooling fish and he shouldn't be alone. I see them at the pet store all the time. They are very peaceful. You MIGHT be able to keep them with a betta, in a large enough tank, but you definitely need more than one of those guys.

Edit: That is his max size pretty much (2-3"), so in a ten gallon I suppose you could fit 3 of them with a betta? You might be able to squeeze five in (and I imagine a minimum of 5 is preferable for a schooling fish of any sort), but I don't know how well that would work out. Also I feel like I should note it depends entirely on your betta and how "offended" he is by them and their long fins.


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## 17eddyd (Mar 17, 2014)

Cey said:


> That's a Black Skirt Tetra! It is a schooling fish and he shouldn't be alone. I see them at the pet store all the time. They are very peaceful. You MIGHT be able to keep them with a betta, in a large enough tank, but you definitely need more than one of those guys.
> 
> Edit: That is his max size pretty much (2-3"), so in a ten gallon I suppose you could fit 3 of them with a betta? You might be able to squeeze five in (and I imagine a minimum of 5 is preferable for a schooling fish of any sort), but I don't know how well that would work out. Also I feel like I should note it depends entirely on your betta and how "offended" he is by them and their long fins.


Thank you so much! I'll do my best to get him with some other fish and in a bigger, most likely, planted tank.


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## Cey (Jan 15, 2015)

No problem! And wow, I've never heard of anyone making anonymous doorstep fish drops, but I suppose a fish is easier to take care of than a human baby. :lol:

My local Petco's / Petsmart's are having $1/gallon sales right now until January... 24th, I wanna say? As far as I know, this sale is nationwide and at every Petco / Petsmart regardless of state. Would be a great time to pick up a 20 Long, which is a great tank as far as both volume-size and length for the fish to swim around in. Or, if you know any independent fish shops nearby you, you can see if any of them have used tanks they are trying to sell. The guy near me sold me a used 20 gallon long for $10 just because it needed a lot of cleaning work ("elbow grease" as he called it) and he wanted it off his hands. So you never know!

And even if you can't STOCK the tank right now, you can still take advantage of the sale and go ahead and grab it so you have it, and then set it up as you go.


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## 17eddyd (Mar 17, 2014)

Cey said:


> No problem! And wow, I've never heard of anyone making anonymous doorstep fish drops, but I suppose a fish is easier to take care of than a human baby. :lol:
> 
> My local Petco's / Petsmart's are having $1/gallon sales right now until January... 24th, I wanna say? As far as I know, this sale is nationwide and at every Petco / Petsmart regardless of state. Would be a great time to pick up a 20 Long, which is a great tank as far as both volume-size and length for the fish to swim around in. Or, if you know any independent fish shops nearby you, you can see if any of them have used tanks they are trying to sell. The guy near me sold me a used 20 gallon long for $10 just because it needed a lot of cleaning work ("elbow grease" as he called it) and he wanted it off his hands. So you never know!
> 
> And even if you can't STOCK the tank right now, you can still take advantage of the sale and go ahead and grab it so you have it, and then set it up as you go.


Thanks for the advice, I'm a new fish owner as of two weeks ago so any and all advice is welcome


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## SeaHorse (Dec 27, 2010)

Yes don't be afraid of the white hard mineral deposits on a used tank. Vinegar works amazing. Takes time and elbow grease but it will pretty much all come off. I also suggest the bigger tank and go long. Interestingly too, some tanks have the same foot print. So a foot print of a 35 gallon might also be the same as a 45 tall, same length and width but different height. That means that down the road if you ever want to go a bit bigger but don't have the floor space you can go taller. I did this when my tank leaked... replaced it with a taller version. So when you pick one out ask the sales rep if a bigger tank will fit the same stand. Just a little trick to get more gallons!!


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## Nova betta (Dec 5, 2014)

do not worry i have got 5 doorstep fish.  that is a black skirt tetra and you can keep them alone if you HAD to but like cey said it is not the best idea. i recommend about 4 in a 10 gallon. I have one in a 40 gallon but there are alot of other fish. ( he schools with the fruit tetras.


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## Nova betta (Dec 5, 2014)

but again i would get more than one.


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## Cey (Jan 15, 2015)

SeaHorse said:


> Yes don't be afraid of the white hard mineral deposits on a used tank. Vinegar works amazing. Takes time and elbow grease but it will pretty much all come off. I also suggest the bigger tank and go long. Interestingly too, some tanks have the same foot print. So a foot print of a 35 gallon might also be the same as a 45 tall, same length and width but different height. That means that down the road if you ever want to go a bit bigger but don't have the floor space you can go taller. I did this when my tank leaked... replaced it with a taller version. So when you pick one out ask the sales rep if a bigger tank will fit the same stand. Just a little trick to get more gallons!!


I hadn't known that height trick, that's great to know! I won't be upgrading from my 20 L's for a while, but I definitely DO want larger tanks in the future. I am also currently doing the vinegar thing for the used 20 gallon, and some of the stains are being stubborn, but they are coming off with more time and more vinegar. 

I also have a straight razor blade I have been carefully using to help speed the process up. It will scrape a lot of the hard water stains right off! I usually do it while the vinegar + water solution is on there, though, as a lubricant -- while you CAN do it with the glass dry, I feel like wet glass is a lot better, but that's mostly my preference I think. I've cleaned house windows with dry glass and a straight razor, but... I baby my aquariums.

eddy, since you're new to aquariums, I'd suggest looking up what a "tank cycle" is or "how to cycle a tank" to learn about how fish waste affects your tank and what controls it, what ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates are and how they affect your tank, and why you need what they call "beneficial bacteria" to really run a healthy tank. 

Also, as I have recently learned, learn about quarantining your fish! And it helps to look up common fish diseases like ich so you know how to identify sick fish.


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## SeaHorse (Dec 27, 2010)

Yes good point Cey. I do mine wet obviously... but I use those dish scrubby pads. NOT the metal ones... or soapy ones... the flat green ones of plastic (white, yellow etc) from the $1 store. They won't scratch and you can really scrub and not leave marks on glass. I wouldn't do it on any tank that was plastic tho for those of you reading this with plastic tanks. 
We have horrendously hard water and so every water change I run the scrubby around the ring to try to stay ahead of it. (for a week or so. lol)


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## ellekay (Nov 11, 2014)

I agree, it's a schooling fish and should be in a group of 5 or 6 at the minimum. I would be cautious putting it with a betta, especially a male betta. If you do, I'd have a back up plan ready just in case they don't get along.


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## 17eddyd (Mar 17, 2014)

Thanks you all for all the great advice


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## Poro (Jan 3, 2015)

How do i get people to drop fish on my doorstep lol


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## JDragon (Jan 28, 2014)

Poro said:


> How do i get people to drop fish on my doorstep lol



Be careful what you ask for. Husband and I got an oscar.


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## MikeG14 (May 31, 2014)

ellekay said:


> I agree, it's a schooling fish and should be in a group of 5 or 6 at the minimum. I would be cautious putting it with a betta, especially a male betta. If you do, I'd have a back up plan ready just in case they don't get along.


+1 Ellekay

Black skirts get nippy as they get older. Keep them in large groups and they'll concentrate on each other instead of your betta. A high protein diet can curtail fin nipping as well.


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## JessikaSky (Sep 6, 2014)

JDragon said:


> Be careful what you ask for. Husband and I got an oscar.


Haha! Oscars are awesome, I so want one! :3 

I've never seen a black skirt tetra, (they probably don't sell them where I am) I kind of want one now!

@17eddyd he/she is a really cool looking! not a bad "doorstep" fish lol :lol:


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## Sylverclaws (Jul 16, 2012)

He's actually a long-fin black skirt tetra. You don't see those often here. =o How'd his fins get chewed up, do you know? They grow back if kept in a nice clean, stable environment. And they do prefer groups no smaller than five. 
They can be nippy little punks, so be sure you have enough room too. =) I would actually recommend a 30+ gallon for them as a minimum. Ten gallons is FAR too small, and a twenty gallon may become a nip-fest for them. Just an FYI if someone else hasn't mentioned it yet.

Whoever thought to make a long-finned species of nippy tetras was not thinking clearly, I gotta say. x.x


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