# Black neon tetra?



## mkayum (Jul 5, 2012)

I may consider them as an addition to my 2o gallon tank. They look gorgeous but I'm not sure about their care. I could get five of them because Petco are having sale on those fish.

Are their care same as neon tetra? Easy? Had experience with this fish?

Any advice will be appreciated !


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

Yeah you feed them and they school any tank mates that would affect it what do you think the PH.


----------



## mkayum (Jul 5, 2012)

Anyone?


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

mkayum said:


> Anyone?


Why did you type that in? But a well cared for Black Tetra can live 10 years 5 is is the good schooling minimum need 20 gallon tank are middle schooling. They prefer soft water. What kind of tank mates do you have?


----------



## DragonFish (Mar 31, 2009)

I'm no expert, but from what I understand they are about the same care-wise as regular Neons/most tetra species. They're schooling fish(5 is a good number, but if you have room for a couple more thats even better) though I don't think will school with any other Neons, normal tropical fish flakes/small tropical fish pellets/frozen foods every once in a while diet-wise....I can't recall anything extra special about them off the top of my head, lol. 

Whats in your tank at the moment?


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Black neons are gorgeous little fish. I'd like to have some in my tanks one day. They are a schooling fish and need groups of 6 or more. Personally, I don't keep schooling fish in groups any less than 10 because they school in groups by the thousands in the wild. And they simply look better maintained that way. As for water, they need a pH under 7 and fairly soft water. You can read more about these gorgeous little guys here: TFK profile for Black Neon Tetras (sister site to BF and maintained by the same mods)

What other fish do you have in your 20 gal?


----------



## mkayum (Jul 5, 2012)

thekoimaiden said:


> Black neons are gorgeous little fish. I'd like to have some in my tanks one day. They are a schooling fish and need groups of 6 or more. Personally, I don't keep schooling fish in groups any less than 10 because they school in groups by the thousands in the wild. And they simply look better maintained that way. As for water, they need a pH under 7 and fairly soft water. You can read more about these gorgeous little guys here: TFK profile for Black Neon Tetras (sister site to BF and maintained by the same mods)
> 
> What other fish do you have in your 20 gal?



Thank you! That's quite helpful site! I may consider it in the future. c:


I just got 4 white cloud minnows and a couple of Zebra danios! They are shoaling together with my male WC minnow. He look so much happier!




The fish/invents I have in 20 gallon tank...


7x kuhili loaches
2x Dwarf Gourami
6or less x ghost shrimps
2x nerite snails
2x apple snails
5x white cloud minnow (four new minnows)
1x bamboo shrimp
2x zebra danio (new addition)



I would upload few photos of my 20 gallon tank if you wanna see. c:


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Hmm. You look a little maxed out on stocking to me. I was going to do a school of black neons in with my cardinal tetra and a gourami and kuhli loaches in my 29 gallon but was advised against it. I was told two schools of column-swimming fish would make 29 gal tank look cramped. They will certainly be cramped in your 20 gal. I'd hold off on the black neons for now (trust me, it wasn't the advice I wanted to hear either because they are soo pretty).


----------



## Clint (Nov 9, 2012)

Hi - 

Regarding black neon tetras, does anyone know how much water current they prefer? I have a 20 gallon planted aquarium with only a small plecostomus (I'm not sure what species exactly, but he is at least two years old, 3 inches long, and healthy). There are also a bunch of MTS. 

There is quite a bit of current - I have a Fluval C3, Biowheel 150, and powerhead 20 gal - and I don't want the fast moving water to be too much for them.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Since they come from the flooded forests of South America I would say that they don't enjoy a strong current. It sounds more than fine for the pleco, tho. They do appreciate a current in the tank.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

3 inches what species do you have and Zebra danios are schooling.


----------



## Clint (Nov 9, 2012)

I am not totally sure what kind of pleco it is. Rubber lip seems to be the closest in appearance, as far as I can tell. I bought it from an independent fish store and was told he wouldn't get much bigger than that. He may be closer to 4" than 3 now that I think about it. In any case, he is over two years old, so is it safe to say he is full grown?


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

http://www.theaquariumwiki.com/Rubberlip_Pleco Still young and may be stunted.


----------



## Clint (Nov 9, 2012)

Looks to be a rubber lip pleco still, and apparently they grow to 4.7" average, so he should be ok for size, I think. Thanks for the link. Sorry to see they are not captive bred, though. I wouldn't have purchased him had I known he was probably wild caught.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

Wild caught is okay as long as they do well in captivity 3 inches sounds stunted to me or just small individual.


----------



## Clint (Nov 9, 2012)

Hmm, I think he is more like 4" which is about right for rubber lipped pleco. He has the tank to himself (except for some snails) and has good water quality.

I guess I could be OK with wild caught if they were caught in a regulated area in a controlled manner to prevent over-fishing and other problems, although would still feel bad about snatching him from a nice stream and stuffing him in my aquarium. What's done is done. At least not as bad as saltwater harvesting. In any case, thanks for the info.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

Sometimes wild caught is safer like if you catch a wild guppy in a nonative area less problems, if that area is going to be destroyed so they will die, it is endangered and you have permission to catch and breed, Cardinal tetras they breed fast in wild and catching them by , locals gives them income, they can catch the fish that breed fast, and in captivity they can live up ten times longer.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

While wild-caught can be an okay thing, this isn't always the case. More than a few species have become endangered due to the over-collection in the wild. This happened to celestial pearl danio until someone figured out how to breed them. It is currently happening to the beautiful redline barb (_Puntius denisonii_) although efforts are being made to breed them. Over-collection in the wild coupled with habitat degradation is causing their numbers to plummet. Another incident were wild-caught fish are bad is with the blue-eyed panaque, a rare loricariid catfish. They are found in an area of South America controlled by drug lords; if any wild fish is exported from that area, the proceeds go to these drug cartels (read more). So the lesson to this little rant is some wild caught fish like cardinal tetra are good, but others are bad. Research before you buy.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

It seems more species are saved by the aquarium trade than hurt. Look at WCMM. I agree it depends on species and area.


----------



## Clint (Nov 9, 2012)

I'm not sure an example of a fish that was captured almost to extinction in the wild is really encouraging. There may be many more _individuals _alive, but the native populations - and particularly the ecosystem - is where the permanent damage is. It looks like a new population was recently found, though: New population of endangered White clouds discovered | News | Practical Fishkeeping Exact location is being withheld to protect from collectors.

Sorry to have derailed this thread...I didn't really mean to. y End post.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

WCMM was almost extinct and a few were captured still rare in the wild super common in captivity. Sometimes capturing fish from the wild is there only hope of survival. What if the species is found in a few pools of water that an invasive species got into and is eating them to extiction. Capturing and beeding them is there only hope. I read about an Rainbow fish only found in one lake and is nearly extinct there and some were illegaly poached and then mass bred now there are a ton more.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

Clint said:


> I'm not sure an example of a fish that was captured almost to extinction in the wild is really encouraging. There may be many more _individuals _alive, but the native populations - and particularly the ecosystem - is where the permanent damage is. It looks like a new population was recently found, though: New population of endangered White clouds discovered | News | Practical Fishkeeping Exact location is being withheld to protect from collectors.
> 
> Sorry to have derailed this thread...I didn't really mean to. y End post.


I certainly see your point, Clint. It's not just about species-level conservation; it's about ecosystem-level conservation. I do feel it is a small victory when there are a lot of individuals alive, but it's still a net loss when the ecosystem is destroyed because it's not just the home for one species; it's the home for thousands of species. Axolotls (_Ambystoma mexicanum_) are another example of this. There are probably less than 100 individuals left in the wild, but there are thousands and thousands in captivity. However, we can't release ANY back because their original habitat has been drained and made into a canal. So not only have axolotls lost habitat but the hundreds of other species that lived in the lake have lost it, too.

Also, don't feel bad about derailing the thread. This is a very interesting topic that people need to hear about.


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

If there are 1000s of individuals we can keep them captivity and breed them while working to rebuild there native habitat.


----------



## thekoimaiden (Oct 19, 2011)

ChoclateBetta said:


> If there are 1000s of individuals we can keep them captivity and breed them while working to rebuild there native habitat.


You are missing the point. What about all the other species from that habitat that aren't kept in captivity?


----------



## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

I feel sorry for them I feel we should try and breed as many species also we need to conserve there habitat. For example we can breed coral in captivity and help hurt reefs and build new reefs . I do get the point of us conserving the habitat.


----------

