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FAQs on the Minnows called Barbs, Danios and Rasboras Identification

Fishy time-out, Tetra comp., ID! - 05/31/08
Hello,
<Hello,>
A couple of months ago at an aquarium society auction I bought a bag of three fish under the common name "melon tetra".
<No idea what these are. Sounds like some kind of nickname for a ghastly, cruelly dyed fish (cf. "jellybean tetra"). Photo?>
Turns out I can't find anything on the fish so that must not be it's name, but oh well.
<Never, ever buy a fish you know nothing about. Otherwise you'll likely end up with a problem.>
Anyway, one of the larger of the three has started turning colors (from white and black to now with bright red and blue fins) and is now terrorizing all of my other fish.
<Hmm... some tetras are habitual fin- and scale-eaters, while others are highly social and go a bit nutty if kept in too-small a group. In any case, all tetras should be kept in groups of 6+ for your sanity as much as theirs. Your fish may well behave fine in big groups, but terribly in trios. This isn't at all uncommon, and you wouldn't believe the number of times I've encountered aquarists with small tanks where a single tetra or Danio has become an almighty terror!>
All of the fish were hiding in the leaves of the plants until they were eventually found and chased ceaselessly around the tank. So to solve the problem I bought a breeders net and am keeping the problem fish in isolation.
<Not a solution. Isolating a fish that is merely expressing its innate behaviour is cruel. Even if that leaves you unmoved, cramping an adult fish in a breeding trap will ultimately cause its demise through stress or jumping out. I personally call breeding traps "death traps".>
This has seemed to help for now, all the other fish are already swimming about much more, but I'm wondering if this will have any negative affects on my bully tetra?
<Yes it will.>
Will he become too stressed by himself all cramped up?
<Precisely so; your instincts are sound here and you should listen to them! Great fishkeepers aren't the ones who read all the books, but the ones who can "think like a fish" and act accordingly.>
What should I do?
<For a start identify the tetras, either by going through a decent aquarium encyclopaedia of your choice or sending us a photo (please, 500 kb or less). Then buy some more, so you get a group of at least 6 specimens. There's a good chance that they'll settle down, or at least no single fish will be able to bully the other five all at the same time, so there'll be a certain level of peace. Do also review the size of your aquarium. It would be insane to keep clearly active tetras like these in anything smaller than a 20 gallon tank. Lots of people stick relatively big or active fish in 10 gallon tanks, and they get surprised when they find their fish becoming "stir crazy"! Another thing you can do is make the aquarium more interesting and complex by adding plants and rocks. For a lot of aggressive fish, "out of sight is out of mind", so by breaking up the line of sight you can give the other fish places they can rest. But ultimately you may simply have bought some fish here that just aren't compatible with your mode of fishkeeping. Again, the lesson here is read up on a species before laying down the cash.>
Thanks,
Jessi
<You're welcome, Neale.>

Re: Fishy time-out 6/3/08
Neale,
<Jessi,>
Thanks a bunch for your help so far. I know the breeder net isn't a long term solution, I just thought it might be good to give some of the other fish a break.
<Fair enough.>
I've attached a picture of the fish, but it's really low quality since I don't have a camera and ended up taking it with my phone. Hopefully you'll be able to tell what it is anyway.
<It is definitely a Puntius species (what in old aquarium books are called Barbus species, or simply "barbs"). I'm not completely sure which species though. It is either Puntius fasciatus or Puntius melanampyx. Both have been called "Melon Barbs" in the trade (don't you love common names!). Puntius melanampyx is the smaller of the two, and gets to about 7 cm in length; Puntius fasciatus gets to twice that size in the wild, though infrequently so in captivity. Both are considered peaceful, community fish when kept in a decent sized group, and neither are reported to be fin-nippers.>
The red color didn't show up much, but this white and black coloration is what the other two have as well.
<Could easily be males and females; sexual dimorphism among barbs is common.>
The stripes remind me a lot of a tiger barb just slightly less defined, but from what I can tell the body shape is much different.
<Indeed; it has the streamlined body of one of the fast-water barb species.>
I called my LFS today to try and get rid of the three of them, but they said they wouldn't take them.
<Sometimes the case. Regardless, the problem is most likely insufficient members of the group. Barbs are notoriously badly behaved when kept incorrectly. They really must be kept in big groups because they have a very strong "play" instinct (really chasing and fighting over pecking order). While this behaviour makes them lots of fun and keeps them constantly active, if not catered for it can cause problems.>
I think the woman over the phone thought what I was describing was a convict cichlid and I wasn't sure how to explain to her that it's definitely something else. I'm not really sure what to do. I don't want to set up a new tank, but if I have to any information on whatever kind of fish this is would obviously be really helpful.
Thanks again,
Jessi
<I suspect these fish be very nice fish if kept in a bigger group, say 6 specimens. Also provide them with swimming space and lots of water current. Puntius melanampyx will need a tank not less than 90-100 cm in length, and adult Puntius fasciatus a tank 120 cm upwards. Hope this helps, Neale.>

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>

What IS IT?
I've had these fish for 2 years in my tank, they are peaceful but have grown from 2 inches to 10 inches. The place where I bought them has gone out of business, and nobody knows what they are. Can you help? Should I be feeding them anything besides flake food?
<Your photo makes accurate ID difficult. The dorsal fin is obscured in the flash and the caudal fin is bent back the other way. Even with all this I think we can narrow it down. I am pretty sure you fish is in the family Cyprinidae, it includes the carps. You fish probably came in as a contaminant from Asia. Take a look at the red finned cigar shark. It comes from Indonesia and gets about 2 feet long. It is not fussy about water chemistry or food. The scientific name is Leptobarbus hoevenii.-Chuck>

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