Common Names: Tiger Barb, Sumatra Barb
Scientific Name: Puntius tetrazona
Maximum Size: 3 inches
Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons
Temperature Range: 68 – 78 °F
pH Range: 6.5 – 7.5
Water hardness: Soft – Medium
Temperament: Semi-Aggressive
Origin: South-East Asia
Aquarium Setup:
Tiger Barbs are able to handle a variety of water conditions, although they do better in soft water. Since they’re a very active fish, wide open areas are needed for swimming. Barbs can even survive in unheated tanks, so monitoring temperatures isn’t crucial. Lots of plants, a fine substrate and adequate lighting is also important.
Diet:
Tiger Barbs can be given almost any type of fish food such as flakes, bloodworms, plankton and brine shrimp. Feeding should be done twice daily, but for faster growth rates feeding can be increased to three times each day. However, Tiger Barbs are very ravenous eaters and will consume everything that you feed them, so be careful to not overfeed or they will die.
Tank Mates/Community:
Barbs can be kept with Tetras, Gouramis, sharks, catfish and other Tiger Barbs.
Behavior:
Tigers are often considered to be aggressive because of their fin nipping habits. For this reason they should not be kept with slow moving fish or fish that have long fins. They will thrive better when there are at least six kept together, but more is preferred. Having many Tigers in the same tank will often curb and even stop their appetite for fins!
Color:
Tiger Barbs come in several color variations ranging from green to albino. The most common Tigers have four blue-black stripes that run across the body. Their fins are a bright reddish orange or red color and their bodies are a light gold.
Breeding:
The proper tank set up for breeding is to either have a very fine layer of substrate on the tank bottom or none at all. There should be large, leafy plants for spawning. Tigers will eat their fry and should be removed after they’ve mated. The eggs are clear and will hatch within about 24 hours.
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