Puntius tetrazona

From The Aquarium Wiki

Tiger Barb
Tiger Barb
Species	Puntius tetrazona
Difficulty	Easy
Min. Tank Size	94.635 liters 94,635.295 mL 25 US Gallons (94.6L)
Size	7.62 cm 2.5-3 " (6.4-7.6cm)
pH	6.0 - 7.0
Temp.	296.483 K 23.333 °C 533.67 °R 299.261 K 26.111 °C 538.67 °R74 -79 °F (23.3-26.1°C)
Water Hardness	5-10
Stocking Ratio	2:3 M:F
Availability	Very Common
Diet	Omnivore Pellet Foods Flake Foods Live Foods
Life Span	5-7 years

[edit] Alternative names

Tiger Barb, Green Tiger Barb, Black Tiger Barb, Sumatran Barb, Moosbarbe, Gold Banded Barb

[edit] Other Scientific Names

Barbus tetrazona

[edit] Sexing

Very hard to tell apart, but good males have red snout and solid red edge on the dorsal fin.

[edit] Tank compatibility

This fish must be kept in a group of 5-6 or more to avoid them nipping at other fish. Do not keep with slow-moving long finned fish such as Betta splendens and Angelfish. Will co-habit with robust and fast-swimming tankmates.

[edit] Diet

Will accept flake, worms, bloodworm, etc. Feed lots of different foods to ensure you bring out its red fins and red nose.

[edit] Feeding regime

Feed once or twice a day.

[edit] Environment Specifics

This fish must be kept in a group of at least 5 or more. If not, then it will start to nip and trouble other fish around it. They require a laterally spacious tank with plenty of open swimming space as well as the option of hiding places in tall plants.

[edit] Behaviour

When kept in a school of at least 5 or more you will notice a few of the fish 'standing on their head'. As this type of school has a dominant leader, the Tiger Barb shows its submissiveness to others by tilting its body.

You'll often see two Tiger Barbs fighting for superiority. They'll try to push each other (in a fairly harmless way) via their mouths until the looser gives up and swims away. Occasionally you'll even see three doing this.

[edit] Identification

There are several colour morphs of the Tiger Barb available, the wild type is light brown with around 4 vertical black bands down their flanks. Other variations include albino, red albino (albino with red on the flanks), yellow with black eyes (the bands are white), orange with black eyes (the bands are white), green (instead of orange, the flanks are mottled green with the bands barely visible), blue-grey (as the green) and translucent scaled, but with normal black bands.

[edit] Pictures

Submissive Tiger Barb

Young Tiger Barb

Green & Wild-Type Barbs

[edit] Links

• Fishbase
• Bad Mans Tropical Fish
• Practical Fishkeeping
• Mongabay
• Fish Profiles