# playful small fish



## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

what's a good one? need some active ones to coax out my neons from hiding. my blue gouramis did the job before but i gave them away since they were just too big for me. my red gouramis are lazy scared bums...  might give them away too if i find a perfect replacement.

PS
btw, i asked here so i could find it on our LFS.


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## Travis.808 (Apr 2, 2009)

I'm interested in this as well. I have a similar problem my fish like hanging out in the blyxa (out of eye view). I don't want them to get eaten though. That would be really expensive to fix.


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

oh well, i decided to take my chance with the zebra danios. may not be very nice to look at but they're active as hell. my tetras are starting to come out but runs into hiding if they see someone close to the tank. hopefully it gets better. wonder if the glowlight danios are active...


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

db8 said:


> what's a good one? need some active ones to coax out my neons from hiding.


In a tank with neon tetras as the only fish, they tend to be active, playful, and freely roam around.


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

i've got ottos and gouramis in there too


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

The neons are hiding because of the gouramis, almost guaranteed. Dither fish like danios might help but neons almost are shy around most large fish, even the peaceful ones.


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## nokturnalkid (Feb 27, 2007)

When I had only neons in a tank, they would just hang out. Once I put some ottos in there, they all went into hiding and just came out to eat. I think its just some kind of defense mechanism for them. I've had all kinds of tetras and the neons are the only ones that would hide out all day if there were other fish in there


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

in my case, they hide out if people are around. and observing from afar, i see they were out with the other fishes. once i get near to feed them, for example, zip... they're in the rotalas xD


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

db8 said:


> in my case, they hide out if people are around. and observing from afar, i see they were out with the other fishes. once i get near to feed them, for example, zip... they're in the rotalas xD


When you were near the tank and stood still, did they come back out? If they did not, then may be they were once scared by you, say you were trying to catch some neon tetras, and they remembered that episode.


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## nokturnalkid (Feb 27, 2007)

bartoli said:


> When you were near the tank and stood still, did they come back out? If they did not, then may be they were once scared by you, say you were trying to catch some neon tetras, and they remembered that episode.


Hehe...flashbacks can be rough, even for fish. Lol


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

yeah, most probable case. took out the blue gouramis hehe


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

nokturnalkid said:


> Hehe...flashbacks can be rough, even for fish. Lol


Don't know about flashback. But when fish interact with people, there is a degree of trust involved. If they have been seeing you as a safe source of meal, when you approach the tank they will approach you. Even when you dip a net into the water, they won't feel threatened. Some may even swim into the net. But once you started chasing them with the net, they quickly learned that you are there to catch them and started to swim away. From that point on, whenever you approach the tank they become scared and swim away.

I learned a lot about fish behavior from the book:

"Fish Behavior in the Aquarium and in the Wild"

http://www.amazon.com/Fish-Behavior-Aquarium-Comstock-books/dp/0801487722



db8 said:


> yeah, most probable case. took out the blue gouramis hehe


One way of re-establishing their trust is wait till they are hungry, say by skipping a meal, and then stand next to the tank. As before, they will hide away but keeping an eye on you. Then you dropped in their best loved food (live brine shrimps are irresistible to my neon tetras). Let the food sink while you are still standing there. Their hungry stomach contrasted with the delicious food will push them to risk taking the food while you are still standing there. They then learned that it is not too scary to have you standing next to the tank. Sooner or later, when you approach the tank they may even approach you, instead of swimming away (of course that is assuming there is no other perceived threat in the tank).

When there is no perceived threat in the tank and the neon tetras are not scared by your presence, you will get to observe their playfulness up close.


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

hmm i'll try that. my red gouramis love me. they let me touch them and they nip my finger.


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## Travis.808 (Apr 2, 2009)

I'm having a hard time getting any information on baschardi's not sure thats how its spelled tried different variations with searches no results anyone know about these?


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

brichardii, aka fairy chiclid, Neolamprologus brichardi, Neolamprologus pulcher

These are nice fish which you almost cannot keep from breeding and raising young. I don't know how perfect they'd be for neons though. They are chiclids and do have some territorial tendencies, especially centered around breeding - which they do constantly.


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## Travis.808 (Apr 2, 2009)

Cool thanks Bryce!


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## Travis.808 (Apr 2, 2009)

I just heard that a ram might help the situation. I might add one or two some time in the future the electric blue ones would add nice contrast.


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

Travis.808 said:


> I just heard that a ram might help the situation.


My neon tetras like to play throughout the tank. One way of providing a play-conducive environment is NOT to mix in with any other type of fish.


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

bartoli said:


> My neon tetras like to play throughout the tank. One way of providing a play-conducive environment is NOT to mix in with any other type of fish.


how about the ottos? are the neons also wary of them?


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

db8 said:


> how about the ottos? are the neons also wary of them?


I do not know about that. The impact of adding another type of fish can be very subtle. At one time I added couple honey red gouramis. Since they did not bother the neon tetras and the neon tetras were still hanging out I thought all were ok. But over time, I realized that I hadn't seen the neon tetras played in awhile. So, one day I moved the gouramis to another tank. Couple days later I noticed that the neon tetras were playing again and the tank was back to being a massive playground in the morning.

To me, seeing the neon tetras play is much more valuable than having a variety of fish. Thus, the tank has only neon tetras, plants, and tiny snails.


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## db8 (Jun 1, 2009)

i see. how about cardinal tetras with the neon tetras?


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

db8 said:


> i see. how about cardinal tetras with the neon tetras?


Yes, at one time I did add cardinal tetras and they mixed in well with the neon tetras - the two even schoaled together. But eventually the cardinal tetras did not last because my water pH was not low enough. At that time, my plants were growing so well that the day time pH peaked as 7.8. The cardinal tetras just couldn't take such high pH.

Right now, I am experimenting with pressurized CO2 to lower the water pH. The neon tetras like that - they are more active and have better appetite. May be one day I will re-introduce cardinal tetras.


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## tranr (May 20, 2009)

I've been told that ADA Aquasoil also lowers pH.


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## bartoli (May 8, 2006)

tranr said:


> I've been told that ADA Aquasoil also lowers pH.


Didn't know that. Thanks! Wonder if any one had used Aquasoil for that purpose in a soil-based tank?

So far, I am happy with the outcome of using pressurized CO2 along with a CO2 controller. As expected, plant growth rate picked up a tiny bit. I did not want to have frequent pruning and I had read Ms. Walstad's potential concern about soil nutrient depletion due to the explosive growth made possible by CO2 injection. No issue with algae. Lighting remains the same as before, i.e. low light. No dosing. Most important of all, the neon tetras seem to be happier.


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