Tiger Barb (Capoeta tetrazona)

Common Name:

Tiger Barb.

Scientific Name:

Capoeta tetrazona.

Synonyms:

Green Tiger Barb, Albino Tiger Barb and Sumatran Barb.

Family:

Cyprinidae.

Distribution:

Indonesia, Sumatra, and Borneo.

Size:

Approx 3inches or 8cm.

Diet:

Tiger Barbs can exist quite happily on regular tropical fish flakes however it is recommended to supplement their diet with such foods as adult brine shrimp,bloodworms, daphnia and krill. In the wild they exist mainly on vegetable matter so you can also feed blanched zucchinni/cucumber and broccoli.

Water Temperature:

Between 70 to 80 degrees fahrenheit is often cited as the recommended temperature range, but they apparently only breed when the temperature is closer to 80 degrees, so that is the recommended temperature.

Water Chemistry:

They like water that is slightly acidic (pH 6.0-7.0). Note: Since this species is oft-bred, fancy varieties and CB 'wild-type' Tiger Barbs are more forgiving when it comes to water quality issues. A rigorous acclimation process is recommended for those who wish for their Tiger Barbs to live in water with higher pH or that qualifies as "hard" (>120 ppm of hardness). I would not recommend this, though.

Life Span:

Approx 3 years.

Housing:

Approx 20 gallons for a small group (min of 6).

Sexing:

The pair can be found by choosing a wider, larger, more dully-colored fish from the group in another tank, and then one that is thinner, smaller, and more brightly-colored. The latter will be the male and the former the female. Other than those differences, it is difficult to sex them.

Breeding:

While some of the larger fish-related online sites say that they are difficult to breed, some of this relates to the tendency to put Tigers in unnatural conditions. When kept in planted, warm tanks with abundances of fine-leaved plants, a pair of Tiger Barbs will breed readily and prolifically. The eggs will take about 36 hours to hatch, once fertilized, and the babies should have infusoria as a first food. There are now commercially available egg-layer fry foods and these would be an acceptable substitute for infusoria.

Description:

These small barbs can get to be 3" long. Their specific name, tetrazona, refers to the four black stripes that run vertically on their otherwise golden-orange bodies. They are reputedly quite hardy, especially if they are CBB.

Behaviour:

These are stereotypically nasty little abusive fin-nippers, and many aquarists find them to live up to such expectations. Even in their store tanks, Tigers are often found chasing each other to the point of almost exhaustion. Woe be it to the long-finned fish (especially affected by Tigers seem to be Bettas and Gouramies) who is placed in a tank with Tiger Barbs, as they will soon have their fins shortened by their tankmates. To be fair, these are merely fish with a great need for hierarchy, and they discern their hierarchical ranking through their aggression. They treat all fish as if they were Tiger Barbs and fish who do not respond properly are mercilessly bullied. Sometimes, large shoals of Tiger Barbs (six or more) can keep their aggression limited to their conspecific tankmates, but it is still not recommended that they be placed with tankmates who are unable to protect themselves from the fin-nipping tendencies as a rogue Tiger Barb may still fight with such fish. I've seen much debate over how many fish should be in a shoal, specifically if the number of Tiger Barbs should be odd or even. I've found no aesthetically related reason to choose an odd or an even number, but I'd welcome any information as to behavioural reasons to keep an odd or even number of Tiger Barbs.

Tank levels:

Bottom-middle strata.

Natural conditions:

These are often considered to be riverine fish, but, strictly speaking, they live on the margins and in tributaries of the larger rivers. They live in areas with cover but also with areas where swimming room is plentiful. The substrate of the areas in which they live is rich with humic matter and the extensions of some terrestrial plants.

Ideal Tank Mates:

Semi Aggressive Fish. Danios, Red Tail Sharks.

Unsuitable Tankmates:

Slow, long finned fish, such as Bettas, Gourami, Guppies.

Miscellaneous:

These fish, like many of the Cyprinids, are in a state of taxonomic flux at present. Capoeta seems to be the most-popular generic home of the fish once the catch-all Barbus is discounted. Much info can be found on them when searching using C. tetrazona, B. tetrazona, or the former properly-used Latin name, Puntius tetrazona. It remains to be seen which will eventually be the widely-accepted scientific name, or if a new genus will eventually be constructed. Like many oft-bred and widely-available ornamental fish, there are numerous variants available in the hobby. Among the most popular are the mossy green variant whose stripes are obscured by a patch of green on each flank, the albino with no stripes, and the red version (somewhat analogous to the Lutino Oscar) whose stripes are either barely visible or non-existent.

Photo Credit:

Photo supplied courtesy and ^©ratsr #1.