Barbus fish

Contents

Description of the barb fish
Types and breeds of fish barbs
Compatibility of barb fish with other fish
Keeping barbs in an aquarium
Barb fish care
Reproduction of fish barbs at home
Popular questions and answers

Barbs are those fish that you never get bored with. Cheerful, agile bullies, they look like playful puppies or kittens. We’ll tell you how to keep them right.

Name	Barbus (Barbus Cuvier)
family	Cyprinid Fish (Cyprinidae)
Origin	Southeast Asia, Africa, Southern Europe
Food	Omnivorous
Reproduction	Spawning
Length	Males and females – 4 – 6 cm (in nature they grow up to 35 cm or more)
Content Difficulty	For beginners

Description of the barb fish

Barbs, or barbels, are fish of the Carp family. In nature, they live in the waters of Southeast Asia, Africa and Southern Europe.

In the aquarium, they behave very agile: either they chase each other, or they ride on air bubbles from the compressor, or they stick to their more peaceful neighbors in the aquarium. And, of course, endless movement requires a lot of energy, which is why barbs are big eaters. They sweep away the food thrown by them in a matter of seconds and immediately go in search of the remnants of the last meal lying around at the bottom, and not finding anything suitable, they begin to eat aquarium plants.

Cheerful disposition, complete unpretentiousness and bright appearance made barbs very popular aquarium fish. Among the aquarium varieties of this fish, there are many shapes and colors, but still the most popular are those that are very similar to a smaller copy of lake perches: the same body shape, the same vertical black stripes, the same cocky disposition.

And you can watch the behavior of a flock of barbs for hours, because these fish are never idle

Types and breeds of fish barbs

In nature, there are several types of barbs, some of them are grown in aquariums, and some have breeds that differ not only in appearance, but also in behavior.

Sumatran barb (Puntius tetrazona). The most popular species of the barb genus, most similar to a tiny perch: rounded body, pointed muzzle, transverse stripes on the body and reddish fins. And the same hooligan character.

Having worked on these fish, breeders were able to breed barbs, the stripes of which merged into one black spot, occupying most of the body. They called him barbus mossy. This fish has a dark matte coloration and red stripes on the fins. Otherwise, the mossy barb is no different from its Sumatran cousin.

fire barbus (Puntius conchonius). This brightly colored form is not the result of selection, but a separate species, originally from the reservoirs of India. These barbs are devoid of black stripes, and their body shimmers with all shades of gold and scarlet, and each scale sparkles like a jewel. Closer to the tail there is always a black spot, the so-called “false eye”.

Barbus cherry (Puntius titteya). These exquisite fish are not very similar to their striped cocky relatives. Their homeland is the island of Sri Lanka, and the fish themselves have a more elongated shape. At the same time, their scales, devoid of transverse stripes, are colored dark red, and darker stripes stretch along the body. There are two tendrils on the lower jaw. Having worked on this type of barbs, breeders also brought out a veil-tailed form. Unlike their other relatives, these are very peaceful fish.

Barbus scarlet or Odessa (Pethia padamya). No, no, these fish do not live in the reservoirs of the Odessa region. They got their name because it was in this city that they were first introduced as a new species of aquarium barb. This species is native to India. In shape, the fish resemble the usual Sumatran barb, but are painted gray-red (a wide scarlet stripe runs along the entire body). The scarlet barb is quite peaceful, but still you should not settle it together with fish that have long fins.

Barbus Denisoni (Sahyadria denisonii). Perhaps the least similar to the rest of the barbs. It has an elongated body shape with two longitudinal stripes: black and red-yellow. The dorsal fin is red, and on each of the tail lobes there is a black and yellow spot. Unlike other barbs, these beauties are quite capricious and will suit only an experienced aquarist.

Compatibility of barb fish with other fish

The bright temperament of barbs makes them rather problematic neighbors for more peaceful fish. Firstly, few people can withstand the constant movement and fuss in which the barbs are. Secondly, these hooligans are very fond of biting the fins of other fish. Angelfish, veiltails, telescopes, guppies and others are especially affected by them.

So, if you still decide to settle striped bandits, then either pick up a similar company for them, in which they will feel on equal terms, or even dedicate an aquarium to barbs alone – fortunately, these fish are worth it. They also get along well with catfish, however, these bottom “vacuum cleaners” are generally able to get along with anyone

Keeping barbs in an aquarium

With the exception of some species (for example, Denison barbs), these fish are very unpretentious. They are able to adapt to any conditions. The main thing is that aeration is constantly working in the aquarium, and food is given at least 2 times a day.

It is also worth remembering that barbs love living plants, so you do not need to decorate the aquarium with plastic dummies.

Barbs are schooling fish, so it’s better to start 6-10 at once, while the aquarium should have both an area with plants, and free from them, where a company of minke whales can frolic to their heart’s content(3). The aquarium must be covered with a lid, as barbs can accidentally jump out of it and die.

Barb fish care

Despite the extreme unpretentiousness of barbs, they still require care. First, it is aeration. Moreover, the fish need a compressor not only for breathing, but also to create a stream of bubbles and currents, which they love very much. Secondly, regular feeding. Thirdly, cleaning the aquarium and changing the water once a week. This is especially important if you have a small or crowded aquarium.

Aquarium volume

Barbs are small fish that rarely grow larger than 7 cm in an aquarium, so they do not need too much water. Of course, this does not mean that they can be locked in a tiny jar, but an average aquarium of 30 liters of elongated shape is quite suitable for a small flock of barbs. However, the larger the aquarium, the better the fish feel.

Water temperature

If your apartment is warm, then you don’t need to specially heat the water in the aquarium, because these fish feel great at 25 ° C and even at 20 ° C. Most importantly, do not put the aquarium in the winter on the windowsill, where it can blow from the window, or near the radiator, which will make the water too warm.

What to feed

Barbs are absolutely omnivorous, so you can feed them with any food. It can be both live food (bloodworm, tubifex), and dry food (daphnia, cyclops). But still, it is best to use a special balanced food in the form of flakes or tablets, which includes all the substances necessary for the health of fish.

If you have a colored variety of barbs, it is good to use food with additives to enhance the color.

And remember that barbs are also gluttons.

Reproduction of fish barbs at home

If you have not set out to definitely get offspring from your barbs, you can let it all go by itself, leaving the fish to solve the problems of procreation themselves. But, if there is a desire to increase the number of minke whales, then it is worth immediately selecting promising pairs. As a rule, in a flock they occupy the position of leaders. Female barbs are often not as brightly colored as males, but have a more rounded belly and are generally larger. Potential parents should be placed in a separate aquarium with a higher water temperature and fed with protein-rich food.

As soon as the eggs are laid (and the female barb lays more than 1000 eggs at a time), adult fish should be removed from the spawning ground and unfertilized eggs should be removed (they are cloudy and lifeless in appearance). The larvae are born in a day, and after 2 – 3 days they turn into fry, which begin to swim on their own.