K. Sear

I'm considering purchasing an aquarium. It's something I've wanted to do ever since I was a kid but I never had the opportunity to get into it. I've been doing a lot of reading to make sure I do things properly. I was reading tips from this site and one of the comments raised a question I was hoping to get an answer to. In the tips about Zebra Danios, a poster named Kat mentioned that a combination of Zebra Danios with other types of Danios made for a happy school of fish. Even tetras would school as well. I was wondering if this is a general phenomenon? Is it often possible to mix different types of fish and have them school? It seems to me that this would be a great way, if it is actually possible, to increase the diversity of a community tank while still making sure that the social fish have enough companionship.

Isabella

Hello and welcome to Fish Lore

I don't know anything about different kinds of Danios schooling together, but I know that not all Tetras will school together. Maybe the same Zebra Danios but of different variety (ex. long-fin and regular-fin Zebra Danios) will school together, but I wouldn't say that ex. Neon Tetras would school with ex. Diamond Tetras. Yes, they're both Tetras but they won't school. Maybe it's just the varieties of the same kind of fish that will school. Anyway, that's a good question you're asking. I am curious myself if ex. Neon Tetras will school with ex. Black Neon Tetras - anybody?

MrWaxhead

My cardinal and my neons will shoal if they are spooked, they mass together and shoal tell they feel comfortable. Then they go back to there own groupings. Every once is a while though, they will shoal peacefully together, but normally its when my 4 year old goes screaming by with sword in hand (he thinks he is captain jack sparrow) had to explain the sword thing, he is not really a sword wielding psycho hehe.

I would tend to not really call danios a shoal though, they just move so fast and erratic they seem to be all over the tank at any given time hehe.

Isabella

LOL !

K. Sear

Thanks, I'm glad to have found a place that has so much info gathered together.

The comment I was referring to stated that the fish being grouped together were Zebra Danios, Leopard Danios and Long-Finned Danios. From your post, I can see that the Long-Finned Danios are just a type of Zebra Danios. Are the Leopard Danios just another type of Zebra Danios? The tetras that were mentioned as schooling with the danios were silver tipped tetras. Does "schooling" in this sense just mean that they get along, not that they are actually forming a social grouping?

Still, even if it is only different varieties of the same fish that will school, it may be a nice way to get a little more of a range of fish, even in a smaller tank. However, since I'm very new to all of this, I don't think I'm in a position to do much experimenting!

bhcaaron

I have another question. Why do I sometimes see the word "school" and sometimes "shoal". Is this a regional thing? Or, does it reffer to different things? Or, is on correct and the other just popular spelling?

MrWaxhead

A shoal is as a social group individual fish choosing to stay with their own kind. Schooling is a type of shoaling that is defined by the types of highly synchronised and polarised behaviour exhibited by shoaling fish, usually under threat from predators. Cardinals and other fish do technically school at times under stress but normally just shoal.

jsalemi

From everything I've read, yes, the Leopard Danios are just a mutation/variation on the Zebras, so they usually get along fine and shoal together.

Isabella

K. Sear and Bhcaaron, it seems you've got your questions answered

K. Sear, I've never had different kinds of Danios mixed together, so I can't tell you if they will school or shoal. But since long-fin Zebra Danios are the same as normal-fin Zebra Danios (with the exception of long fins, obviously) then my guess would be that they'd stay in one group. I don't know about Leopard Danios. Jsalemi says they're just a different variety of the same fish, so they should group too in that case, I guess.

Bhcaaron, to add to Mr. Waxhead's reply, there is also a dictionary on Fish Lore that may include these 2 terms: http://www.fishlore.com/fishdictionary/dictionary.htm

Butterfly

I have had 5 different types of danios school together and it was really cool Sometimes fish that are shaped similarly will school together also.
Carol

Isabella

Maybe they think the other fish are the same kind as they are?

Plus, if different varieties of Danios will school/shoal together, then it's a great way to increase a variety of fish within one tank (without overstocking that tank), isn't it?

K. Sear

It seems I did! I think it will be a while before I'm willing to experiment with fish combinations though!

I went out and priced tanks today and will likely buy one in the next week so I'll probably have many more questions! The help is appreciated.

COBettaCouple

Welcome to fishlore! The tank sounds like it will look great, i'd expect them to shoal and school.

http://www.fishlore.com/fishforum/ge...ool-shoal.html - here's a thread on that.