fishlova #23

i havw a 30gal.tank with 3tigerbarbs and a rts. should i get a african butterflyfish? if so how many and what do they eat

sirdarksol

They get big (I think too big for a 30g) and they eat fish. In specific, they will eat your tiger barbs.

cerianthus

ill would be more worried about tiger barbs nipping butter's fins at this stage. I really dont think Butter would get large enough to take TB in 30 either.

sirdarksol

The tiger barbs are currently small, according to another post. The butterfly fish I've seen at Petsmart have been large enough to eat the tigers I've seen at the same store.

Amanda

Some info:
http://aqualandpetsplus.com/Oddball,...terflyfish.htm

pinkfloydpuffer

I think a better choice would be to get more tiger barbs to cut down on the aggression.

object_ofdesire

Butterfly fish would be a Very Poor choice of companion for Tiger Barbs. Butterflyfish are generally slow moving with long tapering fins . Tiger Barbs, especially a small group, are aggressive, fast fin nippers and will find it absolutely irresistible. Although BF fish rarely eat anything bigger than a neon tetra, they will compete heavily for food at the surface with the Tiger barbs.
There will be definite losers on both sides. Butterfly fish can cope with a small tank with low surface movement and lots of floating plants.

krismoore888

I agree with Object_ofdesire, barbs are a terrible companion for any fish with long fins, BFs should be kept in pairs without any other top dwelling fish, generally the size of other fish do not matter so long as they do not sit at the top, although my female betta is generally top dwelling and is fine with my 2 BFs.