Lethargic cardinal tetras

so i have a 20 gal tank i started not long ago. in here i have some plants, all kinds of decorations, and have put 4 cherry barbs*, 3 sterbais corys, 3 albino corys, and 6 cardinal tetras.

the tetras have been in here about 2 days. 1 died almost immediately, i chalked it up to him not really looking well before i even added him. last night i found 1 more dead and another struggling to swim and clearly close to passing himself.

so now i am down to just the 3. none of them really look bad, but they just dont move much at all. they hardly eat and just overall stay in the same spot all day.

i have a 36 gal bowfront with some minnows and mollies that's been established around 9 months now. should i relocate them and hope for better results in that tank?

 

What are the water parameters? and also I wouldn't risk infecting the other fish if the cardinals have anything.

 

What are the water parameters? and also I wouldn't risk infecting the other fish if the cardinals have anything.

i dont think they have anything. all the fish in my tank are still good and very lively. i just think these guys arent happy.

ph 7
ammonia between .25 and .5
nitrite 0
still waiting on nitrate but seems like it will be low.

 

Erm... being stationary is quite normal Cardinal behaviour. Mine only move for food or to chase each other.

BUT Ammonia between 0.25 and 0.5 is between 0.25 and 0.5 too much!
Looks like either an Ammonia spike or the tank isn't cycled.

Bioloadwise 6 cories of that size-class (meaning non-dwarf-species), and the barbs are actually already a full stock.

Did you add the fish in batches? Is the tank decently planted? Can we have a look at the tank, please?

 

Erm... being stationary is quite normal Cardinal behaviour. Mine only move for food or to chase each other.

BUT Ammonia between 0.25 and 0.5 is between 0.25 and 0.5 too much!
Looks like either an Ammonia spike or the tank isn't cycled.

Bioloadwise 6 cories of that size-class (meaning non-dwarf-species), and the barbs are actually already a full stock.

Did you add the fish in batches? Is the tank decently planted? Can we have a look at the tank, please?

im just really bad at reading the charts. it was definitely closer to .25.

if you feel the tank is overstocked i can move them to my 36 gal tank no problem. i only thought they would be more active because of their behavior at my lfs. in the tank they were darting all over the place.

the only live plants i have are the 3 strands of anacharis in the front.

as for the tank. i started it up about 8 days ago with established media from my cycled 36 gal tank. i got the 4 barbs first. waited a few days and introduced the sterbais. waited a few days and introduced the albinos. then waited a few days and introduced the tetras.

 

im just really bad at reading the charts. it was definitely closer to .25.

if you feel the tank is overstocked i can move them to my 36 gal tank no problem. i only thought they would be more active because of their behavior at my lfs. in the tank they were darting all over the place.

the only live plants i have are the 3 strands of anacharis in the front.

Sadly even 0.25 is too much. The reading should be 0/zero/below detectable amount. You will have to do a waterchange immediately. 50% at least. And read up on the fish-in cycle.

At the LFS they are often stressed, that's why they dart around. Usually the behaviour at the LFS is not what you will see at home. Wheredo the tetras hang out anyway? The tank is very much too brightly lit for cardinals.

Yeah... well... 3 strands of anacharis are... basically nothing. How often do you do waterchanges?

 

Sadly even 0.25 is too much. The reading should be 0/zero/below detectable amount. You will have to do a waterchange immediately. 50% at least. And read up on the fish-in cycle.

At the LFS they are often stressed, that's why they dart around. Usually the behaviour at the LFS is not what you will see at home. Wheredo the tetras hang out anyway? The tank is very much too brightly lit for cardinals.

Yeah... well... 3 strands of anacharis are... basically nothing. How often do you do waterchanges?

usually once per week. i was planning on doing a water change for both my tanks today. they tend to hang out on the left side of the tank. but they dont seem to mind the light because there are plenty of shaded areas but they dont go into any of them.

 

Hm... then start with this tank today and re-measure ammonia after that. Hope you can find enough info on the fish-in cycle. Otherwise there are enough people here that can help with that. As we all are mostly homebound these days doing this will be much less stressful than it would be otherwise.

Hm, just keep an eye on their behaviour. Aggression is no big deal, they sometimes fight quite fiercely. Actually aggression is a sign everything else is allright.

 

Hm... then start with this tank today and re-measure ammonia after that. Hope you can find enough info on the fish-in cycle. Otherwise there are enough people here that can help with that. As we all are mostly homebound these days doing this will be much less stressful than it would be otherwise.

Hm, just keep an eye on their behaviour. Aggression is no big deal, they sometimes fight quite fiercely. Actually aggression is a sign everything else is allright.

will do. im going to rehome them to my bigger tank. ill go to my lfs and try to get 6 more to give them a decent sized school. once the levels drop in my 20 gal i would like to add a few cories to each school and it should be set.

 

Not a bad idea. You might want to rehome all fish from the 20 temporarily to the bigger tank. Also have a good look at the cardinals at your LFS next time. Just to make sure it's not from a disease.
In a 20 I'd combine cardinals with dwarf cories like C. habrosus or C. pygmaeus. I'll be uploading some footage of my tank feeding a few minutes ago, you might find this interesting.

 

Not a bad idea. You might want to rehome all fish from the 20 temporarily to the bigger tank. Also have a good look at the cardinals at your LFS next time. Just to make sure it's not from a disease.
In a 20 I'd combine cardinals with dwarf cories like C. habrosus or C. pygmaeus. I'll be uploading some footage of my tank feeding a few minutes ago, you might find this interesting.

added them into the larger tank. lets see how they do in there. the minnows seem to be chasing the tetras. can't tell if its aggression or just playing.

 

added them into the larger tank. lets see how they do in there. the minnows seem to be chasing the tetras. can't tell if its aggression or just playing.

Guess neither, just curiousity.

 

Guess neither, just curiousity.

tried to attach a video but it won't go.

 

Don't upload to the forum, it's easier to upload on YT and link it.

 

Hi, to post a video you first need to upload it somewhere like YouTube then share the link here

 

Don't upload to the forum, it's easier to upload on YT and link it.

thanks

 

It doesn't appear that individual tetras are being harassed, so I'd think they'll be ok. My glowlights zip around together a lot, so to me it's pretty normal.

 

Yeah, should be fine. The minnows are just curious and show them their place in the overall pecking order. This will stop in 1-2 days. The tetras look quite thin though.

How are the other fish in the 20 doing?

 

Yeah, should be fine. The minnows are just curious and show them their place in the overall pecking order. This will stop in 1-2 days. The tetras look quite thin though.

How are the other fish in the 20 doing?

everyone is still as lively as ever. just did a 50% wc in the 20 and about a 12% wc in the 36.

the cute snail that snuck in with my anacharis popped back up.