Psycho spanner barb

[SuperD14]

I have a spanner barb in a tank with two electric blue acara, three convict cichlids, red tail shark and 3 zebra loaches. Whenever I add any fish to the tank if they’re not cichlids or armoured, the barb absolutely destroys them. It’s about 4 inches and I recently added 6 rainbowfish each around 3 inches, by the morning two were gone and I had to evacuate the rest. Is this normal?

 

[Redshark1]

Well I realise they should probably be in shoals but I did have one once and it was a model citizen.

 

[SuperD14]

Well I realise they should probably be in shoals but I did have one once and it was a model citizen.

I did think that however when I bought him he was in a tank with an 8 inch jaguar cichlid, ghost knife fish, some psynodontis catfish (not sure on spelling), and a very large cichlid I forget the name of which was well over a foot long and some chocolate cichlids. The reason I bought it is because the largest cichlid had a 5 inch filament barb in its mouth and there was a pretty much eaten spanner barb In there and this one was close to dying too. Bit of research told me they are good with cichlids and in a 5ft tank it would be okay, but he’s a bit of a bully to any fish that don’t have a ‘personality’? Should I say? He’s killed giant danios in the past, 4-5 inch sailfin mollys and as of late the rainbow fish.

 

[Redshark1]

It just shows they each can have their own personalities. He must have studied Kung Fu to survive while in the store tank (and is continuing to refine his skills in yours!).

 

[SuperD14]

It just shows they each can have their own personalities. He must have studied Kung Fu to survive while in the store tank (and is continuing to refine his skills in yours!).

Aha I believe that’s the case.