Barbus fire - decoration of small aquariums

There are many kinds of small fish that look great in not very large aquariums, but the fire barb is one of the most beautiful. Aquarists began to breed them as early as 1903. The natural habitats of this fish are South and South-East Asia, the reservoirs of India. In nature there are individuals that have reached 12-15 cm in length, well, and in domestic aquariums the fire barrel rarely grows more than 8 cm.

This type of fish is characterized by a characteristic sexual dimorphism, so the male is immediately identified by a brighter color. Female barbs have a more rounded abdomen and a silvery color. This species is not too demanding on the feed and chemical composition of the water. Barbus fire perfectly feels in the water, the temperature of which is in the range 18-22 ° C. Despite the fact that these fish can be successfully maintained in groups and in large aquariums, they are best looked in medium-sized tanks. Barbus fire refers to those kinds of fish that can be successfully launched in summer in the garden pool. These fish are schooled, so they should be kept in small groups with their own or with other schooling species of suitable size. You can not tolerate the joint residence of fire barbs and sedentary species, for example, veil fish, because these nimble fish can bite their fins.

For a comfortable stay in the aquarium fire barbs need good aeration and filtration. Once a week, you should replace some of the water with fresh water. The basis of the diet is live food. The fire barbus, the photo of which is presented in our article, only has a bright coloring under favorable conditions. It breeds in spawning grounds with a capacity of about 10 liters (the volume should increase depending on the number of spawning fish). In spawning there should be a separator spawning grid that can protect part of the eggs from their parents. In the center of the reservoir, a bush of aquatic plants is established. You can use boiled water in the spawning, but good aeration is required. A group of producers usually consists of two males with a fiery red color and one female.

Before spawning fish are fed only live food. The female lays about 0.5 thousand eggs. Producers are planted after spawning. Half of the water is replaced with fresh water, but with the same characteristics and temperature. Eggs are treated with methylene blue. Under normal conditions, larvae appear in a day, and after 3 days the fry is already swimming. At this time, and begin their feeding (for this is suitable Artemia, nauplii Cyclops, rotifers). Fry grows fast. They are fed three times a day. Maturity is reached by 8 months.

A frequent inhabitant of medium aquariums is the mutant barbut. This effectively colored blue-green tint fish is a mutation of the Sumatran barb. The content of this species differs little from the content of the original form, but it should be borne in mind that mutants are a weaker and more unstable species. The water for them should have the following parameters: pH 7.0; GH up to 15 °; T 23-25 ° C. For the same dilution the following water is required : pH 6.8-7.0; GH to 5.0 °; T 26-28 ° C. To her often add an infusion of ancestral alder. Carbonate hardness should be minimal.