So folks today we will talk about caring of one of the most the most famous ornamental fishes in the world- The Neon Tetra.
According to a Google post "During a single month, an average of 1.8 million neon tetras with an estimated value of $175,000 are imported into the United States for the aquarium trade."
This fish is bred in tremendous numbers probably because neon tetras have to be buyed in groups as they are schooling fishes
But neon tetras are not so easy to care for...They tend to be more sensitive towards water changes and tank requirements.
• TANK SIZE.
Neon tetra mostly prefer long rectangular tanks for free swimming with thier school. Consider a bigger rectangular tank (glass or acrylic).
Never put them in fish pots..even of their size is small small fish pots can cause problems.
• Tank decor.
Néons clearly prefer a natural like environment with plants, aquarium water grass and also driftwood. They like to have some hiding places and also some toys like fish pipe.They also need light for almost 10-12 hours and strictly prefer darkness during night and early morning.
A filter must be considered because this will avoid frequent changes in water quality.
•Tank mates.
Neon tetras go along with a range of species...they are even sometimes kept with the fighting fish/ betta fish!!
But what we gonna talk about is thier schooling behaviour.
Neon tetras are schooling fishes i.e they like to live in groups/schools.
So it is very important that you follow the schooling norms. Tetra schools can have fishes ranging from minimum 10 to about 600! The bigger the group better survival chances if these tetras.
It is observed that tetras when kept in numbers below 10 or if kept alone lead to increase in aggression and anxiety in them.
•Feeding tetras.
Feeding neon tetras is easy... As neon tetras are not fussy eaters. They feed on simple floating pellets to frozen blood worms.
Sprinkle enough food pellets that your fish can consume in 5 minutes. Feed this quantity 3 times a day. Be sure you remove the leftover food pellets.
•Special care.
There are some special points to be remembered while caring neon tetras.
•Always remove leftover food pellets as they lower the water quality and neon tetras are sensitive to sudden water changes.
•Don't stress your fish. Don't put your hand in your tank this causes stress in them and are likely to die.
•Neon tetras always prefer darkness at night.
•If you notice your fishes chasing and bit in each other don't panic. They may just be playing or creating a order in their group.
This was all that you needed to know about neon tetras...hope this article helped you out.