Black Barbus - care and maintenance in the aquarium

Representatives of the family of barbs are constantly present in aquariums of professionals and amateurs. This feature is caused by the fastidiousness of water pets to care and maintenance. Fish easily adapt to the aquatic environment, eat everything, just get divorced. Today we will look at black barbs, whose ancestors are individuals of Sumatran. Let's not get ahead of ourselves so that in the process of studying the material you will form your own opinion about these aquatic guests.

Habitat and features

Sri Lanka is considered the birthplace of representatives of this family, it was there that the black fish had previously met. They love the upper reaches of the rivers, as well as their tributaries. Ideally feel in abundance of vegetation, koryag, fallen leaves and other water paraphernalia.

If there is a choice, then the barbs will give preference to slow current water sources, rather than fast flowing rivers.They live where the water is in a slightly lower temperature regime. But this does not mean that fish do not like the tropics.

By their natural features, these pets prefer to be in a mild and slightly acidic environment. At the bottom there must be not cobblestones, but soft sand / gravel road. The group in question feeds on vegetation, detritus, larvae and insects.

The number of specimens of the pedigree group under discussion was significantly reduced due to the fact that these fish began to be harvested to satisfy their own needs in the field of aquarism. There was also a colossal felling of forest areas where the barbs lived. For some time, these fish were even on the verge of extinction, but they were able to recover.

To date, fishing is prohibited by the laws of the countries of habitat. And those barbs, marketed, were artificially bred on special farms and in a number of private breeders. Say more, because of the hybrid crossing, the specialists managed to get fish on the basis of black individuals that are even more colorful and interesting in behavior.

Description

By color, the case is black with a reddish tint or pure black. Fish that have reached puberty have some purple tide. Their head turns red during spawning.

Males, in turn, are painted throughout the body. The fins are pure black or reddish-black. These fish barely grow to 6 cm in length, but, as a rule, these figures are incorrect. On average, individuals reach 3-5 cm. With a life expectancy of 5 years.

Representatives of both sexes lose some of their color when they enter a stressful situation, fall ill, live in inappropriate conditions, or worry about each other.

In part, for one or more of the above reasons, fish look faded in aquariums when sold in markets or relevant stores. When an individual is bought, transferred to a stable aquatic environment, provided with high-quality food and the corresponding neighborhood, it begins to pick up its previous color.

Many newly-minted aquarists ask questions about gender differences. Make it easier by examining the dimensions of their water pets and their coloring. So, for example, the representatives of the male gender are less females.

Feeding

We have already mentioned that the aquatic inhabitants in their natural environment eat insects, algae, detritus, etc. Most of their daily menu is food of vegetable type. Therefore, it is necessary to provide aquatic pets with fiber, vegetables like spinach, cucumbers, zucchini, etc. It is also important to give feed with spirulina or to introduce this additive separately. But the food with the accumulation of protein compounds also should not be forgotten. Suitable artemia, Daphnia, bloodworm, crushed tubule.

Content

1. Black barbs are among those aquarium representatives, which are not easy to maintain, but it does not cause much difficulty. Water indicators should always be at the same level. Maintain a stable environment. Individuals are strongly discouraged from starting for beginners.
2. The problem is,that such barbs are very hard to adapt to new conditions in a young aquarium. The represented individuals are as active as all their relatives. In addition, they are gregarious fish. You should not keep them a couple or one by one. At the same time in the family must be at least 7 fish.
3. In the pack, the barbs feel much more comfortable and practically do not get sick. In addition, individuals feel great due to the fact that they are not subjected to frequent stress due to loneliness. There is a hierarchy in the pack, so it is better to have several females per 1 male.
4. For a flock of decent size, it is strongly recommended to acquire an aquarium of at least 100 liters. Often presented barbs try to live mainly in the middle layers of water. Black individuals have less aggression, unlike their congeners. In addition, they do not tear the fins to other inhabitants of the aquarium.
5. If you still notice this behavior, it is strongly recommended to increase the number of individuals in the flock. Consider, the aquarium should be planted with densely growing plants. Only in such an environment such fish can feel as comfortable as possible. Keep lighting subdued.
6. Despite the increased activity of the fish, they are still shy and very shy. These barbs are accustomed to keep in the shade of densely growing algae. Also, the fish may be inactive or slightly colored due to poor conditions in the aquarium. Often they may not have enough places to hide. You should not keep individuals alone or in pairs. Also, bright lighting negatively affects the condition of the fish.
7. As mentioned earlier, represented individuals in the wild prefer to live in a cool environment. In winter, the water temperature should not exceed 22 degrees, in summer - 25 degrees. Also in the wild, water has rather mild indicators. Therefore, in the aquarium conditions the fish adapt well.
8. The downside is that due to hard water, they can shorten their lifespan and have a pale color. Like most barbs, blacks are demanding of water. The environment must always be clean. In addition, the water must be highly enriched with oxygen. Use an external filter, systematically replace the water and, if necessary, remove all accumulated waste.

Black barbs are unique representatives of their species.They have a not so cocky character, unlike most relatives. Consider, these individuals are not recommended for beginners, the problem is that the fish are very demanding on environmental parameters. If you do not cope with the task, then the life expectancy of individuals significantly reduced. In addition, they noticeably paler color.

Video: Black Barbus (Pethia nigrofasciata)