cardinals and neons question :)

Originally Posted by Maestro08

hi, ive been wanting to make a 100g tank to a freshwater amazon biotope look with NO PLANTS set up.. mainly long thin driftwoods..

questions: (cardinals or neons)
-which tetra will school better? maybe around 50pcs
-which tetras is more hardy?
-do tetras tend to school when threatened by a bigger fish? should i mix a couple angels for them to school? (ive read somewhere that they will just wander around your tank separately, but when you come close, thats when they school.. i want a schooling fish)
-other than neons/cardinals/rummy nose, what other type of fish do school? (i dont like the look of rummy nose )

another question:
on my amazon biotope set up, will it look good if i use black sand/ black small gravel? or should i stick to a white sand substrate with long thin driftwoods?

thanks a lot for the future help guys :)

Originally Posted by 1077

Can use search tool here(click on shaded blue) to have a look at fish profiles of both the Neon tetra's as well as Cardinal tetra's.
Neither are particularly difficult fishes but only if need's are met.
Both species school fairly well in large enough number's.

Originally Posted by Byron

First on the substrate issue, the most "authentic" Amazonian substrate is play sand. Now, as you are in the Philippines, I've no idea on what brand if any may be available. But I use a play sand that is a mix of black, gray, white and tan; this replicates the sands in the Rio Negro and many other streams.

i chose to use black river sand instead, it will look more naturally :)

On the schooling issue, we first need to clear up what we mean. Some freshwater fish shoal, but none school in the sense of marine fish. All characins are shoaling fish that need a group, and the larger the group and the larger the tank, the more they are inclined to remain close together.

this is interesting, so i cant go too much on my 100gal, or they'll end up breaking apart.. a nice good sized number of fish will keep them intact, thanks a lot :) will read more into this

Rummynose tetra are one of the best for this; I know of no other characin that swims together as a group like this species does, and almost continually. I have about 23 in my 5-foot Amazonian Riverscape tank, and they are almost always together, swimming down the length of the tank back and forth. Cardinal tetra are fairly tight shoaling fish, but once they are settled they will spread out from time to time. In their natural habitat, they tend to form groups of 5 within the larger shoal, if they are in a habitat that provides shelter. In the open they tend to remain in the larger shoal, but they do not swim in formation, but rather remain somewhat motionless in a large grouping.

noted, but i've seen penguin tetra to school like crazy.. i think they school best, almost all the local fish store that i went that have penguin tetras and rummynose and neons and cardinal with them.. ~~the best in schooling are PENGUIN, then rummy nose, then cardinals, lastly neons~~..

As someone mentioned, you do not want angelfish with either cardinal or neon tetra.

yup, i think im scraping that one out, but will now consider buying discus instead, this is a good idea right? i might mix the discus with cardinals, rummy nose and penguins. and some bottom feeders like loach, cories and algae eaters(otocinclus).

im still thinking of adding blue rams/yellow rams in this mix.. whats your thought? :)

Other characin species that tend to remain in a shoal include most species in the Rosy clade of Hyphessobrycon. Rosy Tetra, Roberts Tetra, Black Phantom Tetra, Bleeding Heart Tetra, etc. These are not active swimmers, they tend to congregate in their favourite areas, generally in shade and out of filter currents.

Hope this is of some help.

this is a lot of help, hoping to get more help from you and from others who experienced keeping this fishes that i want..

Byron.

Originally Posted by Sherry1966

I have a group of 10 cardinal tetra's in my tank with my angels. They get along great with no problems. I find they are very hardy little fish. (from the right place) And very beautiful little things. My hubby is legally blind so their colours really stand out for him to watch.
I also have 4" rosy barbs in there too. All live peacefully...