Mistaken Identity

[valdega]

I bought a fish today. i was looking for something that would do fine in a community with guppies, so i decided on a tetra. the fish i thought i bought was a red phantom tetra.... turns out its not even a tetra. after some searching on the web i discovered that had just bought a cherry barb. i've heard barbs can be somewhat aggressive toward other fish, and i really dont want to see my guppies get their tails nipped up. will the cherry barb do fine with my guppies, or should i take him back to the store?

[gm72]

Cherry barbs are usually not aggressive. They are however, schooling fish. As such they should not be kept alone but rather in groups, preferably in number of at least 5.

[Kaga's Kritters]

that is true, they are a schooling fish.....same with tetras, they will need to be in a group of at least 5 also.

[Kuli_Loach]

Barbs and tetras are fin nippers. They should be fine however with the guppys provided enough room. Both are schooling fish anyway and should be with at least 5.

[gm72]

Cherry barbs however, are not typical barbs. It has been my experience that they are not nippers. I find that some tetras, particularly black skirts and red serpaes, are indeed nippers. Of course as always, your mileage may vary!

[msjinkzd]

I have cherry barbs and they are not nippy outside themselves. They do best in a group like 2m/3f as they are "randy" fellows. They are one of my favourite fish as they are always actively engaged with each othe although they do not typically school like tetras do. Thing of them more as a looser knit gang than a school. They are a great addition to a community aquarium.