Congos or Tigers?

[vthokie]

Hi all,

I'm in the process of setting up a 75 gallon tank and I'm having a heck of a time deciding what to stock it with. I'm trying to decide between a school of tiger barbs, or a school of congo tetras.

I think both would make for a very attractive tank, but I get the feeling that the tiger barbs would be more fun to watch. However, I'd also like to get a pair of kribs, and I think they would go better with the congos.

I've mulling this over for days and can't make up my mind!

I'd like to hear your opinions, especially from those of you who have had experiences with these fish.

Thanks!

- John

 

[Primetime]

Well from my experience of having Congos with Kribs, its going pretty well. I have a 55 gallon tank with 4 Congos and 2 Kribs and many other fish. I am planning on adding 2 more Congos. Also, to really enjoy this fish, you should have high light, because they don't show great colours unless their body is reflecting light.

No experience with Tiger Barbs though.

 

[severum mama]

I've never kept congo tetras, but I can tell you that a school of tiger barbs make for a very active tank. Tiger barbs can be nippy but IME it is only with each other if you keep them in a large enough school (6 or more) which in a 75 gallon would be no problem. Mine don't pay any attention to any of my other fish. I've heard that congo tetras are really beautiful once they settle in to your tank, so I think either would be a good choice. I assume this is the same tank in your other post for which you are considering plants. I used to have plants in the tank I keep my tb's in. That didn't last long because of the cichlids, but I think the barbs might have also been picking at them too. I'm not sure about that, as it's been a couple years and I can't remember if I actually saw them doing it, but you may want to go with sturdier plants like anubias and java fern just in case. Plus those species grow well in low light- they are practically indestructible.

 

[EmptyH]

I agree with severum mama about Tiger Barbs being nippy. I have a small school of 4 Tigers and they do get aggressive when I try to add more fish to "their" tank. I am planning on increasing their school, hopefully that will settle them down a little. They are definitely a lot of fun to watch! They have great color, very active, and have an interesting personality.

If you do get Tiger Barbs I recommend that you add them last, if they don't have an established territory to defend they might not be as agressive. Also avoid any fish with long fins like Fancy Guppies because the Tigers will be more likely to fin-nip them. I have my Tigers in with Giant Danios, a Gold Gourami, a Rainbow Shark and a Clown Pleco. Everyone seems to get along fairly well.

 

[severum mama]

EmptyH- if you increase their numbers to 6 or more, they probably won't pay any attention to other fish. Mine nip at each other all the time, but not at anyone else. Then again, with 3 mean cichlids, you can see why they wouldn't press their luck LOL.

 

[lovemybarbs]

Mine behave rather well, but my tank is rather agressive. The barbs pick at each other from time to time, but nothing I would call violent. But let me add this, I've never put anything in there with them that would be considered timid.

 

[vthokie]

Thanks for all the comments. I was at my LFS recently and they had a tank of adult tiger barbs that were stunning. I had never seen them look so colorful before.

I've been reading about congos, but it wasn't until a couple of days ago that I actually saw a nice school of them, and they looked very nice too. That was at a non-local fish store; the stores around me don't seem to get them very often.

I'm leaning towards the tiger barbs, but I'm still interested in hearing from any others who have had congos.