HELP!!! Does anyone know about Hi Fin/Long Fin Black Skirt Tetra?

[WendiDell]

Hi all,
My family and I stopped by our not so LFS today, just to see what was new. And while we were there we found the last 2 Angelfish for my Angelfish tank build. They are beautiful Half Black Blushing Veil Tail Angelfish.

I have a photo, it's not mine, but other than the fin length it looks the same. I'll post it along with the Black Skirt Tetra photo, also not mine but useful as a reference for the type of fish I'm referring to. As mine are all still in hiding after the transfer from FS to home.

Anyway while picking out the Angelfish, the Fish guy we always deal with says, He has 5 Hi Fin/Long Fin Black Skirt Tetra that we can have for a buck each to go in my Angelfish tank if we will take them all off his hands now.
I had planned on getting some type of Long Fin Tetra eventually anyway, but for $1.00, what the heck, so I have them now instead of later.

My questions go out to all of you on AA who have Hi Fin/Long Fin or even regular Black Skirt tetra. I have never owned any type of Tetra, except Neon Tetra, and that didn't end well.

Are there any quirks to these fish that I should know about? Specific diseases, or something they may be more sensitive to than other fish would be? Do they have any special needs I should be aware of? Like water temp or specific pH? And is there any way to tell the difference between a male & female BST?

I'm not sure what else to ask, because I don't know enough about them to know what I should be asking.
I did do some quick reading online about BST and got conflicting information, which is why I'm asking all of you.

I generally know in advance what type of fish I want, and what their needs are, this is a little unusual for me.

Any thoughts or advice is greatly appreciated, so a big thank you to all in advance.

The first photo is obviously of a Half Black Blushing Angelfish & the second photo is a Hi Fin/Long Fin BST. The Angelfish I've got pretty well handled. The BST are another thing altogether.

 

[rich311k]

They are as tough as a tetra comes. Normal water changes and food and they should do well for you. Watch for nipping, people have reported they can be a bit aggressive. Good luck with them.

 

[WendiDell]

They are as tough as a tetra comes. Normal water changes and food and they should do well for you. Watch for nipping, people have reported they can be a bit aggressive. Good luck with them.

The tough as Tetras come, is a definite plus.

And I asked Matt (our fish guy) about the fin nipping that most tetras are known for. And he said" the regular BST are known to be big fin nippers, especially with smaller long finned fish. But, that the Hifin/Long Fin BST aren't usually fin nippers. Being that they too have the long flowing fins that other fish like to nip at. They'd be chasing their own tails all the time if they were nippers.

But time will tell. And thank you, the "tough as they come" is the best news I could get given the way I got these guys.

 

[mfdrookie516]

I've got some in my 125.. regular black skirts. They are definitely nippy. They also get huge for a tetra. I really don't think there will be any difference in attitude between regular black skirts and long finned black skirts. But, they may work out just fine.

 

[bstnrdsx]

+1 on the nipping. Never had long finned BST so I can't speak to that, but every regular BST I've had had been a royal pain to anything with nippable fins.

 

[HN1]

As stated the black skirts can be nippy to eachother and any slower fish. The potential issue with the long fins is that their nipping is exacerbated because they have more to nip which can leave fish with damaged fins. This can lead to issues if they are not in very clean water, but otherwise they'll heal and grow back in time.

 

[BillD]

Sometimes with fin nipping types, the number you keep can make a difference. They may keep to themselves and not bother the angels.

 

[severum mama]

The tough as Tetras come, is a definite plus.

And I asked Matt (our fish guy) about the fin nipping that most tetras are known for. And he said" the regular BST are known to be big fin nippers, especially with smaller long finned fish. But, that the Hifin/Long Fin BST aren't usually fin nippers. Being that they too have the long flowing fins that other fish like to nip at. They'd be chasing their own tails all the time if they were nippers.

But time will tell. And thank you, the "tough as they come" is the best news I could get given the way I got these guys.

But... the regular black skirts and the longfin black skirts are the exact same fish. Selective breeding for finnage isn't going to change behavior. That's why you see them looking so tattered in shops most of the time... because they're nipping the heck out of each others' fins.

 

[WendiDell]

I've got some in my 125.. regular black skirts. They are definitely nippy. They also get huge for a tetra. I really don't think there will be any difference in attitude between regular black skirts and long finned black skirts. But, they may work out just fine.

Acrording to the fish guy (Matt is sooo much better than your average FS person. His family owns the store) they aren't suppose to nip but, time will tell.
Also, the 5 he sold me for a buck each are adults, and won't get any larger. They had been in the Angelfish tank at the FS for almost a year, without incident.

Any way, does anyone know how to tell the difference between male and female?
Or, are there any diseases that the BST are more prone to than other fish?
And other than the possibility of nipping, are there any odd behaviors to watch out for?

 

[bruinsbro1997]

Like severum mama said, they're the same thing. The only difference is selective breeding changes fin length, not behavior. Besides, a tank with black skirt tetras and angelfish is not the best way, because a) black skirt tetras are highly active and will bother slow-moving angelfish, b) they are fin nippers and will nip at your angels relentlessly, c) they will outcompete the angels for food during feeding time because they move so quickly, and d) nips can lead to wounds and your fish could get ill and look ragged. I would get something that looks similar to BST but are better, like bloodfin tetras or black phantom tetras.

 

[WendiDell]

Like severum mama said, they're the same thing. The only difference is selective breeding changes fin length, not behavior. Besides, a tank with black skirt tetras and angelfish is not the best way, because a) black skirt tetras are highly active and will bother slow-moving angelfish, b) they are fin nippers and will nip at your angels relentlessly, c) they will outcompete the angels for food during feeding time because they move so quickly, and d) nips can lead to wounds and your fish could get ill and look ragged. I would get something that looks similar to BST but are better, like bloodfin tetras or black phantom tetras.

I'm not denying that they can be fin nippers. All I know is that these five have lived in an Angelfish tank for a year and none of them have nipped, YET. Time will tell. I watch all my fish very closely for signs of stress or bullying or nipping. If the do start to do it they will be out of the tank & in their own that same day.
It's also easy to feed fish in the same tank, in different places, so all get food. I do it now with my adult fish and the juvenile fish. I feed them different food, so they've learned to come to different sides of the tank to be fed. So food should be OK, if not, then it's the same as the nipping. Inti their own tank they will go.

 

[WendiDell]

As stated the black skirts can be nippy to eachother and any slower fish. The potential issue with the long fins is that their nipping is exacerbated because they have more to nip which can leave fish with damaged fins. This can lead to issues if they are not in very clean water, but otherwise they'll heal and grow back in time.

My tanks are well maintained. I do PWC at least twice a week, more if needed.

 

[WendiDell]

But... the regular black skirts and the longfin black skirts are the exact same fish. Selective breeding for finnage isn't going to change behavior. That's why you see them looking so tattered in shops most of the time... because they're nipping the heck out of each others' fins.

We watched them in the FS for about 45 min. no nipping going on and no one in the Angelfish/BST tank showed signs of any nipping going on.
But as I've said, If anything even starts to happen with nipping or bulling, the Tetras will go into their own tank.

 

[alLexX]

my mom has 1 bst,which she got with the tank about 9 years ago,and it was pretty close to full size then.its the oldest fish in her tank,hasnt nipped anything,and has survived a heater malfunction that killed an adult angel fish,and almost everything else. toughest tetras ever.

 

[allaboutfish]

it's really more the individual personality of the fish.

 

[bruinsbro1997]

it's really more the individual personality of the fish.

True. It depends on the fish you get. They say dwarf gouramis are agressive to each other, I've kept three in a tank for a year and there have been no problems...then again it's two females distracting one male.

 

[maddybrat]

Hi all,
My family and I stopped by our not so LFS today, just to see what was new. And while we were there we found the last 2 Angelfish for my Angelfish tank build. They are beautiful Half Black Blushing Veil Tail Angelfish.

I have a photo, it's not mine, but other than the fin length it looks the same. I'll post it along with the Black Skirt Tetra photo, also not mine but useful as a reference for the type of fish I'm referring to. As mine are all still in hiding after the transfer from FS to home.

Anyway while picking out the Angelfish, the Fish guy we always deal with says, He has 5 Hi Fin/Long Fin Black Skirt Tetra that we can have for a buck each to go in my Angelfish tank if we will take them all off his hands now.
I had planned on getting some type of Long Fin Tetra eventually anyway, but for $1.00, what the heck, so I have them now instead of later.

My questions go out to all of you on AA who have Hi Fin/Long Fin or even regular Black Skirt tetra. I have never owned any type of Tetra, except Neon Tetra, and that didn't end well.

Are there any quirks to these fish that I should know about? Specific diseases, or something they may be more sensitive to than other fish would be? Do they have any special needs I should be aware of? Like water temp or specific pH? And is there any way to tell the difference between a male & female BST?

I'm not sure what else to ask, because I don't know enough about them to know what I should be asking.
I did do some quick reading online about BST and got conflicting information, which is why I'm asking all of you.

I generally know in advance what type of fish I want, and what their needs are, this is a little unusual for me.

Any thoughts or advice is greatly appreciated, so a big thank you to all in advance.

The first photo is obviously of a Half Black Blushing Angelfish & the second photo is a Hi Fin/Long Fin BST. The Angelfish I've got pretty well handled. The BST are another thing altogether.

I saw those at petco! They were in the observation tank and were not for sale yet. They were really pretty though!!!

 

[Dewymoon]

I have 5 BSTs and they are nippy crazy ... I added Buenous Aires tetras and they seem to keep them busy by chasing them around the tank ... I too will be adding Angel Fish to my tank ( I am still settleing my tank before I add the sensitive angels) But I do love the look and the active level the BTS have in my tank as thy are not only very pretty but curious critters

 

[siva]

Hey there Wendi! All I can say, is I had 6 HiFin Black Skirts for about a month, and then I took them back. I felt guilty about it, but I just really didn't like them. I bounced them around 3 different tanks trying to find a place where no one bothered them and they didn't bother anyone. When I finally found a place that worked for them, I found them incredibly boring. Literally all they did all day was sit there, unless one was chasing and nipping another for a moment. I was disapointed...I had wanted them for a while and thought they were quite attractive but they just weren't the right fit for me. I hope you end up liking them more than I did!

 

[Rosenweiss]

I had a similar experience as siva; we got 4 black skirts to fill out a school with out 2 white skirts and it was an utter disaster, we took those little buggers back. But if you like them, all the more power to you!