View Full Version : Neon vs Cardinal Tetras
Flohrie
01-22-2003, 3:17 AM
I live in Australia and at one of my LFS the prices are as follows.
Cardinal Tetras: 10 for $37
Neon Tetras: 6 for $10
Would someone be able to tell me the difference, are there benifits? Suggest which ones to get??
I have a 55Gallon tank with 5 Harlequin Rasboras, 2 Gold Angels and 2 BristleNose Catfish.
Roland
01-22-2003, 6:25 AM
These fish are not cichlids so this thread should really be under General Freshwater...
But anyway, both fish are very similar in both appearance and how you look after them. The cardinal grows a bit bigger than the neon, and is more colourful - the neons red stripe covers half the length of its body, where the cardinal covers the full lenth.
Check out the species profiles on this site for more info, and if it were me I'd have cardinal tetras every time.... Is that aus $$ you are quoting? If it is they are way cheaper than here.
Andy,
PS, I love Queensland, its my favourite place in OZ:cool:
Flohrie
01-22-2003, 6:56 AM
Well someone might be able to move it to the right forum :P I looked in General and its was about equipment so I had no idea where to post it, my bad. ;)
Yes they are in $AU, I thought it was cheap but they are pretty small atm.
JSchmidt
01-22-2003, 8:27 AM
Cardinals tend to be a bit bigger and a bit hardier than neons (this is true at least for the wild caught varieties we see around here), and many will say cardinals are better tankmates for angels. (Less likely to become snacks, I suppose.)
Unless kept in very large schools, think neons look better in smaller tanks. The tend to look lost in larger tanks.
Jim
Marcus
01-22-2003, 11:23 AM
I would have to disagree with JSchmidt about cardinals being hardier. Although both look very similar there are some big differences.
Most Cardinals that are available are wild caught. This in and of itself makes them a bit more difficult to acclimate to captivity. Captive bred specimens are available but this is the exception rather than the rule. Cardinals come from very soft, acidic waters (pH 5.0-6.0) such as the Rio Negro. These conditions need to be duplicated for best success. In harder, alkaline waters they tend to languish and never do their best. The waters in this area are also very warm. Cardinals need to be kept at minimum of 84ºF and up to 90ºF for best results.
Neons on the other hand are bred by the millions in the Far East and wild caught specimens are almost unheard of anymore. This alone makes them a bit more adaptable and hardier. They come from waters that are moderately soft and with a slightly acidic to neutral pH (6.5-7.0). Condidtions which are much more simple to duplicate. They also do better at cooler temperatures, 72ºF-78ºF.
Due to their color and size most people consider Cardinals to be a more desirable fish but some thought needs to be put into their care. Certainly not a fish to just throw into a tank to fill extra space. In many cases the Cardinals will be the most delicate fish in the tank.
125gJoe
01-22-2003, 1:24 PM
Originally posted by Marcus
..... Cardinals come from very soft, acidic waters (pH 5.0-6.0) such as the Rio Negro. These conditions need to be duplicated for best success. In harder, alkaline waters they tend to languish and never do their best. The waters in this area are also very warm. Cardinals need to be kept at minimum of 84ºF and up to 90ºF for best results........ Well, that's why my Neons didn't last in my Discus tank... The Cardinals did much better.
JSchmidt
01-22-2003, 4:57 PM
Originally posted by Marcus
I would have to disagree with JSchmidt about cardinals being hardier. Although both look very similar there are some big differences.
Most Cardinals that are available are wild caught. This in and of itself makes them a bit more difficult to acclimate to captivity. Captive bred specimens are available but this is the exception rather than the rule. Cardinals come from very soft, acidic waters (pH 5.0-6.0) such as the Rio Negro. These conditions need to be duplicated for best success. In harder, alkaline waters they tend to languish and never do their best. The waters in this area are also very warm. Cardinals need to be kept at minimum of 84ºF and up to 90ºF for best results.
Neons on the other hand are bred by the millions in the Far East and wild caught specimens are almost unheard of anymore. This alone makes them a bit more adaptable and hardier. They come from waters that are moderately soft and with a slightly acidic to neutral pH (6.5-7.0). Condidtions which are much more simple to duplicate. They also do better at cooler temperatures, 72ºF-78ºF.
Due to their color and size most people consider Cardinals to be a more desirable fish but some thought needs to be put into their care. Certainly not a fish to just throw into a tank to fill extra space. In many cases the Cardinals will be the most delicate fish in the tank.
Excepting the Florida-bred neons that are now appearing in some LFSs, I've never heard anyone on the boards describe neons as hardier than about any fish, and cardinals have generally been offered as easier-to-keep alternatives. I know my luck with non-Florida neons has been terrible, with early losses at least 4x that what I ever get with cardinals.
I'd be interested in hearing if others do, in fact, have more luck keeping neons alive than cardinals. It would be interesting for me, if nothing else...
Also, this might be a good thread to move to the General Freshwater section, seeing as how it doesn't really involve cichlids...
Cheers!
Jim
Flohrie
01-23-2003, 1:22 AM
My tank hasn't been set up all that long so I might what until it becomes more established.
Dale W.
01-23-2003, 1:44 AM
I would also agree with Marcus on this one. The water conditions that you have will determine which one is hardier. We had our shop outside of Redmond WA. where the water is hard and high PH. We stopped carying Cardinals because no one could keep them alive. For us the neons were a much better choice. When I had the shop in ID, it was a totally different story. The cardinals were the fish of choice as the water suited them much better.
bettaman
01-23-2003, 8:42 AM
From what I've heard and seen, Cardinals are generally more sensitive and should be added to a well established tank. Neons are a little more hardy, the only loss I've suffered with my Neons happened when one was just a little too anxious and jumped out the tank.
beviking
01-23-2003, 8:56 AM
I have to vote for neons. My water is moderately hard so that could explain it for me. I tried cardinals when my tank was fairly new so I may give them a try again.
JohnMemorialHS
01-23-2003, 9:40 AM
Wait if neons are hardier than cardinals, then WOW they're not hardy at ALL! Neons are as hardy as in-bred fancy guppies.
I prefer neons. The body shape is more pleasing to me. Or maybe it's just the percieved body shape due to the color pattern differences.
Here in Houston, It is difficult to find Von Rio Tetras (Hyphessobrycon Flammeus) because they have a reputation at the stores for being fragile. When they are sold, it is usually without a guarantee.
I purchased some and put them into my planted tank, and they were tough as nails. I haven't kept anything yet that was fragile in the correct environment, but I'm sure that there are fish like this out there.
-Shay
clayt101
01-23-2003, 5:51 PM
I think I would go for the neons, just because you could get nearly 4X as many, and they basically look the same. Hey Shay, have you ever checked out www.fishrushouston.com , I went to that store in Houston and it was by far the best LFS I've ever been to. I wish we had something like that here:(
When I bought 11 Neons at my PetSmart they all lived, whenver I bought Cardinals at my LFS they all died. It could just be my water, but I still like Neons better. Cardinals, IMO, are considered by most, the ideal planted, community tank schooling fish species. They are preferred in nicer aquariums over Neons just because they are most expensive and harder to care for (You know how some fish keepers like to boats with the best of everything) but to me, I like Neons even more just because they are most hardier and overall, really just the same thing as the Cardinal. I think it's just personal preference and water quality, you can't really pick one over the other, the opinion differs from person to person given their circumstances. :)
Fishiebusiness
01-23-2003, 7:30 PM
A neon is not a cardinal. If you get a bunch of neons, you'll eventually regret it when you see some cardinals. Cardinals grow bigger, have a really long and solid red line, and arent as prone to getting eaten by other fish.
Flohrie
01-23-2003, 7:43 PM
Thanks for all the advice people, half of you seem to like Neons, the other half like Cardinals!!
Well I've decided to put it off for about a month so I suppose I can do more research and finally make a decision.
bettaman
01-23-2003, 7:44 PM
Bet you never thought a fish decision would be so hard and split a forum!!
Flohrie
01-23-2003, 7:48 PM
Originally posted by bettaman
Bet you never thought a fish decision would be so hard and split a forum!!
LoL oh well, least I'm getting valid points on both of them. In the end its up to me :(
SomethingFishy
01-23-2003, 9:34 PM
Flohrie,
Yes I think it's wise to hold off for a while. From reading another post of yours you're still having a bit of trouble with your tank. You souldn't add any more fish until you have those test kits & you're sure the tank is cycled. If you do finally get some cardinals, I've had good luck with them by acclimating them to my tank water very slowly and keeping the lights for the first day to reduce stress. Good Luck.
Virginia
Harry Tolen
01-23-2003, 9:41 PM
So Flohrie, what are your water conditions, anyway? Temperature, GH, KH, and pH would all be important to know. We can all tell you which fish we like the best, but not which will do best for you until we know something more about the tank they will be going into.
Aquafreak
01-23-2003, 9:49 PM
Angels are natural predators of neons, so I wouldn't advice you putting neons in that 55g.
Originally posted by clayt101
Hey Shay, have you ever checked out www.fishrushouston.com (
No, haven't been yet. It's about an hour away from my house, but I'll check it out next time I'm headed that way.
Luckily, I had the chance to see some large neons in a tank near some large cardinals just last night. I can say for sure that I definitely prefer the neons. I think that the original poster should select whichever he prefers visually. If he takes proper care of them, then either can be very healthy in his tank.
I wouldn't recommend either with angels, however. One of my angels tried to swallow a large rummy nose, and the angel wasn't nearly full grown. I had to remove the rummy nose with tweasers and consider the angel lucky that he didn't die.
-Shay