:::I am new this forum and would like to share my experience with cardinal tetras. Unfortunately they can contract neon tetra disease. If you purchase a group of these fish be very diligent in removing any fish that exhibit signs of this disease and hopefully you can save the bulk of you purchase. This is the favorite fish of many of my aquarist friends. We usually purchase 50 and watch them closely for several days. The first indication that something is wrong is when a particular fish no longer schools with the rest of the population. They usually stop eating at this point. You could possibly lose half you population but some fish have greater resistance than others. Never let a cardinal die in your tank. Remove the fish as soon as they stop the schooling behavior. I currently have over 500 cardinals in large tank ranging in age from 1 year to 8 years old. always quarantine for at least 2 weeks in a bare bottom and siphon frequently. If all the fish are still schooling and eating after two week then introduce them to your display tank. Siphoning the display tank frequently is not that crucial if you never allow a cardinal to die in the tank . The microspordians are released in the water in huge numbers when the fish dies an it's musculature is allowed to decomposed. My cardinal tank parameters are pH 5.0 to 5.5 < 50 microsiemens. temp is 72-76 depending upon the season. six inches of gravel allow for some conversion the the nitrates. I do four water changes a year but always match the change out water's pH with the display tank. Ken
