I'm new to fishkeeping, but took the time to read up loads beforehand for buying a tank and fish for my boy and taking advice from the store - advice I have come to distrust...
I have 7 neon tetra and a betta. Not sure what type of betta, its blue with black/white markings on the fins.
I have a 23 litre tank.
5 tetra have been in there a month nearly, the other 2 tetra and betta arrived today.
Yes I know, from reading on here that seems too small a tank. But the store suggested even more than this would live just fine in there.
They have neons packed in the store next to betta, no issues, like they have about 50 in a 40 litre tank. I was going to just take the betta from that tank but was talked into taking one that had been in isolation in a tiny box.
We had 6 neon first, one died like 2wk ago randomly, then I got 2 more neons and the betta. Day 1 was fine, I released them into tank this morning and all ok all day.
Now though at night the betta is chasing the neons, I'm sure trying to take a nip at them.
My tank is on a bookshelf away from window so I have a tube light to replicate 'tropical day light' according to packaging and a blue led spotlight type thing slightly submerged that gives ambient 'moonlight' effect for them at night.
I noticed before that the blue light seemed to make the neons space out a bit, they stop schooling and just slowly meander. Now though it seems this light, or the neon behaviour, is triggering the betta into attack mode.
So far they seem to be too slow to catch the neons, but then they have to sleep sometime...
I am now really concerned about putting the light out completely as I tended to do once I noticed the neons behaviour last week.
I'm not sure exactly what to do now. I know from reading up that probably the store was wrong to tell me to keep these fish together in this tank. But I don't have many options now, and it seems that in the brighter light there was no issue.
Could this just be a settling in phase?
Should I just keep the lights on the whole time or will that affect their well being?
Any advice appreciated
I have 7 neon tetra and a betta. Not sure what type of betta, its blue with black/white markings on the fins.
I have a 23 litre tank.
5 tetra have been in there a month nearly, the other 2 tetra and betta arrived today.
Yes I know, from reading on here that seems too small a tank. But the store suggested even more than this would live just fine in there.
They have neons packed in the store next to betta, no issues, like they have about 50 in a 40 litre tank. I was going to just take the betta from that tank but was talked into taking one that had been in isolation in a tiny box.
We had 6 neon first, one died like 2wk ago randomly, then I got 2 more neons and the betta. Day 1 was fine, I released them into tank this morning and all ok all day.
Now though at night the betta is chasing the neons, I'm sure trying to take a nip at them.
My tank is on a bookshelf away from window so I have a tube light to replicate 'tropical day light' according to packaging and a blue led spotlight type thing slightly submerged that gives ambient 'moonlight' effect for them at night.
I noticed before that the blue light seemed to make the neons space out a bit, they stop schooling and just slowly meander. Now though it seems this light, or the neon behaviour, is triggering the betta into attack mode.
So far they seem to be too slow to catch the neons, but then they have to sleep sometime...
I am now really concerned about putting the light out completely as I tended to do once I noticed the neons behaviour last week.
I'm not sure exactly what to do now. I know from reading up that probably the store was wrong to tell me to keep these fish together in this tank. But I don't have many options now, and it seems that in the brighter light there was no issue.
Could this just be a settling in phase?
Should I just keep the lights on the whole time or will that affect their well being?
Any advice appreciated