Neon Tetras - Good beginner fish? I think NOT!

[Brett]

neons have been captive bred for so long..it is believed by some that it has been at the expense of the immune system and they may have become less hardy..
at one point in time they were quite hardy.

I agree, in my experience cardinals are much hardier than neons.

 

[NeonJulie]

I think they may be considered Beginner because they tend not to be very expensive to buy. /sadface

 

[PitFan]

For a true beginner fish I think of danios and guppies.

Fancy guppies aren't all that hardy.

Zebra danios are tough as nails and are as hardy as they come. Plus, they're very active schooling fish.

 

[Pepe]

I have had excellent luck cycling with White Clouds. Also, their colors develop very well in a planted tank with varied foods. I think they are underrated.

 

[livingword26]

I have had excellent luck cycling with White Clouds. Also, their colors develop very well in a planted tank with varied foods. I think they are underrated.

Do they do ok at tropical temperatures? I thought that they were for colder water setups.

 

[jm1212]

Do they do ok at tropical temperatures? I thought that they were for colder water setups.

they are one of the few that can be in both cold water and tropical water.

zebras are really the hardiest tropical fish.

platies are pretty tought too.

 

[Marinemom]

Platies can be tough but they are livebearers so it is easy for them to get something like velvet. Danios on the other hand are practically indestructable. I don't think you can kill them unless you take them out of the water for good. They also school very well, are very active so you will always see them, and when they are settled in they will really start to show some beautiful colors. As far as the neons go, it has been my experience that they can die almost for no reason. I really cannot figure out why.

Marinemom

 

[sunjwd]

I have a 3 month old tank (10 gal Waterhome).
Residents:
1 inch diameter golden apple snail (3 months in tank)
2 albino corys (1 inch long) (6 weeks in tank)
Interested in adding a few Neons to finish stocking my tank.

The local Big Al's (North York) stocks both captive-bred as well
as wild-caught Neons. And Cardinals for that matter.
They prices are not exactly the same.

Anyone in the Toronto area with Neon experience and advice?

Reading thru the forum on Neon topics it really looks like there
are hardy Neon stocks as well as flimsy Neon stocks out there.

 

[Star_Rider]

I had 8 neons I have 1 left..I bought 7 black neons(not really neons) and Ihave 7 black neons 6 months later.

the jumbo neons tend to do better..the small ones are very young so keep that in mind.

 

[reybie]

I was tempted to get some more last night at the LFS, they had 20 for $15 but they're tiny. They had some really nice cardinals (1.25 in) but still in quarantine (probably $4/fish, ouch!)