Please educate me on Indian Glassfish

M

msquared

AC Members
Jan 31, 2008
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St. Charles, Missouri
I'm interested in adding four Indian Glassfish (Parambassis ranga) to my 20g freshwater (not brackish) tank. It currently houses four male guppies and four Peppered Cory. It eventually will probably also house one male Dwarf Gourami. I would consider that a full load. So anyway, I'm having trouble getting clear info on these Glassfish.

I know not to get painted ones. But I see some people say they are brackish and others who say they really aren't. Are they? And as for diet, I know they like live food best, but could frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp suffice? If I fed flakes one day and frozen foods the next, would they be okay with that? Finally, will they be okay with these tankmates? The Cories probably won't bother them at all, and the guppies seem very peaceful and aren't super-fast swimmers, but I know the Glassfish are said to be pretty shy.

I appreciate all of your inputs!
 
1. pretty much everywhere i have read lists them as brackish
2. frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp should be fine
3. they may not eat the flakes, but eating every other day shouldnt be a problem
4. none of the fish that are in your tank are brackish.

also: glassfish should be in schools, and grow to about 2¾ inches long. a school of 6 would not leave much room for anything else in a 20 gallon. glassfish are also notorious carriers of lymphocystis, a pretty contagious virus.
 
I definitely can't have them if they won't be healthy in fresh water. As noted, my cories won't take brackish water (although the guppies might). Certainly a Gourami wouldn't like that, either. So maybe I'll be looking somewhere else.
 
I have a glass fish...that's right, ONE glassfish and he does find with the odd variety of fish I currently have. He eats both bloodworms and brine shrimp, as well as flakes.

The one I have doesn't seem to be shy either. He swims right up next to everyone else in the tank and doesn't hide in the corners or behind decor or anything like that.

I say go for it, because if he can survive in my tank, he definitely survive in yours. :headbang2:
 
Glassfish are actually freshwater fish, but they can live in low-end brackish without any problems.
 
a lot of the info i've read says that they travel freely between FW and BW but i've seen that they don't do as well in FW, sorta like bumblebee gobies.
jason-282, do some reading and learn how to care for your fish.
 
:) Survive or thrive; now thats the question??

Parambassis ranga in Thailand
Indian glassy fish
Go to Species Summary
Parambassis ranga (Hamilton, 1822)
Family: Ambassidae (Asiatic glassfishes)
picture (Paran_ua.jpg) by Greco, F.M.

Order: Perciformes (perch-likes)
Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
FishBase name: Indian glassy fish
Max. size: 8.0 cm TL (male/unsexed; Ref. 1479)
Environment: demersal; potamodromous; pH range: 7 - 8; dH range: 9 - 19
Climate: tropical; 20 - 30°C; 38°N - 1°N
Global Importance: fisheries: subsistence fisheries; aquarium: commercial
Resilience: High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (Preliminary K or Fecundity. Fec=500.)
Distribution: Asia: Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia (Ref. 4833) and Nepal (Ref. 9496).
Biology: Found in sluggish and standing water. A common species proliferating in impoundments. Most abundant during the rainy season. Feeds on invertebrates (Ref. 12693), worms and crustaceans (Ref. 7020). Breeds everywhere during the rains. Builds a nest and guards its young. Rare in markets and often found in the aquarium trade (Ref. 12693). [Aquarium keeping: in groups of 5 or more individuals; minimum aquarium size 60 cm (Ref. 51539)
Threatened: Not Evaluated, see IUCN Red List , (Ref. 36508)
Dangerous: harmless
Coordinator:
Main Ref: Roberts, T.R.. 1995. (Ref. 10429)
Update | Add

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Thailand country information
Common names: [ No common name ] Ref:
Status: native Ref: Shaji, C.P., P.S. Easa and A. Gopalakrishnan, 2000
Salinity: freshwater, brackish
Uses: no uses
Comments: Known from Pai river (Mae Hong Son) and Songkhla (Ref. 37773). Museum: Salween R. mainstream near Mae Sam Leap, CAS 79079-80. Also Ref. 4833, 41236, 43640.
Country
Information: www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/th.html
 
The claim that glassfish (and BBGs as well) are brackish, or do poorly in freshwater, is really just outdated information.
 
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