Question about cardinal tetras

[trancecommander]

I have a small question about cardinal tetras. I was thinking of adding some to my tank (I currently have 3 mollies and one swordtail in there) but a friend of mine told me that they can get quite aggressive and are fin nippers.

Is this an accurate statement? What's their temperament like and would they get along with my current fish?

Thanks in advance !!

 

[Peter99]

I think they are very peaceful community fish. They may chase each other around in terms of pecking order, but never do any harm.

I wanted to buy cardinal tetras, but they were twice as expensive as the similar neon tetras.

How big is your tank?

 

[trancecommander]

I have a 36 gal tank. I had initially decided on neon tetras ... but that was before I saw the cards ... they sure have much more color and and brighter. So, I decided to go with the cards even though they might be a lil more expensive.

I personally didn't think they were an aggressive species.

Thanks for your response.

 

[JSchmidt]

My cardinals aren't at all nippy. They do fine, even with angelfish.

Jim

 

[Hound]

To my knowledge cardinals behave much like neons but are usually a bit hardier and larger. Now if you were thinking about black skirt tetras or something I'd tell you to stay away from the idea.

 

[anonapersona]

serious schooling needs

Cardinals are very lovely in large numbers. I have over 30 in my 59 gallon tank. I wouldn't add them unless they were going to be the main fish in the tank and in larger numbers. In the wild they move in enourmous schools, so they will be happier if they are in a big crowd of their own kind.

Can you put in a dozen or 15? Like, maybe half of the tank capacity?