Starter Fish
Got the aquarium planted?........Ready
for your fish?
Think very carefully about the very first
fish that you put in your tank. When you first start up an aquarium you need to put starter fish in it to get
the nitrogen cycle going and these fish need to be some of the toughest fish in the neighbourhood. The starter
fish!
Starter fish will have to put up with a
whole variety of unpleasantness as the water settles into its natural cycle. Until the natural friendly
bacteria start up their will be peaks in both Ammonia and Nitrites and it is essential that the starter fish
that you select are able to tolerate this.
It will be at its worst as the tank
cycles, so pick your starter fish for character not looks.
Here are a few that we recommend as
starter fish...and they're not bad looking.
Rosy Barb
Gold Barb
Tiger Barb
Bloodfin
Tetra
Treat them with respect. These fish are doing a valuable job
for you so make sure that you look after them while the tank is starting up. Don't let water conditions get too
extreme. Keep an eye on the ammonia and nitrite levels and be prepared to do a partial water change whenever
needed.
If you prefer, as many people do, to cycle the tank without
using starter fish check out our information on how to cycle an aquarium.
Read up on algae eating
fish next
Photos - Wikipedia
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