Tinfoil Barb Large

Red Tail Tinfoil Barbs are native to Brunei Darsm, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. It lives in large rivers as well as in streams, ditches and man made canals. Tinfoil barbs will also enter flooded fields. The sides of the Tin foil Barb resemble tin foil (hence the name) and the fins on the this barb will become more red as they mature. Juveniles (alt photo) lack the red on the fins.

Many aquarists keep Tinfoil Barbs in a large tank with dark or black substrate, a dark background and bright overhead lighting.  As the fish swim they reflect the light causing a glittering and shimmering effect and can be seen across the room!

Behavior

The Tinfoil barb is a schooling species and you should therefore always keep at least 5 of these together. Keeping a group will reduce stress allowing them to exhibit a much broader range of natural behaviours. Shoaling Tinfoil barbs are highly active and entertaining. They spend most of their time between the bottom and the mid-level of the aquarium.

Tank Conditions

The recommended aquarium size for Tinfoil barbs will naturally depend on how large the specimens are, but 200 litres is considered an absolute minimum. Try to mimic the natural Tinfoil barb habitat when you set up the aquarium for your Tinfoil barbs. Wild Tinfoil barbs inhabit moving waters in Asia, such as rivers, streams, canals and ditches. Tinfoil barbs will therefore appreciate currents in the aquarium.  Tinfoil barbs are also known for jumping out of tanks, so they must be kept in an aquarium with a lid or cover.

Compatibility

Tinfoil barbs are peaceful creatures and can be housed with other docile fish species, provided of course that your aquarium is large enough.  This fish can be peaceful enough for a very large community tank, but it may eat smaller fish.  May go well with Bala Shark, Pleco, Silver Dollar and other large fish.  If you have a really large aquarium, you can for instance keep a group of Tinfoil barbs together with large cichlids, such as the Oscar fish (Astronotus ocellatus). Tinfoil barbs are also frequently kept together with shy and jittery fish species, since a calm Tinfoil barb group will make less tranquil fish species feel much more relaxed in the aquarium and encourage them to spend more time out in the open instead of staying hidden. Tinfoil barbs feed are chiefly herbivores, but should not be kept with crustaceans and small fishes since they can be considered food. They may nip at and cause damage to fish with long trailing fins, such as angelfish.

Feeding

They are herbivores, so provide a varied diet with algae wafers, pellet food and frozen food.  They will also go after your live plants and any smaller fish if given the opportunity.  Tinfoil barbs are usually happy eaters that readily accept most types of food. Healthy Tinfoil barbs will try to capture as much food as possible when you feed them. Avoiding over-feeding is important since obesity is unhealthy for all fishes. Keep your Tinfoil barbs on a varied diet that consists of a herbivore base supplemented with occasional treats in the form of worms, crustaceans or similar.

Care

A fairly hardy fish, a tinfoil barb can happily live in a wide variety of pH levels and water temperatures. This means that tank conditions can be modified to suit more sensitive types of fish without affecting the barbs. One thing a tinfoil barb cannot tolerate well, however, is a lack of aeration or low oxygen levels. A good filtration system that keeps water moving and oxygenated is necessary to keep a tinfoil barb healthy.

See Fish Disease Diagnosis and Treatment at Rebel Pets for help with diagnosing and treating diseases.