I have a 125 gallon tank with a mostly bottom dwelling stock. The LFS just got a large shipment of red fin tin foils and red hooks which I can't decide which to get a small school of. I know they need to be in groups of about 3-5 and get large fast but I have the room. I also have a Mono Sebae which I don't know if the Hooks would nip or torture. I've kept tin foils in there before but they all died during a water change from a heart attack or something. General advice and experiences are all greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Red Hooks or Tin Foils???
- Thread starter GeoPesner
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- advice red hook tinfoil barbs
^^Same here on the red hooks.I have become quite enamored with silver dollars lately,especially the red hooks.
My vote goes with the SD'S too. Red Hooks are real eye grabbers. TF barbs, although nice looking, are somewhat common.
I don't have a personal preference between the two, except that tin foils will outgrow a 125 rather quickly, and as they grow, they become poor choices as schooler/shoalers..
Another factor for me though, would be, what was geographically correct.
If the tank already has S American species, I'd get the Red Hooks.
If my tank had old world/ Asian species, then the tin foils, and I'd expect to upgrade to a 500 gal in a couple years.
If geography doesn't matter, the size would be the most important determining factor.
Another factor for me though, would be, what was geographically correct.
If the tank already has S American species, I'd get the Red Hooks.
If my tank had old world/ Asian species, then the tin foils, and I'd expect to upgrade to a 500 gal in a couple years.
If geography doesn't matter, the size would be the most important determining factor.
I currently keep Red hooks in my American cichlid 125. I was debating the same thing when I set it up lol. But i think the SD's are great fish, competitive for food and too fast to be nipped on. Tinfoil barbs just get too big and make a 125 look crowded. I obviously vote for the Red Hooks. My school of 6 are great, wish i bought more.
I've never kept tinfoil barbs but I'm reading that they can get up to 14", which seems big for a 125. I vote for the SDs... I got a school of black belt SDs a few weeks ago. They're fun to watch and they're only 2-3" now, I think it'll be kind of surreal to watch them zip around a big tank when they're fully grown.
My preference would be the spotted silver dollar (Metynnis Lippincottianus)
for the 125. They're a bit smaller (5") than the red hooks (Myloplus rubripinnis, 10+"), so you could have a larger shoal.
Keeping SDs in shoals of 8+ show different behavior than those in shoals of 4-6
for the 125. They're a bit smaller (5") than the red hooks (Myloplus rubripinnis, 10+"), so you could have a larger shoal.
Keeping SDs in shoals of 8+ show different behavior than those in shoals of 4-6
Does that apply if you mix different SD species, or do they all have to be the same? I have 5 Myleus Schomburgkii, probably would've bought 8 if I'd known this.