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How Many Cherry Barbs Should Be Kept Together?

How Many Cherry Barbs Should Be Kept Together?

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This post is written to the author's best knowledge and is not intended to be used in place of veterinary advice. In addition, this post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Buying some cherry barbs for your fish tank should be a lot of fun. These fish are pretty, and they should make a good addition to your tank.

Before moving forward, it’s best to take a step back and learn about the fish. For instance, you need to know how many fish to keep in the tank.

Some types of fish need to be kept in groups while others do best in pairs. How many cherry barbs should be kept together in one tank to get the best results?

Continue reading to learn more about cherry barbs. You’ll learn about how many you should buy for your tank as well as other important tips that you need to know when caring for these fish.

Are Cherry Barbs Schooling Fish?

Yes, cherry barbs are schooling fish, and they need to be kept in groups. In the wild, they live with many other cherry barbs.

When you’re keeping them in a fish tank they won’t feel comfortable if you try to keep them in groups that are too small. People who have kept cherry barbs in very small groups or alone have often encountered problems.

Schooling fish are known to become stressed when they’re forced to live in unnatural ways. Generally, you’re supposed to keep schooling fish with enough of their own kind so they can be comfortable.

It can be quite a sight to see the cherry barbs swimming together in your fish tank. You’ll love having cherry barbs in your aquarium if you choose to get some.

How Many Should You Keep in a School?

It’s best to keep cherry barbs in groups of six or more. This should allow the cherry barbs to stay comfortable in the fish tank.

There are some experts who say that five or more would be okay. However, most people recommend going with six, and it’s better to err on the side of caution.

Typically, you’d rather have more cherry barbs than too few. You want to ensure that the fish feel secure in the fish tank so they don’t become stressed.

It’s common for cherry barbs to be sold in packs of six. If you see some at a local fish store, they might only want to sell them to you in groups since they’re schooling fish.

Be sure that you have enough room for at least six cherry barbs if you’d like to buy some. These are hardy little fish that you’ll like watching in the tank.

What’s the Best Tank Size for a Group of Cherry Barbs?

The best tank size for a group of cherry barbs will depend on how many you buy. If you go with the recommendation of getting six cherry barbs, it’d be wise to go with a 29-gallon fish tank.

Cherry barbs only grow to be two inches long at maturity, but you need to ensure that they have enough room. They might get stressed if you try to keep six of them in a small tank.

A 29-gallon aquarium will give the fish more than enough space. It’ll help them to feel safe and they should have a good time swimming around with each other.

When keeping cherry barbs as part of a community aquarium, you might want to go even larger. Remember that you need to have enough space for all of the fish in the tank.

Can Cherry Barbs Live Alone?

No, it’s not a good idea to keep cherry barbs alone. Trying to keep just one fish in a tank by itself would be a poor choice.

Whenever you put a schooling fish in such a bad situation it’ll cause problems. Fish that are forced to live in unnatural ways will get very stressed.

The stress can cause the fish to get sick, and it’ll likely simply die. If you’re keeping only one fish in the tank, it’s not going to be a good experience.

Schooling fish must be kept with others of their own kind. Otherwise, the fish will either have a very sad life, or they will die quickly.

Be sure to buy six or more cherry barbs for the tank if you’re interested in them. This will ensure that the barbs will do well under your care.

Can I Keep All Male Cherry Barbs?

It doesn’t matter whether you have all male cherry barbs or all female cherry barbs. The only thing that matters is that you keep at least six of them in the tank.

As long as you’re keeping enough cherry barbs in the aquarium they will do just fine. Cherry barbs aren’t very aggressive fish, and the males aren’t known to fight each other when kept in large enough groups.

Sometimes the cherry barbs might chase each other a bit, but it shouldn’t be a problem. Many people keep all male cherry barbs together and don’t have any issues.

Of course, many people do say it’s better to have some females in the group. This is because having female cherry barbs in the group should help all of the fish to display better colors.

Are Cherry Barbs Good Community Fish?

So what if you want to put cherry barbs in a community fish tank? Will these fish do well in a community tank?

You can put cherry barbs in community aquariums so long as you pick compatible tank mates. These fish are relatively peaceful and can get bullied if you pick aggressive tank mates.

For the sake of the barbs, you need to be careful and selective. Thankfully, there are many great tank mates for cherry barbs, such as otocinclus catfish, dwarf gouramis, and molly fish.

You’ll also need to make sure that the fish tank is big enough. Remember that you need enough room for all of the fish that you’re choosing for the community tank.

Final Thoughts

Cherry barbs are indeed schooling fish, and they need to be kept in groups of six or more. It’s common for people to keep these fish in community aquariums as well since they’re so peaceful.

You’ll have fun with cherry barbs since they’re colorful and nice. These fish are hardy and thrive in fish tanks as long as their basic needs are being met.

Monitor the water parameters and be sure to keep these fish in tanks that offer them enough space. Handling the basics should ensure that you’ll have a great experience with these fish.

If you do an excellent job caring for these fish, they’ll live for four years or longer in the tank. Sometimes cherry barbs can live for as long as seven years when receiving the best care.

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