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Cherry barb

Cherry Barb Fish:

The Cherry Barb, as its name suggests, is a cherry-colored, small-sized fish.



It can, at best, grow to about 2 inches in length. TheCherry Barb is a tropical fish that is mostly found in Sri Lanka. Though the Cherry Barb has been introduced to many other habitats, the Cherry Barb has been able to survive only in Mexico.

The Cherry Barb appears elongated and has a body that looks relatively compressed when compared to the length.



From the top, the fish appears fawn in color and has a slight green tinge. On its sides, you can observe silver-colored highlights, which often gleam. There is also a brown-colored horizontal stripe that may extend right from the top of the snout to the caudal fin’s base. Though the fish is predominantly red, there’s a gold sheen on the fish.



Towards the tail, this gold sheen turns blue or green. It is easy to distinguish between the male and the female since the males are slightly redder than the females. The red color on the females is much lighter, and the fins range from bright to dull yellow in color. When breeding, both the male and the female colors turns into a deeper shade of red.

The Cherry Barb prefers an environment that is heavily shaded. It is usually found in areas where the water is calm. They are native to areas that have silt with adequate leaf cover. They prefer a tropical climate where the temperature of water is relatively warmer and the pH level is between 6 and 8.

The Cherry Barb is a peaceful fish and is therefore kept in community tanks. Though the barbs are usually schooling fishes, the Cherry barb does not require large schools. However, it is best to keep the Cherry Barb in groups of five or more. The males are known to be hasty about breeding and may often harass the females in order to breed with them. Due to this, it is recommended that for every 2 to 3 females, there should only be one male. This allows the females to relax. The life span of Cherry Barb is only four years. The Cherry Barb health issues are few, and during this short span of life, they live relatively disease free, given the proper environment and a clean and hygienic tank. The Cherry Barb is essentially shy and likes a tank that has an abundance of plants. Though they do need some open space to swim in, they prefer at least two-thirds of the tank to be occupied by plants.

 
  Submitted on February 11, 2010