Our Colorful Fish - Quick, Energetic, and Vibrant (+Our First-Hand Experience with Breeding)

We got an aquarium for my birthday on April 15, 2024, and I was over the moon! I'd always wanted a pet, but with my allergies, I'd been hesitant to get fluffy ones. After doing some research, we bought some fish - two scalars, two fin-nippers, a dozen terns, and a dozen danios. We got them from a breeder at a symbolic price - we traded 4 dollars for 10 danios. The fish have vibrant colors, with all sorts of shades - blues, greens, pinks, oranges, yellows, and more. None of them are alike, and I have a soft spot for the veil-tailed ones.

Our first aquariumFor a whole year, everything was smooth sailing - the fish were thriving. But then we got some low-quality food (we think that's what happened), and 50% of the aquarium's inhabitants died. Something must have been brought in with the food, because the fish's fins looked like they'd been nibbled on. We suspected it was fin rot. The danios were more affected than the terns - out of 10 danios, only 6 survived, while 9 out of 10 terns made it.

Danios, terns, and a piece of scalarThen we moved to a new apartment, and the fish had to move to a new tank - from 35 liters to 75 liters. In the end, after a year of having these fish, we were left with 4 danios - sometimes fish just disappear without a trace, leaving no body behind. We don't even have any predators in the tank.

Getting a decent shot of these guys is impossible - they're just too quick!We ended up buying more danios because we just fell in love with their vibrant colors. Unfortunately, on the market, all we could find were tiny danios, and we lost half of them to scalarii who mistook them for food (we've had a lot of blood-sucking scalarii incidents, which you can read about here).

I decided to give breeding danios a shot, so I grabbed three adult fish and set up a big plastic breeder container. After doing some research on what to do and how, I was excited to see if I could successfully raise some fry. The next morning, I took a closer look at the container and was thrilled to see eggs. We knew it was a long shot, given our lack of experience, but it was still a great feeling. I returned the adults to their home tank and added some water conditioner to the breeder container, then waited. A few days later, the eggs had hatched into tiny larvae, which were clinging to the sides of the container and hadn't started swimming yet. There were only a handful of them, despite the initial abundance of eggs. A few more days passed, and the larvae had transformed into tiny daniio fry, which were now swimming around. At this point, we started feeding them, changing the water regularly, and using an air stone to keep the water oxygenated. We also made sure to monitor the water temperature, since it was January. It was impossible to count them at this stage, but we estimated there were around a dozen or so. Daniios are notoriously hard to count, even when they're adults, due to their high activity levels and uniform appearance. Two months later, we had a thriving group of nine small danios - three of them were the toxic rose variety, and six were the rose with blue stripe variety. Two of the latter were veil-tailed. Throughout this process, they lived in a small container with an air stone, but without a filter, as the filter wouldn't fit and we just did daily water changes.

Danio eggs Danio larvae Tiny danios Tiny danios Tiny daniosWhen we were heading out on a two-week vacation, we had to figure out what to do with our two aquariums. Feeding the fish every day was a task we delegated to my mom, but what about the danios? Releasing them into the main tank too soon would be a disaster - the scalarens would eat them all in a heartbeat! We decided to leave the little ones in their own tank, but place the container in the main one, where they could benefit from the filter, aerator, and light. Plus, it would make things easier for my mom to feed all the fish at once. We poked a bunch of holes in the container and submerged it in the water.

A Home for My Danios in the Community Tank I've had my danios for four months now, and they've really started to thrive. The nine little guys have grown quite a bit, and you can even tell the males from the females just by looking at their bodies. One of them is still a bit smaller than the others, but they're all doing great. I decided to try introducing them to the community tank a month ago, but it didn't go so well. I put the container in the water, and the two smallest danios swam out and started freaking out, darting around the tank and trying to get back to their cozy little home. It was pretty funny, but I realized it was a bit too early for them to be in the community tank. So, I put them back in their own little home and waited a bit longer. Yesterday, I decided it was time to give it another try. I introduced all nine danios to the community tank, and at first, everything seemed to be going great. They were swimming around and playing with the other fish, and it looked like they were going to do just fine. But then, disaster struck. Our scalare fish just chomped down on one of the smaller danios. I was shocked and a bit upset, since we had raised that little guy from an egg. I quickly grabbed a net and put the remaining eight danios back in their own little home. We've decided to rehome our scalare fish, since it's been causing us a lot of trouble. But that's a whole other story...

I have to say, though, that danios are really great fish. They're easy to care for, non-aggressive, and super hardy. They're also really fun to watch, with their bright colors and lively movements. And the best part? They're super affordable. I'd definitely recommend them to anyone who's new to aquarium-keeping, like my husband and me.

The Dano - a lovable little guy My Dano at work My Dano at workCheck out my review of the Ternytsky here, and my review of the Anzistrus here.