How to Care for Black Skirt Tetras

Black skirt tetras are community fish, which means you should keep them in groups of three or more. They are non-aggressive and very hearty. With minimum care they can live many years, some owners report up to 20. They can also survive in weird conditions, like traveling across country in a car.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. Buy at least three black skirt tetras. Black skirt tetras are good fish to have and can be entertaining. Although they may be a little nippy, they don't generally do much harm to other fish. They like to ram the other fish, but think of it as playing tag.

2. Maintain your tank the same. No matter how you have your tank when you add black skirts you don't have to change anything. They adapt to the water, not like some fish where you have to adjust the water for them.

3. Watch your black skirt tetras. Black skirts tetras grow up to 2 1/2 inches and eat fish flakes. The temperature of the water can be anywhere between 68 and 79 degrees. The pH range 6.0 to 8.0 and the dh range 5 to 19. These numbers indicate that these fish are not fussy and can survive in almost any water. They are fresh water fish.

4. Feed black skirts anything, but they like a varied diet. Although they will survive on fish fakes--which is the easiest way to feed your fish--if you can give them live and frozen food at times it will make them very happy.

5. Decide on what other fish you want to add to your tank. Black skirt tetras can become nippy with angelfish and bettas--any fish with long and flowing fins. To solve this problem increase the number of black skirts; it seems the more black skirts you have, the less nippy they are.