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i recently (about a week and a half) added a group of 8 neons to a 29 g. with a 3in. pleco and 8 guppies plus several fry. for a week or so they were schooling ok and got along fine. now, there are a couple groupings of 2 or 3 that swim together and there are 2 of the neons that will chase away any other neon that comes by. i am worried that this is stressing them which they don't need as new additions. what might be causing this behavior and what can i do to stop it.

for example, are they not getting enough to eat...i feed 2x a day with tropical flakes. or is there not enough hiding space...i have a large piece of drift wood, several rocks and a few plants...

i just don't know what is their problem

More plants would probably help the fish feel safer, but your tetras are pretty much just acting normally. There are no large and scary (to the tetras) fish in the tank, so the tetras don't feel the need to school. That's why they're breaking up into smaller groups. They will explore the tank with a buddy or two, but don't feel like they *have* to hang out with all the other tetras for safety. From all that you've said, it doesn't sound like anything is wrong with your fish.

I will note that your pleco is going to get very large, if it is a common plec. You'll need to find another home for it, since each species of common pleco that I know of will outgrow that size tank.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

hey sir books does this mean if ya only have peacful/non-scarey fish u don't have to have a masive amount of neons to keep 'em happy i.e. have maybe only three to a tank?

Last edited by victa_fish at 13-Jun-2005 19:06

No, because the tetras usually won't feel "safe" and will constantly school out of fear. While tetra schools will disband if they feel secure, they won't feel secure if there are too few of their species in the tank.
Six tetras is considered a minimum for a school in most species; I don't consider six to be a massive number at all.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

with schooling fish the bigger the school the better.

If the Neons are not scared, they wouldn't schoal together all the time, but this doesn't mean that Neons don't need to stay in schools.

Can you tell us what type of Pleco do you have?.


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it is common. it has a ways to go before it would be too big for the tank. if it gets too big too fast, i can trade it in at my lfs. but hopefully it will grow slow enough to still be around in a year or two when i hope to get a 75g

i don't think a tetra school is ever broken. it tends to get loose, but it's still important to them. they can get along in a small school of 5-6, though.

i think those aggressive tetras are fighting for their place in the heirarchy (i did notice school heirarchies when it comes to where certain fish are positioned in feeding time, and who leads the school). they should be calmer soon.

if they aren't calmed down in a week or two, trade them for other tetra in the store. sometimes, the smaller ammounts of fish make them overly aggressive, and then getting them back to the large pack will help both them, and the other harrassed fish.
i had this problem with penguin tetras once, and by replacing one bully i managed to get the school back in balance in no time.

When I had 10 neons they would break off into smaller groups also. Just like everyone else said, it's normal if they feel secure.

They like to have the company when they need it. Unless you really want your neons to school then I wouldn't consider it a problem.