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ok so i have this aquarium book it has some 800 species of fish in it. very nice. well anyways i came across something called an odessa barb. the book is a little older or it looks like it. so im not sure if thats the right common name. ill get back on later today when i find it again and post the scientific name in the book. but i was just wondering if anyones heard of these before and can tell me about them? ive never heard of them before and the book is pretty vague on them. thanks in advance!

The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we dont know what to do.

Never kept them myself, they look similar to a rosy barb though, just with a stripe of red down their front.

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They look really nice .

^_^

ohh i didnt realize they had a profile here!!!!! thanks babel!

The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we dont know what to do.

Yes; like the Golden Barb, they're just a new breed of some already-existing less-spectacularly-colored species of Barb. And the most brightly colored males can be spectacularly beautiful -- among the prettiest freshwater fish I've ever seen. Whoever first bred them (presumably some guy in Odessa) had VERY good artistic taste.

They do tend to lose color somewhat, though, as they grow, although I have one full-grown male in the library tank that I maintain right now, and he's still very pretty. (Apparently they maintain their color better if there are females in the tank with them, and he certainly seems to spend every second of his time chasing the female around -- although, as far as I can tell, she won't yet give him the time of day.) Anyway, I recommend them very highly -- especially because they're also cheap, easy to keep and (unlike Tiger or Black Ruby Barbs) they seem quite unaggressive.

Also note that glowing blue dot on their gill covers in the photo -- they really do have it, and it's a nice touch.

wow they sound beautiful bruce! i really want to go out and find some now! they certainly sound like they'd be an interesting addition. do they have pretty interesting personalities?

The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we dont know what to do.