Rosy Barb

Generally, barbs are mid-size schooling fish, slightly more aggressive than tetras, and larger barbs can handle mid-size African cichlid tanks. They are also hardy and offer a lot of movement in the tank. Female rosy barbs are an attractive copper color, and males are an even more attractive rosy red color. Mixing a few females in with the males will cause the males to display more of their color.

Quick Facts

Care Guide

Tank setup: Give them a filter, a heater if your room runs cool, and open swimming space along the front, plus some plants around the edges.

Feeding: Feed a quality flake or small pellet once or twice a day, only as much as they eat in a couple of minutes. They also enjoy frozen foods like bloodworms and brine shrimp.

Tankmates: They do well with other active fish of similar size, such as other barbs, danios, larger tetras, rainbowfish, corydoras and loaches. Avoid slow, long-finned fish like bettas and fancy guppies.

Good to know: Rosy barbs are fast and busy. Males show their best red with females in the group.