Loaches Online Forum

Ok guys, the LFS that I've been bugging about getting loaches has gotten some of these guys and they are going for a decent price, $5.95 US...so I'm thinking...will these guys get along with the striata and yoyos that I already have?

I'm very tempted as this seems to be a once in a blue moon acquisition...

I've checked out the species index and it doesn't say yeah or nay on tankmates...

Comments?


Kevin

It'll be nice to give them a try. Who knows how they may work for you. I find them rather nice and will buy them the moment I see them.

They're great tankmates with any of the Botia species plus clowns. Superb fish - quite gentle and retiring. They love raw cucumber.

And that's a very good price for them, IMO. If you have room for them, get at least 5, but quarantine! Don't put your community at risk.

The only other thing I can suggest is keeping them in a tank with many dark spots - mine used to make the underside of a large flat piece of wood their home base.

Absolutely get some. As Mark says 5 would be the minimum for their happiness. They're a very nice species to keep and mix well with other Botiid species.

Martin.

Ditto

I have been seeing some very nice darios lately with unusual patterns.

emma has reported that her "flock" of darios in with her (large?) clowns were a nasty bunch.
I have one mature dario who would like to be tank boss but isn't. Two smaller ones that are nippy at feeding times but seem great otherwise.
Use a Qtank for sure!
Over half of the young ones I bought died
I thought that my large dario would do well in my Grrr tank but robusta, eos and modesta didn't like him at all.

Rumours of B. dario's aggressiveness are unfounded, IMO. In a very large group, I can see that they might become the top of the chain in a tank. In a small group they are completely passive and calm. They are notably shy fish and would obviously not do well in a "Grrr" tank.

No offense, Newshound, but these are spectacularly peaceful and accommodating fish. I have watched B. striata come to rest on the belly of an upside-down B. dario and just sit there. B. dario are probably the closest Botia in personality to clown loaches, with fewer fights.

Great fish B.Dario ! ikeep a large group , 19 of them live peacfully with a group of B.Rostrata, B.Almorahe, and 4 Syncrossus Berdmorei ,also e few Cyprinids , never any problems , not observed any real fights , good eaters , all in all a great loach !

Mark in Vancouver wrote:
No offense, Newshound, but these are spectacularly peaceful and accommodating fish.

as always YMMV
I would note that it hasn't been only me that has reported some aggressive tendencies in darios.
If I remember Emma had to rip apart her large clown tank to take out a group of 10 or so dario that were causing alot of trouble.
I have my dario's now with a variety of peaceful botia. the only problem they do cause is with my horseface loaches.
My mature Dario are really shy loaches and only seen during feeding times.
Would I get more?
Sure but I would buy alot more loaches

Mark in Vancouver wrote:Rumours of B. dario's aggressiveness are unfounded, IMO. In a very large group, I can see that they might become the top of the chain in a tank. In a small group they are completely passive and calm.

Mark, with all due respect, I kept a large group of these for some time and spent countless hours observing their interactions with clown loaches - and know what went on. Newshound is correct in remembering that their nippy, antisocial behaviour became so much that we did indeed have to strip the tank down to catch them out. There were 13 of them and you know the details of the tank, it's 1000 litres. I admit that I have only ever heard of a couple of other instances of this sort of behaviour in B. dario but this is what happened with ours and so it is not 'unfounded'! Most people keep smaller sized groups and maybe under such circumstances is why it hasn't occured? For instance, in the display tank at the shop (similar size to my home tank) we have a smaller group of B. dario (5 I think) in with various other fish including clown loaches - and no problems have ever been evident. Maybe it is some sort of 'mob behaviour' and could in fact be more natural, if indeed they occur in huge shoals in nature? Anyway, I don't mention this much as most people tend to buy 3-5 specimens which doesn't seem to lead to any problems. But people should be aware that there is the possibility for trouble when keeping bigger groups, albeit remote.

Emma

Worth remembering that in the past people have reported a certain degree of "wolf pack" behaviour with large groups of sids. I don't think we can discount the possibility that beyond a certain "critical mass" certain species may have different behaviour patterns.

Martin.

I'd attribute this behaviour to the large group, Emma. I was only able to keep three B. dario at a time in my mixed Botia tank, and they were very passive and mixed really well with all the other species - particularly the clowns.

I think it would be safe to recommend that large groups of them be kept in species tanks, or with fast-moving dither fish. I also feel confident that in small numbers, they are pussycats.

The Botia dario will be a fine addition grizzlyone. In the past i have kept mine with Botia striata and Botia almorhae with no problems what so ever.

Speaking to the group of Dario being aggresive. I have kept many groups of the same loach specie in different tanks ,side by side at the same time with the same water flowing throughout and the groups always mimic the Alpha. I have had several groups of 10 Clowns at the same time and they are completly different in action to each other. The leader of my large Clowns now is a hider and so the others hide with it. The other groups where more inquisitive as the Alpha would lead them out and they would be forward in the tank .My Dario I kept in two groups where the same in tendency so I would belive you are all correct. I would have one group on the glass and in the tank beside it that group hiding until the food was in the tank. Much like a pack mentality it is my position that any group mimics its leaders although staying close to specie behavior patterns , just at both ends of the spectrums. My Darios were rather bold like the Blue Botia at times . I would not hesitate to buy a group again and place them in with Yo-Yos and Striata although I have the advantage of spare tanks enmass should a problem arise QT QT QT,did I sound like the choir? QT

ok, I bought them.. I'm such an easy touch.

I was planning on 5, but there were 7 left in the tank. I bought all 7. They weren't very big...about 1" or so...

So far they are getting acquainted with their new digs in the q-tank.

I took a couple pictures but I can find my stupid camera cable and I gotta see if I can transfer from the camera memory to a card.

Kevin