A much less common variation of a quite common fish, the albino tiger barb holds a series of similarities with the considered ‘normal’ version of this freshwater fish.
Albino Tiger Barbs Facts
As a matter of fact, tiger barb owners regularly seek answers to why their fish are turning white or pale and find it to have nothing to do with albinism, rather than with the poor water conditions in which their fish swim.
While for most species, especially mammals, the albino individuals normally possess a bright white shade of skin, that doesn’t necessarily happen with the tiger barb.
Most specimens of the albino version of this fish have yellow with white striped scales and red fins as shown in the image below:
However, there have been quite a few registries of gold and platinum scales as well.
Therefore, if your tiger barb is not the usual red to yellow with four black stripes and red fins, or the green with red and black fins, there is a high chance you’ve got yourself an albino one.
Here is what a “Classic” tiger barb looks like:
And the “Green Tiger Barb”
The fact that your tiger barb is albino doesn’t mean much actually.
There can be two scenarios for Tiger Barb to be albino
- The normal or green tiger barb turn pale, in this case it is abnormal
- One type of tiger barb is called Albino tiger barb by its name (The type as shown in the image below, these fishes are normal)
There is hardly a difference in the care, creation, or any other aspect between the ‘normal’ versions and the albino tiger barb.
The most visible difference, however, is the lack of gill covers on the albino specimens, which is fairly noticeable on the other kinds.
Also called Gold Tiger Barb, Golden Platinum Tiger Barb, Albino Golden Tiger Barb, and other nomenclatures, they are easy to keep, which makes them a great choice for beginner aquarists.
As one of the first things aquarists have to learn is how to take proper care of the aquarium aspects, i.e.; water condition, pH, hiding places, and so on, a fish that requires barely any special care is a good start.
The hardiness of the albino tiger barb is renowned and they can easily adapt to different environments, but that doesn’t mean they can take whatever water or aquarium conditions.
Just like any fish of the same kind, albino tiger barbs enjoy plenty of hiding spots and lots of room to swim and they simply cannot handle overcrowded aquariums.
I will usually put sinking wood at the bottom of my tank for the tiger barbs to have more hiding places as shown in the image below:
The pleco like the wood too!
So, it might be a good idea to plant an aquarium of albino tiger barbs only on the sides or back, leaving plenty of room for them to swim.
Also, this kind of fish lives better in schools, so getting 5 or 6 of them should improve their overall quality of life.
Lonely albino tiger barbs have been noted to display higher levels of aggressiveness, so if any of them have to be left on their own, try and keep it with faster-swimming fish.
The albino kind has no difficulty living with other kinds of tiger barb, so don’t worry about mixing them up if you’re looking for a more colorful tank.
Just make sure to keep an eye out for the albinos’ fin-nipping behavior as that can indicate the fish may be lacking the proper care.
