Putting fish together in the same tank can have all sorts of results.
Due to their natural variety of behaviorisms, some kinds of fish are more compatible with others, while others will be instant enemies.
Although some kinds of fish live better on their own, most are happier when sharing their aquariums.
For some, the best companion might be other fish of the same kind, even though most kinds of fish are also prone to sharing space with other kinds.
Read: The Fishes I kept in a Tiger Barb Community Tank
Neon Tetras And Tiger Barbs Live Together In The Same Tank
Tiger Barbs
Tiger Barbs, for instance, can happily live with a number of other species. However, there are some kinds that won’t make such great companions to these fish.
Most of the time, the compatibility between kinds of fish is directly related to their behavior.
Some kinds of fish, including male Tiger Barbs, enjoy nipping on the fins of other fish in the aquarium, particularly when the companions are also males.
Female Tiger Barbs, on the other hand, normally display more playful behavior and don’t usually bother other fish.
Disregarding the bothering nature of the fin-nipping, whenever Tiger Barbs do that, they aren’t really picking a fight with other fish, rather than simply trying to play around.
Anyhow, due to Tiger Barbs’ inherent characteristics, it might not be the best idea to put them with other fish with long and flowy fins like the guppies, angelfish or long fin glofish as shown in the image below:
Neon Tetras
Neon Tetras, or Paracheirodon innesi, originated in South America and can reach up to 1.5 inches.
Their nature is playful and they are a great addition to pretty much any aquarium, due to their calm and peaceful temperament.
Neon Tetras like swimming in the middle or top portions of tanks and aquariums.
Tiger Barbs and Neon Tetras can definitely share an aquarium as they won’t bother each other that much.
Surely, Tiger Barbs normally eat smaller fish, but because there are some different behavioral aspects between these two kinds of fish, this might not even come into the fold.
My personal suggestion is just put them together and MONITOR the situation closely for the first few days.
Not every tiger barb has the same temperament, there are some occasional case that certain tiger barb might want to kill the neon tetra.
In this case, you may remove the killer tiger barb and let other fishes to live happily together.
That is to say, Neon Tetras are fast swimmers and, when facing competition for the middle portion of the tank or aquarium, will gladly give it up and swim on the top part.
That on its own is already reason enough for the conflict between Tiger Barbs and Neon Tetras not to happen.
Secondly, Neon Tetras don’t have the long or flowy fins that simply drive Tiger Barbs mad with nipping.
Therefore, there should be no bothering from any part.
Lastly, Tiger Barbs normally fight over the alpha-male role when in the company of other male fish of the same size.
Due to Neon Tetras’ smaller size, there should be no fight over who holds the title.
So, Neon Tetras are great companions to Tiger Barbs and you shouldn’t worry about putting them together.
Simply keep an eye out for any different behavior from your Tiger Barbs since these fish, when facing stressful situations, normally become more aggressive and may end up not only playfully nipping on the fins of your Neon Tetras.
Read: Goldfish shares tank with tiger barb, is it a good idea?
