Getting a Tetra fish for the aquarium is a leading idea you can take if you expect to see your tank sparkling. Talking about Tetra fish, a black-colored Tetra is notable and unique compared to other various colored Tetra fish. So, if you are viewing for the best black Tetra fish, then you are in the right place! Because in this article, I will list some of the best 5 Black Tetra fish ideas that you can consider for your aquarium.
So, What are some of the 5 – best black Tetra fish to pick for the aquarium?
1. Black Neon Tetra,
2. Black Skirt Tetra,
3. Black Phantom Tetra,
4. Blackline Tetra, and
5. Black Morpho Tetra, etc.,
These different Black Tetra species carry unique qualities that can surely make you relish them. For example, amongst the 5 Black Tetra fish from the list, most of the Tetras are easy to handle.
Still, few of them may require a moderate to advanced care level. But if you are looking forward to any of these 5 Black Tetra fish, a bit of extra care level is mandatory, don’t you think so?
Besides, there are a limited number of Black Tetra fish available. So, you can choose from the list mentioned above as they will not disappoint you. For broader information of each Black Tetra fish respectively, read out this article till the end.
List Of Black Tetra Fish Ideas For Your Aquarium
Unlike other colored Tetra fish, the availability of black Tetra fish is less. Therefore, you have to look thoroughly at every black Tetra to be confident about them.
To simplify you in getting a Black Tetra, I have listed the best 5 Black Tetra fish you can choose for your aquarium.
They are as follows:
Black Skirt Tetra (Gymnocorymbus Ternetzi)
- Size: 2.5 inches (around 6.3 centimeters)
- Care Level: Very easy (recommended for beginner aquarists)
- Expected Life Span: 3 to 5 years
- Diet: Omnivore
- Water Temperature: 70 to 85 degrees of Fahrenheit (21.1 to 29.4 degrees of Celsius)
- Water Hardness: 4 to 8 dH(degree Hardness)
- pH scale: 6 – 7.5
- Tank Requirement: At least 15-gallon tank at minimum
Scientifically known, Gymnocorymbus ternetzi, Black Skirt Tetra are native to the rivers of South America. It also has the other name, the Black Tetra. It is one of the famous Tetra amongst the black-colored Tetra fish.
Appearance Of Black Skirt Tetras
The body of Black Skirt Tetras is easily recognizable. It is like a rectangular crystal cube where the front part of their body is taller than the back portion. In addition, their tails seem to have a noticeable taper.
Besides, distinguishing between male and female Black Skirt Tetras can be a bit tough. But note that the female Black Tetras are usually larger than males as the females are a bit rounder. Also, you can see some white spots on the fins of the male Black Skirt Tetras.
The Black Tetras have a striking body color. Their head has a lighter shade of transparent silver, whereas their bottom has a darker black. Also, you will notice two unique vertical black lines on the front half area of the Black Skirt Tetra. That’s how this fish has got its name, the Black Skirt Tetras.
More About Black Skirt Tetras
In general, Black Skirt Tetras are peaceful, active, and shy. They behave gently without showing any aggression, apart from in some unusual cases.
In an aquarium, they thrive best when you keep them in a group of at least four or five of them. You can even keep them with other fish species which share similar characteristics.
The Black Tetras are not just gentle, but they are also one of the orderly living species in the aquarium. They create the least waste and are not very messy. By preferring them, you may see your aquarium remaining tidier for an extended span than it stays in usual when kept with other fish species.
While you keep Black Skirt Tetras in the aquarium, note that the tank environment must endure a natural essence. For this, make sure their tank contains dense covering plants. But in the meantime, considering and monitoring the ideal water parameters and lighting for Black Tetras is vital.
Regarding diet, the Black Skirt Tetras usually accepts both live and frozen foods without any hassle. As omnivores, you can provide some live foods like Bloodworms, Daphnia, Brine shrimp, and Tubifex.
Apart from this, it is also significant to provide some greens in their food. Providing some high balance of plant elementary foods can contribute in more extra nutrients to them.
Best Tank Mates For Black Skirt Tetras
The Black Skirt Tetras are harmless and very friendly. They get along with not just their group but with other species as well. Thus, you can pick some of the tank mates for them in an aquarium with certainty.
Some of the best tank mates for Black Skirt Tetras are:
- Cardinal Tetra
- Neon Tetra
- Cory Catfish
- Harlequin Rasbora
- Chili Rasbora
- Dwarf Gourami
- Celestial Pearl Danio etc.
Black Phantom Tetra (Hyphessobrycon Megalopterus)
- Size: 1.4 inches (around 3.6 centimeters)
- Care Level: Moderate
- Expected Life Span: Up to 4 years
- Diet: Omnivore
- Water Temperature: 72 to 82 degrees of Fahrenheit (22 to 28 degrees of Celsius)
- Water Hardness: Up to 18 dH(degree Hardness)
- pH scale: 6 – 7.5
- Tank Requirement: At least 10-gallon tank at minimum
Like Black Skirt Tetras, Black Phantom Tetras are also native to the streams of Brazil and Paraguay, South America. This beautiful Tetra species is widespread due to its attractive appearance and behavior.
Black Phantom Tetra Appearance
The Black Phantom Tetras are popular due to their unique smokey-gray color at their base area. They also have distinctive black spatters behind their gills. Following the black splashes, you can see bright lines with a precise shade of blue in their body.
Due to such a striking appearance, the fish has its original name, the Black Phantom Tetra.
Besides, identifying male and female Black Phantom Tetra is not so tough. Females have some red shade on their pelvic area and fins. On the other hand, the males are more blackish than females and have longer fins.
Black Phantom Tetras In An Aquarium
The Black Phantom Tetras are friendly, gentle, and quite playful schooling fish. You must keep them in a group of at least five or more. These schooling fish generally are the center of attraction in most aquariums, as you can see them wandering around most of the time.
To see how much shine the Black Phantom Tetras adds to the aquarium, you can choose some floating vegetation to place along with a broad plantation in the tank. Here, you can also arrange some dart substrate in the aquarium. Plus, a soft lighting level can be a good addition too.
When it comes to the water parameters, the Black Phantom Tetras are not easygoing. They are sensitive if the water quality keeps fluctuating, especially if the pH scale is hugely sturdy. On the other hand, they somewhat tolerate the change in water temperature, yet this can affect them miserably.
Thus, it is significant to maintain the water quality and water parameters in the aquarium for Black Phantom Tetras. Due to this, this fish species can be a little troublesome for beginner aquarists.
Concerning the diet, it is not hard to maintain. The Black Phantom Tetras are an omnivore and accept most of the foods. Therefore, you can feed them some freeze-dried diet, well-made flakes, and some live foods like Bloodworms, Brine Shrimps, etc.
Be cautious sometimes; Black Phantom Tetras may try jumping out of the water or tank. So, make sure you cover the aquarium correctly.
What Are Some Best Tank Mates For Black Phantom Tetra?
Before selecting tank mates for Black Phantom Tetras, you must remember that this fish cannot tolerate water quality and parameter fluctuations. Thus, you must keep such species as tank mates for them, which has the mutual tolerance capacity and behaviors.
Thus, some best tank mates for Black Phantom Tetras can be:
- Dwarf Gourami
- Danios
- Cichlids like Apistogramma (non-aggressive only)
- Rasboras, etc.
Blackline Tetra (Hyphessobrycon Scholzei)
- Size: 2.5 inches (around 6.3 centimeters)
- Care Level: Moderate
- Expected Life Span: 3 to 5 years
- Diet: Omnivore
- Water Temperature: 72 to 82 degrees of Fahrenheit (22 to 28 degrees of Celsius)
- Water Hardness: 5 to 16 dH(degree Hardness)
- pH scale: 6 – 7.5
- Tank Requirement: At least 25-gallon tank at minimum
Overview Of Blackline Tetra
Popularly known as Penguin Tetra, Blackline Tetra is also one of the black-colored Tetra fish. It is native to Southern Brazil and the upper Amazon basin in Peru, South America.
Like the name states, the Blackline Tetra has a body shade of white and black, just like a penguin. You can spot a dark blackish line that crosses both sides of their body along with a spark of light yellow edges. However, grey shading is also visible in the Penguin Tetra’s body, where their fins are tiny.
Blackline Tetras are highly sociable schooling fish. Therefore, you must keep them in a larger group than in general, i.e., a school of 8 to 12. Also, in the aquarium, adequately set vegetations to give a natural essence to the Tetras. Clean water and proper water parameters are crucial things to manage as well.
If you manage a larger group and keep them in a tank filled with a natural presence, this Tetra can be the best Black Tetra fish for you. But if you failed in devoting proper care for them, the Blackline Tetra may begin to nip the fins of other smaller tank mates. Therefore, avoid tank mates that have flowing or longer fins for Blackline Tetras to prevent any hazard.
Being an omnivore, the Blackline Tetra will take a high-quality flake, frozen and live food like daphnia, bloodworm, mosquito grubs, etc. Also, you can see them eating some algae filament, which is not hazardous.
Can I Select Some Tank Mates For Blackline Tetra?
Yes, you can select some tank mates for Blackline Tetra. But you must pick tank mates wisely. As there is a chance of Blackline Tetra to nip the fins of some tank mates, you should not put them with the species that have floating fins.
You can only go with similar Tetra species, small and non-aggressive cichlids like Apistogramma, Corydoras, etc.
Black Neon Tetra (Hyphessobrycon Herbertaxelrodi)
- Size: 1.5 inches (around 4 centimeters)
- Care Level: Easy (Recommended for beginners)
- Expected Life Span: 5 to 10 years
- Diet: Omnivore
- Water Temperature: 72 to 82 degrees of Fahrenheit (22 to 28 degrees of Celsius)
- Water Hardness: 100 ppm
- pH scale: 5.5 – 7.5
- Tank Requirement: At least 20-gallon tank at minimum
At least for once, but you might have heard about the Neon Tetras. They are widely popular when it comes to Tetra fish. The Black Neon Tetra is a subspecies of Neon Tetra where you can witness them in black shade.
Overview Of Black Neon Tetra
The Black Neon Tetras are native to the streams of the Paraguay basin in the Southern Brazil range. They live in the swampy watercolored, where the acidic level of water ranges very high.
The Black Neon Tetras are small, peaceful, and active schooling fish. However, you must keep them together in a group of 6 or more in an aquarium to keep them in a comfortable situation. Otherwise, the fish tend to feel uneasy and uncomfortable that can be unsafe for them.
As the Black Neon Tetras live in such a natural environment, managing the lighting, water parameters, and tank habitat are significant in the aquarium. In addition, you must set up the tank with adequate green vegetation to keep the natural essence alive.
However, they can somewhat tolerate and adapt to the fluctuating pH range as they live in hard acidic levels in their original home. Yet, a frequent change in water quality and temperatures can invite hazardous situations. Apart from this, the Black Neon Tetras are extremely easy to handle. I would highly recommend this fish for beginner aquarists as they are not very demanding.
The Black Neon Tetras are omnivorous, which generally accepts most of the food varieties. You can feed them some frozen or live foods like mosquito larvae, brine shrimp, etc.
Also, some greens supplements like algae filaments are essential to keep a proper balance in their diet. Besides, you can provide them some commercial pellet food and fish flakes.
How To Identify A Black Neon Tetra?
People usually confuse Black Neon Tetra with Neon Tetra as they look alike. But they are not identicals as Black Neon Tetra has a different appearance slightly.
The body of Black Neon Tetra has two horizontal stripes like in Neon Tetras, where one of the lines is in blue-white, and another is in black shade. The upper half of their body, which lies upmost of their eye, has a shiny orange color. And, the rest of their body is visible with a light grey-brown color.
Distinguishing the male and female Black Neon Tetra can be a bit difficult. But generally seen, the females are larger and rounder in size than males.
Tank Mates For Black Neon Tetras
The Black Neon Tetras gets along with most of the other species. So, you can get some tank mates for them. But be careful; some larger species than Black Neon Tetras can nip the Tetras and attack them.
Thus, the tank mates you can go for Black Neon Tetras that won’t harm them are:
- Danios
- Rasboras
- Neon Tetra
- Cardinal Tetra
- Dwarf cichlid species
- Catfish species like Corydoras and Otocinclus.
Black Morpho Tetra (Poecilocharax Weitzmani)
- Size: 1.5 inches (around 4 centimeters)
- Care Level: Moderate to advanced
- Expected Life Span: 5 to 6 years
- Diet: Omnivore and micro predator
- Water Temperature: 75 to 82 degrees of Fahrenheit (24 to 28 degrees of Celsius)
- Water Hardness: 3 to 7 dH (degree Hardness)
- pH scale: 6.5 – 7.2
- Tank Requirement: At least 10-gallon tank at minimum
The last Tetra fish on our list is Black Morpho Tetra. Many people may not be aware of this fish as its availability is a bit difficult.
The Black Morpho Tetra is originally from the black-water streams of South America. They live in warm water, where the pH levels are pretty low. The pH levels are usually low in the Black Morpho Tetra’s native place as the leaves and branches of nearby trees fall on the river surface.
Black Morpho Tetra Appearance
The body of Black Morpho Tetra is different than a usual Tetra fish’s body. Instead, its body resembles a dart, due to which it has got its other name, Black Darter Tetra.
The Black Morpho Tetras have a firmly black stripe on their body. Their fins are unique, which distinguishes them from any other Tetras. Their fins have black-purple scales that make it look like a sail.
Besides, the shade of Black Darter Tetra may vary from light brown to glossy blue, depending on the environment they stay in.
Moreover, differentiating the male and female Black Darter Tetras is easy as well. The body shade of males is more vibrant and vivid than the females. Plus, the body of female Morpho Tetra is smaller than the males.
Black Morpho Tetra In An Aquarium
Generally, the Blue Morpho Tetras are peaceful and active fish. However, they even have an aggressive side which is visible easily if they get uncomfortable in the tank environment.
It is significant to make an ideal tank setup where the water parameters and lighting should be accurate. Originally coming from the black water streams, beginner aquarists can find it difficult to maintain every element on point in an aquarium for their comfortable stay.
Although the Black Morpho Tetras are small fish, they prefer to stay in a large group together. They then acquire most of the aquarium space to wander. That’s why choosing a big tank size is the best option to go for the Black Morpho Tetras.
If not, Black Darter Tetras gets aggressive and attacks other tank mates. Their peaceful behavior can turn into aggression, which is unsafe for them and their tank mates.
The Black Morpho Tetras are micro-predators. It means they accept only the diets like bloodworm, daphnia, cyclops, and other small invertebrates. They are not likely to eat some green supplements like other Tetras. It is another reason for not recommending these Darter Tetras to beginner aquarists as they require a lot of care.
Tank Mates For Black Morpho Tetras
As the Black Morpho Tetras are micro-predators, you can still get some tank mates for them. But remember, the species that swim slowly and have longer fins should be out of the list as it is not safe.
Hence, I have found the species like dwarf snakeheads, scarlet badis, and paradise fish, which are suitable to be tank mates for Black Morpho Tetras.
Why Should I Choose Black Tetra Fish For The Aquarium?
Whether you love black-colored fish or you want to make your aquarium fascinating, getting any Black Tetra fish from the list above will not disappoint you.
Springing from their vivid body patterns to the shade, they have it all that a striking fish usually has.
When it comes to black, most of the other shades get dominant. Similarly, the Black Tetra fish becomes the center of attraction in many aquariums, no matter if there exist any other fish species.
The Black Tetra fish somewhat gives a new life to the aquarium by its extraordinary appearance.
Thus, you will love to see any of these Black Tetra fish from the list in your aquarium-I enjoy watching them a lot!
Things To Remember While Keeping Black Tetra Fish In The Aquarium
In the 5 Black Tetra fish list, you may have known that every tetra varies from one another. From their nature to the tank setup, everything is different and distinct.
However, there are certain things that you must know and remember while keeping all the 5 Black Tetra fish on the list in the aquarium. They are:
- Monitor the water parameters and tank environment often. If you see any changes in water parameters, quickly correct them.
- Don’t keep any of the Black Tetra fish solely in the aquarium.
- Feed your Tetras twice a day only. Here, the feeding span should no longer last than 2 minutes.
- Avoid keeping a large number of tank mates for Tetras as it can overcrowd the tank.
- Always try to get a larger tank for all the 5 Black Tetras on the list. If not, most of the Tetras get uncomfortable and may get aggressive.
- During the breeding time of Black Tetra fish, watch the tank more carefully. Sometimes, there creates a problem like poor water quality, inadequate diet, lack of shaded spot, aggression (due to fertility) in a tank. Therefore, you should watch and reform such incidents.
- Choose the tank mates for all the 5 Black Tetra fish on the list carefully. Avoid choosing larger fins fish species as tank mates for most of the black Tetras. Otherwise, the fish may not get along with each other and end up attacking.
Summing-up
So, here you have a list of 5 Black Tetra fish ideas. You can certainly go for any of the fish from the list of 5 Black Tetra above and add a charm to your aquarium.
These Black Tetra fish can result as a divine fish species if you are ready to take their proper care.
If you are a beginner aquarist, I suggest you get either Black Neon Tetra or Black Skirt Tetra. They are easygoing Tetra fish and are not very demanding.
I hope this article was helpful for you in knowing about several unique lists of 5 Black Tetra fish!
