Green With Envy
The Green Balloon Tiger Barb is one of many variations of Puntius tetrazona currently available to hobbyists. They all started as a silvery bronze fish with prominent black stripes with some orange on the fins and mouth that we all know and love, commonly called the Tiger Barb. That original coloration and all the wild fish are usually referred to as Puntigrus tetrazona, and all the man-made variations unofficially lose the “g” to Puntius tetrazona. The Green Balloon Tiger barb was bred into existence by selecting the tiger barbs with the widest vertical bars to breed with each other. Over enough generations, these bars became a solid color all across the fish, though they retained the orange red fins and mouth (especially in the males). Interestingly, the green is actually an iridescence, and it can look blue depending on the light and angle of it. The “Balloon” portion of their names happened later, by selecting for fish with more bulbous, and taller but shorter bodies.
Tiger Barbs of all sorts are hardy, active and interesting fish that are adaptable to a wide range of aquarium conditions. One of the most important aspects of keeping them happy and healthy is maintaining them in numbers. Green Balloon Tiger barbs are “schooling” fish and should be kept in groups of at least six, and honestly more would be better. When kept this way, they will dart about foraging and eating and establishing a hierarchy. The more you have, the more fish there are to distribute the attention of the more dominant fish and the better chance you have of having a fairly equal distribution of males and females. Green Tigers in larger groups will show better color and higher activity levels as they compete for food and show off for potential mates.
This is a fast-swimming fish, and while they'll generally ignore most other fish that aren't Tiger Barbs of one color or another, they are notorious for nipping long flowing fins. As a result, we don't suggest keeping them with things like Freshwater Angels, Swordtails, Bettas and the like. The other caution we would give you is that feeding Green Balloon Tiger Barbs is easy. They'll eat pretty much anything, and as they get bigger, they'll eat a lot of it. This means that slower feeders like Corys might need to be fed specifically or moved to another display when the Barbs get bigger (and they'll only ever get a couple inches long, but man what an appetite!) Danios, large Tetras and Raspboras are good candidates as are Plecos, Siamese Algae Eaters etc.
Even wild Tiger Barbs are usually aggressive eaters, and these obviously aquacultured specimens are also very accustomed to flake and pellet foods. In house we give them Nutramar Complete Pellets and this diet gets supplemented with Gamma Frozen foods like Brine, Tubifex, Copepods, a variety of loaded Brine, Daphnia and Mini Bloodworms. They'll also relish having any of these foods live! We feed them twice a day, and in your display, this would be nice, but is not a necessity. Once a day, with a quality pellet would be a totally healthy diet.
A 30-gallon tank is technically enough for six Green Balloon Tiger Barbs, but we recommend going bigger. For a healthier and more vibrant group, consider keeping a dozen or more in a 40 or 55-gallon tank. A larger tank also gives you more room for other fish species. All Barbs love a densely decorated tank. Think tall rocks, lots of branchy driftwood, and plenty of taller plants (they're fine in planted displays). This will help them disperse and escape from each other when they get a little too heavy on the bullying. They’re not picky about the substrate, but a darker color can help their colors pop.
These fish are not picky about water chemistry, but good water quality is essential for the long-term health of Green Balloon Tiger Barbs. They can tolerate a wide range of temperatures, from the upper 60s to low 80s degrees Fahrenheit. Aim for a slightly acidic to neutral pH and hardness doesn't really matter unless you have extremely hard water. Your filter should be powerful enough to cycle the entire tank volume at least five times per hour. Regular water changes will help keep the water clean and clear. If you're interested in breeding, softer water, lower acidity, and warmer temperatures can help trigger spawning.
For those of you who are interested in trying to breed and rear Green Balloon Tiger Barbs at home, it should be noted that their insatiable appetites do not stop when it comes to their own eggs; if they can eat them, they will. In a well maintained, densely planted display with a good distribution of males and females, you may get some fry to survive without any real effort, but the success rate will be very low. You'll get better results from more proactively separating the parents from the eggs, and a dedicated spawning tank with a net that prevents the adults from getting to the eggs is commonly used. Females that are ready to spawn will be noticeably thicker than they were previously. Move these females and your prettiest males to the spawning tank and once they've spawned, remove them (back to the display tank they go!) The eggs will hatch in 24 to 48 hours. The fry are really small and will need food that can fit into their tiny mouths. We have a few articles elsewhere here on the website about raising food like infusoria for itsy-bitsy fish.
Overall, Green Balloon Tiger Barbs are quite easy to care for and will fit in many peaceful community displays. They're really social fish, and while they're often referred to as schooling fish, these schools will usually be somewhat loose except at feeding time. Be aware of their potential for aggression with each other and to take steps to prevent bullying, mostly by having enough of them, and enough cover. If you're looking for a gorgeous group of fish with iridescent color and fascinating behavior to add to your display, Green Balloon Tiger Barbs are an excellent choice. Though to be fair, all the rest of the Tiger Barbs we have available are also good choices! Head to your Local Fish Store and ask them about getting you a dozen of them from Aquatropic today!