Brocade barb - Barbodes semifasciolatus DNZ

The quite colorful and iridescent brocade bar b called Barbodes semifascoilatus is one of the most popular carp-like beginner fish in aquaristics and a breeding form of the brass barb. The very easy to keep animals can already be kept at room temperature and are quite forgiving of one or the other faux pas. Originally brass barbs come from Asian waters, in which they populate mainly the middle and lower water regions and almost never stay on the water surface.  And even though these carp-like barbs appear quite small with a final size of 10 cm, they need enough space to live out their lives: their aquarium may be somewhat larger with 150 liters.

Brocade barbs have the slightly high-backed physique typical of carp-like fish, their basic color is shimmering yellow-orange, or brass-colored, on which there are isolated darker scales in the dorsal region. The black lateral line is interrupted and ends in a black spot on the caudal peduncle. In the flank and belly area still sporadically red colorations are to be recognized. Their fins are transparent reddish, the mouth sub-terminal. In the aquarium they are peaceful inhabitants that can be socialized well, but can be quite shy if their group includes too few mates or the aquarium is too small. Although they usually avoid fights, they can become quite rowdy if they run out of swimming space or if they can't avoid fellow fish. In and of themselves, brocade barbs do not stand out for rowdy behavior or by burrowing.

The males differ from the females mainly in size, with the males as so often seeming somewhat smaller and also less beefy, but more colorful. Brocade barbs can be bred already by beginners quite simply. For this purpose the breeding pair is fed well over a few days and placed in a spawning aquarium. This should have many fine feathery plants or also Java moss. Brocade barbs mate quite intensively, during which the female can lay up to 100 eggs. After egg laying, the animals should be caught out, as they tend to eat their own spawn. The eggs develop into the first larvae after about 30-36 hours, which still live on their yolk sac for the first time and can then be raised on very fine dust food or ideally freshly hatched Artemia nauplii.

The aquarium for brocade barbs should, as mentioned at the beginning, comprise at least 150 liters and be sufficiently structured. Even if the animals usually do not form fixed territories, they should be offered the opportunity to retreat and recover through the decoration of roots, stones and partly dense planting, since especially the males drift very strongly during spawning time. Brocade barbs usually live in small shoals, so the group should preferably include 10 animals or more. Concerning their water values they are not necessarily choosy and can already be kept very easily at a total hardness between 4-20° dGH, a carbonate hardness between 2-15 dKH, as well as a pH value between 6-8. Also brocade barbs do not need it particularly warm and can be maintained without problems at room temperature between 18-24 °C. They prefer fairly clear and clean water that may have some current.

Brocade barbs usually stay in the middle to lower water zone and rarely appear on the water surface. They can be socialized well with other more short-finned fish that can handle the rather cooler temperatures (this should always be considered as a benchmark when selecting fish). Since they are quite curious and sometimes also brash, it can happen that they nibble on long fins, therefore a company like gourami, fighting fish, guppies or veiltails should rather be avoided. Dwarf crayfish stay in a similar water zone as the brocade barbs, so these are rather not suitable as company, shrimps can be nibbled or eaten under certain circumstances (especially fan shrimps and dwarf shrimps), borderline but possible would be Amano shrimps.

Brocade barbs are not very picky eaters, but should and will be fed a mainly vegetarian diet. Sinking flakes, granules, algae leaves and algae stones, but also food tablets are suitable for this purpose. Occasionally, the Brocade Barbs menu can be spiced up with live food and frozen food such as  Artemia, cyclops, microworms, mosquito larvae and daphnia.

Our feed recommendation: The NatureHolic Main Feed is a professional staple feed for all aquarium fish. Main feed we supply in the form of soft granules, which thanks to its grain size of half a millimeter can be easily absorbed by small to medium sized fish. The soft consistency resembles the texture of insect larvae in nature and protects the fish mouth from micro-injuries.

Our plant recommendation: Use for planting NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planarians and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free from algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend for fish keeping the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.