Galaxy Rasbora

kitty

Junior Poster
Jan 18, 2007
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Hi

I recently saw some Galaxy Rasbora at my local fish shop. They were rather pale and when I enquired about them it turned out they were wild caught. I was under the impression that although new sites had been found of them in the wild the were still considered endangered and being encouraged by PFK to only be purchased for breeding and captive bred.
Is this still the case? Or are they considered to be at a more sustainable level now. I am interested in purchasing some of these little beauties as I have never seen them at my locality before. I don’t believe anyone else is aware of them at the moment as I thought they would have been snapped up, but they still seem to be there a week later.

HOWEVER I would be keeping them in a large very heavily planted 120L community tank along with lamp eyes, Amano shrimp, Ottos and a male fighter and I am ethically aware that although I would encourage them to breed they may not be successful in a community tank. The fact that they are wild caught also greatly concerns me even if they are not a species my Local fish shop regularly stock. Can any one give me some advice as to the situation of this rare fish.


Thanks
 

tedr108

Lifetime Charter Member
Lifetime Member
Nov 21, 2007
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Los Angeles, CA
I have some galaxies. I bought them before hearing of the "endangered" rumors, so perhaps I can be forgiven. :) I did a lot of research after hearing of the supposed endangerment. In the end, I decided that the truth is somewhere between "decimated population" and "nothing to worry about."

Personally, I would have no problem buying the ones in the fish store. I paid like $7 a piece for my 12 -- not cheap for little guys.

They are easy to breed and yours will breed. The best way to get fry is to put a couple of males and females in a small breeding tank with java moss or some other fine-leaved plant. Remove the adults in a couple of weeks and fry will appear shortly. Some folks have luck raising fry in the big main tank, because galaxies are not big on eating fry (this depends on the personality of your galaxies, some will definitely eat fry). However, if you do not have a good place (fine-leaved plants) for them to lay eggs where they will be hidden and protected, most eggs will get eaten. I've raised just a few fry that I've "rescued" from my big tank -- my fry have usually been eaten, if left in the main tank for very long. Now that I have shrimp in my galaxy tank, no eggs survive long enough to hatch.

Warning: In a planted tank, you will not see the galaxies very often. They hide all of the time. I love the little guys, but that has been my biggest disappointment: not being able to easily see them. The only way I get to see them is to feed and then sit very, very still. You might even have to get down low. They make you work hard to see them.
 

Gerryd

Plant Guru Team
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Sep 23, 2007
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Ted,

They hide all of the time. I love the little guys, but that has been my biggest disappointment: not being able to easily see them.

When my tank was more of a community and many more species and I was building my cardinal army, I had about 40 or so and never seemed to see them but I knew they were healthy....

After watching closely, I saw that the Panda tetra school of about 20 were mostly males. Each had a small territory that covered the LENGTH of the tank. Cardinals were constantly harassed if they came too near.

Within 20 minutes I had the Pandas bagged and 10 minutes after that, the cards were out in the open and have been fine since...........

I had had the Pandas for a while in a small species tank and since they were no bigger than the cards, I figured no biggie right?

Could it also be something like this for yours?

I don't have galaxies, but most schooling fish will spend time in the open. Esp in a planted tank where they know they can get safe in a sec..........

What about when lights are off? I know my schools tend to congregate closer when lights are off, but natural daylight hits the tank..........
 

tedr108

Lifetime Charter Member
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Nov 21, 2007
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Gerry,

Re: your question about territories:

Could it also be something like this for yours?

Nope. The galaxy rasboras have been in a species tank now for a number of months ... same difference, they still hide. Tom has mentioned that galaxies hide in a planted tank. They are basically a bunch of "chicken littles" -- every time I come into the room it's like: "Hide! The big monster is here!" :eek: They are so small that it is understandable, especially since the originals were probably wild-caught. They really have great personalities, which I see while I'm watching and they don't know I'm there. I wish they were more brave, but it ain't gonna happen because I've had them for about a year now.

The little fry I've raised are not afraid at all, but as soon as I put them in with the others, they copy their "hiding" trait. The trick may be to raise fry and put them in their own tank. Perhaps then the survival tactic of hiding won't kick in. As soon as I get the shrimp out of the galaxy tank (which I am planning to do soon because they eat all of the fish eggs), I'll nab a few fry and put them in a tank with tetras when they are big enough. Maybe that will help.
 

Tom Barr

Founder
Staff member
Administrator
Jan 23, 2005
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Iwagumi layouts are better for Galaxy Rasboras.

Nice fish etc, most are bred though.
They are easy to bred, from Singaporean breeders/Fish aquaculture ponds.
Then shipped everywhere.

Much cheaper than taking anything from the wild.

Where fish cannot be bred fast, in large amounts, take a long time to repoduce, anything that makes them very tough for aquaculture, then you get problems.

Elephants, Tigers, Cheeta, Zebra plecos, A adonis, most all Whales, Altums etc...........

They will have issues in nature.
Takes a long time for adults to reproduce and then not much brood.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 

kitty

Junior Poster
Jan 18, 2007
21
0
1
Hi All

Thanks for your replies regarding the galaxy Rasbora, I subsequently bought a shoal of 17 fish. They seem to have settled down well and shoaled together nicely when first introduced along with my lamp eyes. They have split off into smaller groups as they have settled but I usually manage to see at least a couple when I look into the tank. Thanks for you time

Regards
 

FishMom

Junior Poster
Mar 31, 2009
1
0
1
Orlando, FL
I am really interested in getting a shoal of Galaxy Rasboras and would like to try my hand at breeding them. I recently saw just 3 locally. I checked and they are captive bred in Florida, but are all male.

Does anyone in or near Orlando, FL have some they would like to sell?

Also looking for Celebes Rainbowfish - Have never seen them in local shops here.

I'm new to this forum - any forum at all and this is a great way for me to learn more about the hobby. Keep up the great work and many thanks to you!
 

bster

Junior Poster
Jul 1, 2009
1
0
1
Tom Barr;34094 said:
Iwagumi layouts are better for Galaxy Rasboras.

Nice fish etc, most are bred though.
They are easy to bred, from Singaporean breeders/Fish aquaculture ponds.
Then shipped everywhere.

Much cheaper than taking anything from the wild.

Where fish cannot be bred fast, in large amounts, take a long time to repoduce, anything that makes them very tough for aquaculture, then you get problems.

Elephants, Tigers, Cheeta, Zebra plecos, A adonis, most all Whales, Altums etc...........

They will have issues in nature.
Takes a long time for adults to reproduce and then not much brood.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Tom,

sorry to dig an "oldish" thread out, but I have been unable to find such breeders in Singapore.

Would you be able to point me in the right direction please?

Cheers.
 

Tom Barr

Founder
Staff member
Administrator
Jan 23, 2005
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I'm not sure, you might try some people on AQ forums there and see if someone surely would know.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 

jonny_ftm

Guru Class Expert
Mar 5, 2009
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I jump on this deterred topic to add my question:

Would they be happy in my soon in water 11gal? It is 4 weeks old dry starting now and will be immersed in about 6 weeks. I want to know if keeping them in a 11 gal is ok or something cruel/unsuited if they are good swimmers.
 

zvirus

Junior Poster
Sep 17, 2008
5
0
1
Bangor/Northern Ireland
Hi,

jonny_ftm, I`m sure they will be happy. I`ve got 2 pairs and done small restart couple weeks ago on ADA Amazonia Soil. I`ve introduced them same day and nothing happened! Tank is about 10 US Gallons. After months i see that they are happy in soft acid water. Males have red fins and they are "dancing" all days. I confirm that they are very shy but it does not mean you wont see them.
 

jonny_ftm

Guru Class Expert
Mar 5, 2009
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Thank you for your feedback, but I don't think keeping just 4 specimens of a shooling fish is nice for them. They could dance but would never exibit their natural habits, maybe explaining why they are so shy: that is stressed

If I decide to get some of them, I'll go with 10-15 at least. Now, 10-15 galaxy in a 11 gal is my concern. Are they good swimmers or, their small size allows to keep them happily in a 11gal, 17.7 inches long tank?
 

Myka

Prolific Poster
Jul 19, 2009
97
0
6
SK, Canada
I was unaware of the "possible" endangerment of the Galaxies. This is good to know!

I have 4 Galaxies in my 20 gallon tank, 3 males and a female I believe. They came as a bonus on a plant/fish/shrimp order, otherwise I would have gotten more. They do exhibit a definite shoaling behavior. However, I have thought to rehome them to make room for more Cardinals since the Galaxies are shy, and their colors blend with the vegetation. Mine don't seem to be as shy as everyone else's, as I can usually see all four of mine even though they stick close to the plants, but they are used to seeing me around often. However, they do have much more personality than the boring, but attractive Cardinals.
 

zvirus

Junior Poster
Sep 17, 2008
5
0
1
Bangor/Northern Ireland
Hi,

Well said "Myka". They are definitely not boring fish. And I also agree that I need more of them. I`m gonna breed them soon anyway. They are very expensive in Northern Ireland [ about 7.5 US Dollars Each!] There is no fun for me if I just go and buy fish ;) I forgot mention that I have a cat and he scares my fish when we go for work with my wife. All of my fish in this tank are shy because of cat... But this is different story.
 

Myka

Prolific Poster
Jul 19, 2009
97
0
6
SK, Canada
Wow, I can't believe how much you guys are paying for these fish. Where I got mine from they retail for CAD$3.50. I have a very good resource for fish and plants. :)
 

jonny_ftm

Guru Class Expert
Mar 5, 2009
821
2
16
So, about my question:

What do you think of having 10-15 galaxy in my 11 gal?
They will be with shrimps only (I already know they could eat the galaxy eggs though)
 

Myka

Prolific Poster
Jul 19, 2009
97
0
6
SK, Canada
I would think 10 would be ok, but I wouldn't go with any more than that. The shrimp will add to the bioload as well.
 

jonny_ftm

Guru Class Expert
Mar 5, 2009
821
2
16
Thanks,

I have more questions: are they good swimmers, that is, do they like to swim long distances or just remain in a limited area, hidden? Also, what's their real common size?

many thanks
 

Myka

Prolific Poster
Jul 19, 2009
97
0
6
SK, Canada
They don't swim great distances, just short spurts in my tank, but my tank is only 24" long, so maybe in a bigger tank they would. They are just shy of 1 1/2" including their tail fin.
 

jonny_ftm

Guru Class Expert
Mar 5, 2009
821
2
16
I see,

The tank that will hold them is only 17in width.

1.5in size is already a big size I think. 10 of them will fill the tank to the maximum, where I'd like an underpopulated tank. I don't will to put less than 10 of such a fish to get a chance to see them in a more natural shooling behaviour

I'm even more unsure now. Once the fish are loaded in tank, it's hard to go back. I think I'll look for another smaller fish maybe

Thank you anyway