Cherry Barb
Puntius titteya
Peaceful shoaling barb with deep-red breeding malesBeginner
- Lifespan
- 4-6 years
- Size
- Up to 5 cm (2 in)
- Social needs
- Shoaling - keep 6+ together
- Time
- Low-moderate (daily feed, weekly water changes)
- Cost
- Low
- Diet
- Omnivore
Overview
What is this animal?
- The Cherry Barb is a small cyprinid from Sri Lanka, named for the deep red that males flush during spawning and display.
- It is less prone to fin-nipping than most barbs, which makes it a good choice for calm community tanks.
- This is a peaceful, active mid-water swimmer that suits planted aquariums.
- It tolerates a fairly wide range of conditions, which gives beginners some margin for the small errors common while learning to keep fish.
Temperament
- Cherry Barbs are peaceful and somewhat shy.
- They show their best colour and feel secure only in a shoal of six or more; lone fish or pairs tend to hide and stay pale.
- They mix well with other calm community fish such as rasboras, small tetras, corydoras, and adult dwarf shrimp.
- Avoid large, aggressive, or very boisterous tankmates, which leave these gentle barbs stressed and hiding.
A good fit for
- First-time fishkeepers
- Peaceful planted community tanks
- Smaller aquariums (75L+)
- Keepers wanting colour without aggression
Common mistakes to avoid
- Keeping fewer than 6 (causes stress, hiding)
- Adding fish to an uncycled tank
- Overfeeding and resulting poor water quality
- Housing with large or aggressive tankmates
Enclosure
Minimum 75 litres (20 US gallons) — for a group of 6
Cannot be kept alone. The minimum is 6, and the space above is for that group.
- House a group in a tank of at least 75 litres (20 gallons) with a secure lid, gentle filtration, and dense planting alongside open swimming lanes.
- Aim for 23-27C (73-81F), pH 6.0-7.5, and soft to moderately hard water.
- The tank must be fully cycled before fish arrive.
- Dark substrate and a planted background bring out the males' colour and reduce skittishness.
- Keep nitrate below 20-40 ppm with weekly partial water changes, and use a tight cover, as these fish occasionally jump.
Supplies
Setup
- Tank and stand
- Filter
- Heater and thermometer
- Substrate, plants and decor
- Liquid test kit
- Dechlorinator and starter supplies
Ongoing
- Quality micro-pellet or tropical flake
- Spirulina or vegetable flake
- Frozen daphnia, bloodworm and brine shrimp
- Veg clip
- Courgette or spinach for blanching
- Fine net for removing leftovers
- Small feeding spoon
Safe substrate: Inert aquarium gravel · Fine, smooth sand · Aquasoil for planted tanks
Care routine
Daily
- Check temperature and equipment
- Feed
- Head-count and look everyone over
Weekly
- Top up evaporationevery 3 days
- Check fins on slower tankmates
- Clean glass and clear algae
- Test the water
- Water change and gravel vacuum
Monthly
- Trim and thin the plantsevery 2 weeks
- Check supplies and reagent dates
- Rinse the filter media
Less often
- Replace chemical filter media (Carbon/Purigen)every 2 months
Vet: Quarterly group and fin review — every 3 months
Top resources for more info
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Diet
- Cherry Barbs are omnivores that take most foods readily.
- Feed a quality micro-pellet or flake as the staple, supplemented with small portions of frozen or live daphnia, bloodworm, and brine shrimp to support colour and spawning condition.
- Feed once or twice daily, only what they finish in a couple of minutes.
- Overfeeding fouls the water and is a leading avoidable cause of disease, so keep meals small and include some plant-based food or blanched vegetable matter.
Health
- This is a robust species with few inherent problems; most illness traces back to poor water quality, overstocking, or adding fish to an uncycled tank.
- Watch for ich (white spots) after temperature swings or new additions, and for fin damage from rougher tankmates.
- Quarantine new fish for two to four weeks where possible, and check daily for clamped fins, rapid breathing, or loss of appetite.
- Stable parameters and clean water prevent most issues in this species.
Is your enclosure big enough?
Is this urgent?
In a fish tank the patient is usually the water. Test before you treat — dosing a healthy tank for a disease it does not have makes things worse.
Go now
Today
Soon
Never add a new fish to a tank that is not fully cycled, and never treat blind. A test kit is cheaper than the fish.
This is general guidance for a healthy adult, not a diagnosis. An exotics vet who knows your animal always overrides it — and the time to find one is before you need one.
What it really costs
Setup, monthly, first year and across a whole life, itemised and with the electricity worked out from the actual wattage. Published figures for the same animal disagree by a factor of four, so the calculator shows ranges rather than picking one.
Bedding and substrate
Substrate in an aquarium is a filter as much as a floor. Most of the biology lives in and on it.
Safe
With a caveat
Never
This is our general list for freshwater fish. We have not built one specific to Barbs yet.
My kit says 0.25 ppm. Is that dangerous?
A liquid kit measures total ammonia, but only the un-ionised fraction is really toxic, and that fraction is governed by pH and temperature — each whole pH unit multiplies it roughly tenfold. So the same reading can be nearly harmless in one tank and lethal in another; this works out which one you are in.
Compare with other animals
The same axes for every animal, side by side — the way the guides are written makes that a fair comparison rather than two articles.
Barbs, side by side
Same axes, same care guides — the honest way to choose between types.
See all Barbs side by side →
