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I find Cherry barbs to be incredibly hardy, and unlike their infamous cousins the Tiger barbs they are totally peaceful. They tend to school loosely, you won't see a big group of them in the same place but solos or pairs dotted around the tank. I rate them 10/10!
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I've had my 5 cherry barbs for about 4 years now. I adore them. I will admit that my boys are the most vibrant red I've seen (even in pictures!). They are quite active in the tank, and always playful!
I think these a great fish for community tank but the male are happier with a harem of atleast 3 female per male. They have great color and are mostly peaceful but will stand their ground if bothered by other fish and may take a tail nip but are not aggressive.
I've had my trio for about 4 yrs. They have moved with me about 3 times. Their filter stopped working for a couple of weeks and I kept them alive with water changes. They currently live in an unheated very low tech planted 5 gal. My males are DEEP RED. I love thse fish ! They have nipped my Guppy IF I skipped feedings. I normally feed 2x daily and all is well.
These are one of the best community fishes out there, especially for the beginner. While I keep mine in very stable condition, my experience in working at several LFS has shown me that they can tolerate a very wide range of water temps and parameters. This is an especially good fish to keep with shrimps that are a bit bigger (Amano and Bamboo, especially) than them, and unlike other barbs that I have kept (Tiger Barbs!) they do not nip shrimp antennae or the fins of other fish. These like to interact with other members of their own species, so the minimum I would add would be two; they seem to do better in a bigger tank where you can keep more, though. These fish, in my experience, are not shoaling, but they do hang out in smaller social groups and tend to be active throughout the whole tank during both day and night (well, light and dark anyway).
I love these little guys! They are always so full of energy and playful, but they never bother any of the inhabitants. I previously had 6 males and they would frequently chase each other around and try to establish dominance. I recently purchased 6 females to go with the males and they've gotten much calmer with one another. Mind you the males never bothered any of the other fish.
