# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Characins >  Congo tetras fighting?

## Tanc39

Noticed my Congo kept chasing each other all the time... Yesterday saw it for the first time when particularly two were fighting it out... to the extend that they start biting mouth to mouth... Is it something common? Only kept them for few months only.

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## grey_fox

When I kept congos before, I initially had 2 which we bought together, however one of them died on me. I then purchased another one and then the fighting began, endless chasing, nipping, biting to a point that the one getting bullied had its tail bitten to a small little piece.

After a while the bullying stopped. 

If I could catch the bully out then, I would.  :Razz:  having to net a fast swimming congo in my 5 footer, was never possible until my major rescape was done....

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## Tanc39

Oh ok... Mine didn't fight to that extend... probably because I house 10 of them.  :Smile:  At least they cannot focus on one fish.

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## CacaManiac

mine never fought.... i guess you need to have a school of 6 or more

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## Justikanz

Any schooling fish do better only in a group of at least 6... If not, they will start to harass each other (but usually it is the dominant one harassing)... To stop the harassment, just get 4 more of Congo tetras...  :Opps:

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## mickthefish

is it only the males fighting, if so then it's only a fight for dominance.
i keep a breeding group with just 2 males and 6 females, and when the males stat fighting then breeding is iminent.
mick

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## CacaManiac

where can i fine female Congos in Singapore guys... i think i'm brewing up a sausage fest.. need some girls for my boys

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## Tanc39

> is it only the males fighting, if so then it's only a fight for dominance.
> i keep a breeding group with just 2 males and 6 females, and when the males stat fighting then breeding is iminent.
> mick


Hmmm can I ask you more about breeding Congo or should I start another thread? Anyway do you keep only Congos or it's actually in a community tank... Care to share how you sex them as well?

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## mickthefish

i think we should be alright on this thread if no-one minds,
they are kept in their own tank that i made for them recently it's a2x1x2 foot as they need alot of swimming room.
to sex them is easy even when young the anal of the male is convex and the females is concave, but when they get bigger the male has the colour and long flowing fins.
mick

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## Tanc39

Seems like a tank of 10 males to me... Will take a closer look later... Thanks for the info. I was thinking with a community tank, breeding is almost impossible.

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## mickthefish

if you watch your congos and see alot of activity and you do have at least one female, it is possible to save a percentage of the eggsif your quick,
watch where they spawn and syphon that area but be quick as the other fish thinks its caviar.
hope this helps
mick

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## CacaManiac

Wow.. mick... i didnt know it was so easy to sex them.. i'll go check my school.
i always though it was possible to sex them only when they are mature.
thanks

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## mickthefish

well cacaM
have you got females in your school?.
mick

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## CacaManiac

dang.... seems like mine are all male.. anyone know
where one can find female Congo Tetras in singapore??

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## mickthefish

do the shops over there sell juveniles? because thats where they don't sort the sexes out, you should be able to sort some females out of them.
mick

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## Rupert

> dang.... seems like mine are all male.. anyone know
> where one can find female Congo Tetras in singapore??


Saw some large Congo Tetras at Biotope [Jalan bukit Merah] last week, give them a call, they might still have them.

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## mickthefish

hi lads ive put a pic in the gallery of a very young pair, the fish on top is the female, sorry i couldn't put it on the thread but i'm crap on the pc, if one of the lads can bring it down i'd appreciate it.
mick :Embarassed:

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## CacaManiac



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## mickthefish

cheers cacaM :Wink:  
do you see the difference in the sexes mate, hope you can find some females from one of your outlets.
cheers
mick

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## clouser_minnow

> hi lads ive put a pic in the gallery of a very young pair, the fish on top is the female, sorry i couldn't put it on the thread but i'm crap on the pc, if one of the lads can bring it down i'd appreciate it.
> mick


how old are your congo tetras? 
what are they feeding on? 
also, what is the PH and temperature of your tank? mine are growing but the colours are still faint.

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## mickthefish

hi cm
the fish in the pic were just overe 4 months old, it usually takes a good 6-7 months for the colours to become fixed.
the ph is set at 6.4 gh at 3-4 and the temp is what the room is that day, but it's roughly 76-78 f,
the food is mainly live or frozen with the occasional pellets thrown in.
don't worry about the colours they'll come in time unless you have females?
go on show us a pic of yours
mick

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## clouser_minnow

ah! ok. how hot is that in centegrate? i have no idea how old mine are actually. i've been feeding them tetra bits and have been wondering if i should give them a more varied diet. i will take a picture later when i'm free.  :Smile:   :Smile:  i think i just overfed them today their stomachs are a bit bigger than normal. oh well, no feeding tomorrow.

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## cwtan12

I think in they wont fight in a school. I have a school of 30 pcs in my 4 ft tank and I have never seen them chasing each other.

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## clouser_minnow

how big are your specimens?? mine are around an inch to an inch and a half i think

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## mickthefish

hi cm
the temp in celcius is 24-26c, at the size you have said if the have a large stomach well thats right with this kind of fish which is always on the move , if you keep them slim you won't get optimum growth out of them.

mine are now nearly 9 months old and measure 3+inches SL(standard length), once you've got the size then regulate the food given.

hope youve understood what i've wrote.

cheers
mick

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## clouser_minnow

so feed them till they buldge every feeding??

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## mickthefish

hi cm
the best way to feed them is little and often, i can feed my fry upto 10 times a day so you never see a slim fish.
but don't forget excess food means loads of poops so you must maintain your water as well.
mick

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## cardinal

> 


Aren't these females?

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## mickthefish

no cardinal they are a pair the female is the fish at the top, look at the anal fins on both fish and you can see the blue comming on the lower fish there is also the lenght and colour of the dorsal edge,
this pair has since bred.
mick

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