Buenos Aires tetra care

Psalidodon anisitsi · Río de la Plata basin: Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and southeastern Brazil

Buenos Aires tetra (Psalidodon anisitsi) — Photo: Øyvind Holmstad, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Buenos Aires tetras are hardy, fast silver tetras with red fins for a 29 gallon or larger tank, a group of six or more and no soft plants: they eat them.

Tank size: 29 US gal or larger
Temperature: 64 to 82 °F (18 to 28 °C)
Group size: 6 or more
Temperament: Semi-aggressive
Adult size: 3 in
pH: 6 to 8
Hardness (GH): 5 to 20 dGH
Lifespan: 5 to 6 years
Diet: Omnivore
Care level: Easy

Check it in the stocking checker →

In a 29 gallon

30¼ × 12½ × 18¾ in outside

Drawn to scale: 6 Buenos Aires tetras at adult size (3 in) in the smallest listed tank that suits them. Choose your tank on the home page to see them in it.

How to keep Buenos Aires tetras

Buenos Aires tetras are hardy, fast silver tetras with red fins for a 29 gallon or larger tank, a group of six or more and no soft plants: they eat them. They take cooler water than most tetras (64 to 82 °F) and nip slow, long-finned fish, so keep them with quick, sturdy tankmates.

Diet: Omnivore: flakes, pellets, blanched greens, frozen foods. Fish food types compared · how often to feed.

Where they swim: Middle of the tank.

Buenos Aires tetra tank mates

Share the temperature and water, and neither side eats, nips or bullies the other. Check the full group in the stocking checker.

German blue ram

3 in · 20+ gal · 78–85 °F

Cockatoo dwarf cichlid

3 in · 20+ gal · 75–84 °F

Reticulated hillstream loach

3 in · 20+ gal · 68–75 °F

Emerald corydoras

3 in · 29+ gal · 72–82 °F

Celebes rainbowfish

3 in · 29+ gal · 68–82 °F

Peacock gudgeon

3 in · 15+ gal · 72–79 °F

Bamboo shrimp

3 in · 20+ gal · 72–82 °F

Drawing

Rabbit snail

3 in · 20+ gal · 76–84 °F

Keep apart

Guppy: Buenos Aires tetras nip long fins like those of guppies.
Betta: Buenos Aires tetras nip long fins like those of bettas.
Angelfish: Buenos Aires tetras nip long fins like those of angelfish.
Pea puffer: Pea puffers belong in a tank of their own.
Fancy goldfish: Buenos Aires tetras nip long fins like those of fancy goldfish.
African dwarf frog: African dwarf frogs are slow and get bullied or outcompeted by Buenos Aires tetras.

What a Buenos Aires tetra tank needs

A tank of 29 US gallons or more (such as the 29 gallon) with a cover, and the equipment below. Buenos Aires tetras are comfortable at room temperature, so a heater is optional in a normal home.

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Aqueon PRO QuietFlow Power Filter 20

Rated by the maker for up to 30 US gal, which covers a 29 gallon Buenos Aires tetra tank without being built for a far bigger one.

Details and fit →

Aqueon QuietFlow Internal Power Filter 15–30 gal

Rated by the maker for 15–30 US gal, which covers a 29 gallon Buenos Aires tetra tank without being built for a far bigger one.

Details and fit →

API Freshwater Master Test Kit

Tests ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the readings that matter most before and after adding Buenos Aires tetras.

Details and fit →Check price on Amazon

Seachem Prime 100 mL

Removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water at every water change.

Details and fit →Check price on Amazon

Fluval Edge Thermometer

Shows the water temperature at a glance, so you know it stays within 64 to 82 °F.

Details and fit →Check price on Amazon

More choices, each with the reason it is in or out: Filters for a 29 gallon tank. We don’t list fish food: any good brand of the foods under Diet will do. Plan the whole tank's equipment →

Common Buenos Aires tetra problems

They shred and eat soft plants; java fern, anubias and silk plants last.
Small groups turn nippy; a school of six or more keeps the chasing within the group.

Test the water first whenever fish look unwell: see what your readings mean, then match the symptom. For disease, a vet who treats fish can diagnose it and advise treatment.

More to compare

Fish for a 29 gallon tank Cold-water fish Schooling fish Fish for hard water Types of tetras Plants that survive grazing

Neon tetra

1.6 in · 10+ gal

Cardinal tetra

1.2 in · 20+ gal

Black neon tetra

1.5 in · 10+ gal

Green neon tetra

1 in · 10+ gal

Sources

Name, origin and adult size checked against Wikipedia: Psalidodon anisitsi. Temperature, pH, hardness, group size, lifespan and minimum tank size are common hobby guidance, not figures from that article. Ranges are the range the species tolerates; aim for the middle. Minimum tank sizes are for an adult group. Drawings are our own; photo credits follow.

Photo credits

Real photographs from Wikimedia Commons, resized and cropped to fit; each is used under the license named.

Buenos Aires tetra Øyvind Holmstad, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
German blue ram Eric Mengel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Cockatoo dwarf cichlid William Kreijkes, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Reticulated hillstream loach Spiketooth, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Emerald corydoras NonstickRon, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Celebes rainbowfish Brent Tibbatts, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Peacock gudgeon Dirk Godlinski, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Bamboo shrimp Faucon, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons
Guppy Marrabbio2, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Betta ivabalk (Pixabay), CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Angelfish Citron, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Pea puffer Beta Mahatvaraj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Fancy goldfish Benson Kua, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
African dwarf frog Stuart Halliday, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Neon tetra Holger Krisp, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Cardinal tetra CHUCAO, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Black neon tetra Debivort, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Green neon tetra Sascha Biedermann, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons