Our Green Neon Tetras are Turning Two!

I checked my notes, and sure enough, the green neon tetras that currently occupy our Spec V (along with the red cherry shrimp and a horned nerite snail) are turning two years old!

We put them into the tank on 8/8/14.  I guess they were at least a few weeks old when we got them from the store, so they are very close to two years old. I’m excited that they have survived this well, and I hope I don’t jinx them by writing this post.

 Green Neon Tetra fish Paracheirodon simulans for a fluval spec v

We have had a few casualties.  We initially put in seven, but two died around December of 2015.  One had a large tumor develop on her back, and she succumbed to death eventually. Another mysteriously disappeared around the same time.  I didn’t have to deal with fishing out the dead fish because of our wonderful red cherry shrimp.  They are an excellent crew of little morticians, lovingly disposing of the deceased for us.  Nice!

The Green Neon Tetra fish (paracheirodon simulans) has a listed lifespan that is the same as many other tetra-type hobby fish, around 5 to 10 years.  So, two years is nothing to write home about; however, I was uncertain how they would do in a small 5-gallon aquarium.

Hopefully, they will keep chugging, and we will keep enjoying them for a long time.

 Green Neon Tetra fish Paracheirodon simulans

I’m interested in hearing your comments: What is your oldest fish?  How about the oldest fish for those of you with nano aquariums like the Fluval Spec?

3 thoughts on “Our Green Neon Tetras are Turning Two!

  1. I’ve got a Spec V and the tank is now around 2 months old. I originally had 6 glowlight tetras. 2 died after about a week. Then shortly after another dropped due to the water parameters (the dead were found the following afternoon in the plants so likely poisoned the rest). We replaced 1 glowlight so we have 4. We’ve also got 4 neons, they’re fine. 2 weeks ago we introduced red cherry shrimp, 4 of them… only 1 made it to the bottom of the tank – glowlights gobbled them. So we added 10 more shrimp and I think we lost 1 or 2 at most. We’ve got 1 shrimp currently in pregnancy and the others are thriving. Now I want a 110-150L tank so the Spec V is a shrimp tank only, I feel bad for the tetras in the space they have despite there being enough room

  2. I bought 20 green neon tetras two years ago(september 2014 Wild Colombia).Only 7 left:(
    These little guys are very active and great schooling fish.Maybe ı’ll add more next time.

  3. (05-24-2017 @ 8:48pm EST) I was thinking about getting some Neon Tetras and Cherry Shrimp in a 5-gallon tank for my oldest son’s birthday as a surprise. (He’s turning 5-years-old next month.) Because I have a tank and he loves my fish. (I don’t have any Tetras, though.) I was gonna keep the tank in the living room so that it can be appreciated for the majority of the day. Mine is in my bedroom but, he’s too young for me to put his in his bedroom. If I don’t get the Neon Tetras for him he’s also interested in the GloFish Tetras or the GloFish Barbs.

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