Image credits: Ho-Wen Chen (Creative Commons license)
With the emergence of more exotic glofish varieties like barbs and bettas, glofish danios have taken a backseat. But let’s not forget these unsung heroes were the first-ever glofish – the OGs. To the best of my knowledge, glofish danios are the easiest to raise. So if you’ve brought some home, full marks!
In this blog, I’ll share some bits and pieces on how to raise them the right way.
We’ll be touching on subjects like how big glofish danios get, the ideal tank size, how to grow them fast, and most importantly, how small tanks will stunt their growth.
Let’s begin!
How Big Do Glofish Danios Get?
Glofish danios get just as big as their all-natural cousins – 2 inches (5 cm). However, some prodigies are known to grow up to 3 inches (7.6 cm) long. They’re tiny fish, aren’t they? But boy, are they active! So, you’d still need a sizable tank to house them.
How Fast Do Glofish Danios Grow?
Glofish danios take around 6 weeks to get around 1-inch long. They then take about 3-4 months to reach full size.
But frankly, the above answer is a ballpark figure. How fast glofish grow and their maximum size depends on the tank’s temperature, diet’s quality and frequency, and water conditions.
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How To Grow Glofish Danios Fast?
Let’s not beat around the bush. There’s no holy grail method to grow glofish danios overnight. Instead, old-timey, tried-and-tested rules like getting a bigger tank, feeding nutritious meals, and staying on top of water changes go a long way in growing your glofish danios at the best rate nature allows.
Let me explain briefly.
Get A Bigger Tank
To put it simply, a bigger tank means happier fish. Why? Plenty of room to exercise and claim territories, cleaner water, enough hiding places, and all the space ever needed to dart around like a flash.
And a happy fish is a healthy fish, don’t you think? Science has repeatedly stressed that the fish’s immunity is strengthened when happy.
And naturally, healthy fish will grow to their maximum capacity at the best rate possible.
Feed The Right Diet
When you overfeed or underfeed your fish, there’s a good chance that you’re stunting its growth. Glofish danios are extremely active fish. So, they need to replenish their energy more often than the average fish.
You need to feed these omnivores a varied, well-rounded diet consisting of pellets, flake foods, and frozen/freeze-dried items.
We’re always told to cut down the portions we give to keep the water quality pristine for longer. And while it is true and helpful, you’re putting your fish at immediate risk of being malnourished.
And malnourished fish will naturally experience stunted growth, won’t they? Tread carefully.
Maintain Water Quality
The ideal water parameters for glofish danios look like:
- Temperature: 65-77 degrees F (18-25 degrees C)
- pH: 6.5-7.2
- Hardness: 5-12 dGH
- Ammonia: 0 PPM
- Nitrite: 0 PPM
- Nitrate: Below 20 PPM
Although glofish danios are hardy as they come, it’s no excuse to keep them in sub-par environments. Any fish becomes susceptible to infections and other secondary illnesses if the water they live in is polluted.
And obviously, a diseased fish will not grow healthily or to the best potential size.
You need to ensure the water quality is top-notch at all times. For that, we take the help of API’s Freshwater Master Kit and recommend you do so too.
Here’s a quick rundown of the things you should check daily, weekly, monthly to maintain the water quality:
Things To Do Daily
- Check the filtration and heating system
- Remove uneaten food
- Top off the water level
Things To Do Weekly
- Perform water tests
- Shake off debris from plants and decor
- Wipe down tank’s surfaces
- Scrape inside glasses
- Siphon the substrate
- Perform a partial water change
Things To Do Monthly
- Deep-clean decors and prune plants
- Perform all the tasks from the weekly checklist
- Change filter media
What’s The Minimum Recommended Tank Size For Glofish Danios?
The minimum tank size recommended for glofish danios is 10 gallons. However, I strongly suggest at least getting a 20-gallon long tank for these fish since they’re super active and need ample space to swim around comfortably.
On top of that, you should aim to keep them at least in a group of 6 as they’re schooling fish. And 6 glofish danios in a 10-gallon tank would be an overstatement.
Make sure you get a long tank as these fish love swimming laps.
I scoured through different forums to find out what hobbyists have to say about keeping glofish danios in a 10-gallon tank. They had pretty strong opinions!
Interested to read? Check them out here.
Can Small Tank Stunt Glofish Danios’ Growth?
It’s widely believed that fish grow to the size of their tank. Frankly, I don’t know what this means or how it works, but I’m positive that small tanks stunt a fish’s growth. So yes, small tanks can impede glofish danios’ growth.
As we have already established before, glofish danios are incredibly energetic fish. They pace around a lot and have a thing for darting like a flash across the tank.
A small tank wouldn’t have enough room to facilitate their ‘athletic’ needs. And lack of exercise eventually means stunted growth. To put it simply, the fish will not grow to its best potential size.
Likewise, small tanks will cause your glofish danios to stress. A congested tank means easily polluted water, territorial disputes, and a dearth of swimming and hiding places.
And research has shown that when fish are stressed, their white blood cell production is inhibited, lowering their immunity. So naturally, a diseased fish won’t grow in the same manner as healthy fish.
Lastly, it’s been studied that fish release specific pheromones into the water that impedes the growth of other fish of the same species. While exclusive studies on glofish danios are yet to be done, we cannot entirely rule out the possibility.
Bottom line: Yes, smaller tanks can stunt your glofish danios’ growth in one too many ways.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Long Do Glofish Danios Live?
Glofish danios are hardy fish that enjoy a pretty decent lifespan. They can easily live for as long as 5 years with the right care and diet.
But unfortunately, not all glofish danios make it to their fifth birthday. Factors like stress, an inhospitable tank, and a wrong diet often cut their life short.
Do Glofish Danios Need A Heater?
Glofish danios, like their forefathers – zebra danios, are tropical/subtropical fish that can live at room temperature. However, I would still suggest getting a heater to maintain a stable temperature.
They do pretty well between 65-77 degrees F (18-25 degrees C).
Glofish Danio Food – What Can They Eat?
Glofish danios are omnivores with and, dare I say, gluttonous. Ideally, their diet should consist of staple flake food or pellets. You can then fortify it with frozen or freeze-dried food like bloodworms, mealworms, crickets, and brine shrimp.
You can either give them two sizable meals or 3-4 small meals per day at your convenience.
Feeding a varied diet is crucial to ensure the fish receives a proper nutritional balance.
For example, giving foods rich in carotenoids and beta carotene can help boost the fish’s colors.
Why Is My Glofish Danio Aggressive?
Glofish danios are the most peaceful ones of the lot. However, they can get mean and cranky as a defense mechanism if you keep only a few of them. Danios are schooling fish that should at least be kept in a group of 6. Otherwise, they will get stressed and consequently aggressive.
And when angry, they will push around smaller tankmates, chase them, and even nip at their fins!
Lastly, some other reasons behind your glofish’s aggression can be mean tankmates, an overcrowded tank, wrong water parameters, and too little food.
Final Words: How Big Do Glofish Danios Get?
Glofish danios are tiny fish. They only get about 2 inches (5 cm) long. However, some are known to grow over 3 inches (7.6 cm).
Although small, these fish need a big and preferably long tank because they are highly energetic swimmers. Their favorite pastime is darting across the tank left and right.
Providing a big tank, creating a stress-free environment, and feeding a proper diet can help your glofish danios reach their maximum potential size soon.
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