Aquariumtetra · freshwater
Black Skirt Tetra: adult size, tank size & tankmates
The Black Skirt Tetra (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi) grows to about 3.5 in (7.5 cm SL). It needs a tank at least 30 inches long and about 18 gallons. Keep at least 12 together, at 68–79°F.
How big it really gets
Drawn to scale against common tank lengths. Green bars meet the minimum tank length from our sources.
Will it fit your tank?
Quick facts
- Adult size
- 3.5 in (7.5 cm SL)
- Minimum tank
- 30 inches long and about 18 gallons
- Temperature
- 68–79°F
- pH
- 6–7
- Hardness
- 5–20 dGH
- Group size
- 12+
- With other fish
- semi-aggressive
- With its own kind
- peaceful
- Swims
- middle of the tank
- Diet
- omnivore
- Care level
- beginner
- Lifespan
- not stated in sources
Watch for: nips fins · eats shrimp
Black Skirt Tetra tankmates
Checked with the same rules as our tank builder: temperature overlap, pH and hardness, predation and mouth size, fin-nipping and temperament. Tank size is left out here; check it in the builder.
Good tankmates
- Bolivian RamAdult ~3.8 in · 75–82°F
- KribensisAdult ~4.7 in · 75–81°F
- Bronze CoryAdult ~3.5 in · 70–81°F
- Julii CoryAdult ~2.6 in · 72–79°F
- Sterbai CoryAdult ~3.2 in · 75–82°F
- Kuhli LoachAdult ~4.7 in · 70–79°F
- Bristlenose PlecoAdult ~5.9 in · 70–79°F
- Tiger BarbNeeds careAdult ~2.8 in · 68–79°F
- MollyNeeds careAdult ~3.8 in · 70–82°F
- SwordtailNeeds careAdult ~6.6 in · 61–82°F
Use caution
- Neon TetraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Neon Tetra.
- Cardinal TetraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cardinal Tetra.
- Harlequin RasboraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Harlequin Rasbora.
- Ember TetraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Ember Tetra.
- Chili RasboraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Chili Rasbora.
- Celestial Pearl DanioBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Celestial Pearl Danio.
- Cherry BarbBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cherry Barb.
- Rummy-nose TetraBlack Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Rummy-nose Tetra.
Avoid
- BettaNeeds careBlack Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Betta has long fins.
- German Blue RamNeeds careBlack Skirt Tetra (68–79°F) and German Blue Ram (81–86°F) need different temperatures.
- Cherry ShrimpBlack Skirt Tetra will eat Cherry Shrimp.
- Amano ShrimpBlack Skirt Tetra will eat Amano Shrimp.
- Boesemani RainbowfishBlack Skirt Tetra (68–79°F) and Boesemani Rainbowfish (81–86°F) need different temperatures.
- Bamboo ShrimpBlack Skirt Tetra will eat Bamboo Shrimp.
- Crystal Red ShrimpBlack Skirt Tetra will eat Crystal Red Shrimp.
- Ghost ShrimpBlack Skirt Tetra will eat Ghost Shrimp.
All 105 species we checked against the Black Skirt Tetra
| Species | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Bala Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bleeding Heart Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Blood Parrot Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bolivian Ram | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bristlenose Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bronze Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Buenos Aires Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Chinese Algae Eater | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Clown Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Clown Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Common / Comet Goldfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Common Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Convict Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Denison Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Diamond Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Dwarf Neon Rainbowfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Electric Blue Acara | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Firemouth Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Forktail Blue-eye | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Giant Danio | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Glass Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Gold Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Hillstream Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Japanese Trapdoor Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Julii Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Kissing Gourami | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Kribensis | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Kuhli Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Malaysian Trumpet Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Molly | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Paradise Fish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pea Puffer | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pearl Danio | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Peppered Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pictus Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Rainbow Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Ramshorn Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Red-Tail Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Rosy Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Scissortail Rasbora | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Serpae Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Siamese Algae Eater | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Sterbai Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Swordtail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Three-spot Gourami | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Tiger Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Tinfoil Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Upside-down Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Weather Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Yoyo Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| African Dwarf Frog | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful African Dwarf Frog. |
| Angelfish | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Angelfish has long fins. |
| Assassin Snail | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra (pH 6–7) and Assassin Snail (pH 7.5–8) prefer different pH. |
| Black Neon Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Black Neon Tetra. |
| Bumblebee Goby | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Bumblebee Goby. |
| Cardinal Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cardinal Tetra. |
| Celestial Pearl Danio | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Celestial Pearl Danio. |
| Cherry Barb | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cherry Barb. |
| Chili Rasbora | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Chili Rasbora. |
| Clown Killifish | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Clown Killifish. |
| Congo Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Congo Tetra has long fins. |
| Discus | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra and Discus only share 79–79°F. That's a tight window. |
| Dwarf Gourami | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Dwarf Gourami has long fins. |
| Electric Yellow Lab | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra (pH 6–7) and Electric Yellow Lab (pH 7.7–8.6) prefer different pH. |
| Ember Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Ember Tetra. |
| Endler's Livebearer | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Endler's Livebearer. |
| Fancy Goldfish | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Fancy Goldfish has long fins. |
| Glowlight Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Glowlight Tetra. |
| Guppy | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Guppy has long fins. |
| Harlequin Rasbora | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Harlequin Rasbora. |
| Head-and-tail-light Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Head-and-tail-light Tetra. |
| Honey Gourami | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Honey Gourami has long fins. |
| Lambchop Rasbora | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Lambchop Rasbora. |
| Lemon Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Lemon Tetra. |
| Marbled Hatchetfish | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Marbled Hatchetfish. |
| Moonlight Gourami | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Moonlight Gourami has long fins. |
| Mystery Snail | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra (pH 6–7) and Mystery Snail (pH unknown) prefer different pH.; Black Skirt Tetra (5–20 dGH) and Mystery Snail (unknown dGH) prefer different water hardness. |
| Neon Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Neon Tetra. |
| Nerite Snail | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra (pH 6–7) and Nerite Snail (pH 8–8.4) prefer different pH. |
| Odessa Barb | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Odessa Barb. |
| Otocinclus | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Otocinclus. |
| Panda Cory | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Panda Cory. |
| Pearl Gourami | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Pearl Gourami has long fins. |
| Penguin Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Penguin Tetra. |
| Platy | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Platy. |
| Pristella Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Pristella Tetra. |
| Pygmy Cory | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Pygmy Cory. |
| Rummy-nose Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Rummy-nose Tetra. |
| Silver Hatchetfish | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Silver Hatchetfish. |
| Silver Tip Tetra | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Silver Tip Tetra. |
| Sparkling Gourami | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Sparkling Gourami. |
| Variatus Platy | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Variatus Platy. |
| White Cloud Mountain Minnow | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful White Cloud Mountain Minnow. |
| Zebra Danio | Caution | Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Zebra Danio. |
| Amano Shrimp | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra will eat Amano Shrimp. |
| Bamboo Shrimp | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra will eat Bamboo Shrimp. |
| Betta | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra nips fins, and Betta has long fins. |
| Boesemani Rainbowfish | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra (68–79°F) and Boesemani Rainbowfish (81–86°F) need different temperatures. |
| Cherry Shrimp | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra will eat Cherry Shrimp. |
| Crystal Red Shrimp | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra will eat Crystal Red Shrimp. |
| German Blue Ram | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra (68–79°F) and German Blue Ram (81–86°F) need different temperatures.; Black Skirt Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful German Blue Ram. |
| Ghost Shrimp | Avoid | Black Skirt Tetra will eat Ghost Shrimp. |
| Iridescent Shark | Avoid | Iridescent Shark eats small fish, and Black Skirt Tetra only grows to about 3.5 in. |
| Oscar | Avoid | Oscar eats small fish, and Black Skirt Tetra only grows to about 3.5 in. |
Care notes
Needs: Keep 12+ to limit nipping; avoid long-finned or slow tankmates; avoid artificially dyed fish
Group: SF: shoal of at least 12; a proper group usually curbs fin nipping
Temperament: semi-aggressive toward other fish, peaceful toward its own kind. Lives in the middle of the tank.
Common questions
How big does a Black Skirt Tetra get?
About 3.5 inches (7.5 cm SL) as an adult, according to seriouslyfish.com.
What size tank does a Black Skirt Tetra need?
At least 30 inches long and about 18 gallons. The smallest standard tank that meets that is a 20 gallon long.
How many Black Skirt Tetras should be kept together?
At least 12. SF: shoal of at least 12; a proper group usually curbs fin nipping
What fish can live with a Black Skirt Tetra?
Species that passed every check include Bolivian Ram, Kribensis, Bronze Cory, Julii Cory, Sterbai Cory, Kuhli Loach.
Gear for a Black Skirt Tetra setup
TankSmallest standard tank that meets its minimum: 20 gallon long (30 in long).Find on Amazon →HeaterAbout 100 W for 20 gallons, holding 68–79°F.Find on Amazon →FoodA quality flake or micro-pellet as a staple.Find on Amazon →Test kitCheck ammonia, nitrite and pH. Cycle the tank before adding fish.Find on Amazon →
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Related guides
Sources
Values come from these pages, in our own words. Status: researched from source pages. Last reviewed 2026-10-12.
- seriouslyfish.com /species/gymnocorymbus-ternetzi/
- fishbase.se /summary/Gymnocorymbus-ternetzi.html