Silver Dollar Tropical Fish is known as a peaceful freshwater species suitable for any community tank. The large round shaped appearance is often mistaken as its cousin piranha but however for this fish, it is generally vegetarian (herbivores) meaning that it prefers greens. And because of that, putting this freshwater fish species in tanks full of live aquarium plants is really a disaster, as they will wreck havoc by uprooting the plants and eating the leaves.Silver dollar fish originated from tropical regions and its wild cousin live scattered around different locations in the Amazon River. They prefer soft water with pH ranging from 6.0 to 7.5 and if well taken care of, it can easily grow up to five inches in length. As such in order to successfully breed this fish, you will need large aquarium tank measuring at least 50-gallon minimum. In community aquarium, they will stay at the middle level of the tank and they will get along well with other tropical fish species such as hatchet fish (be wary once the silver dollar grows large), swordtail, catfish and pleco without any problem.
The tropical fish also has the characteristic of moving in small schools numbering about 5 to 6 and they will easily tremble and could even leap out of the tank if startled. As such having an aquarium setup with proper hood is a must if you intend to keep this fish as a pet. Having driftwood and rocks as part of the tank setup is also recommended as it will provide perfect hiding spot. Feeding silver dollar is indeed fun because once they get used to the aquarium environment, they will chase and nibble on the food around the tank and they love especially algae wafers and lettuce. In order to ensure that they stay healthy, I even go to the extent of feeding cereals, which will enhance the silver coloration on their body.
Just like any other tropical fish, silver dollar is also very particular about the water that they live in. Always ensure that nitrate is somehow below the 50 ppm limit or else they will start to show signs of inactivity. Best way to control the level of nitrate (since having live plants is not possible) is to allow healthy growth of algae at the aquarium corners. On top of that, always conduct regular water changes and ensure that water quality is within the desired range using water test kit.
