Variations
3 kinds · tap one for a closer look
Tench
Peaceful bottom grazer; fine with other pond fish in a large pond.
- Tench needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while Cardinal tetra is tropical.
- Tench needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while Serpae tetra is tropical.
- Tench needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while X-ray tetra is tropical.
- Only a narrow temperature range suits both: 24–25 °C.
- Tench will eat baby cherry shrimp. Add lots of moss and plants so some survive.
- Tench will eat baby amano shrimp. Add lots of moss and plants so some survive.
188 species in our list are a good match.
Care and water
Behavior
Peaceful bottom grazer; fine with other pond fish in a large pond.
- cool
Food
Pellets and live foods.
Tap a food to see what it is.
Male or female
Health
Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.
Breeding
Egg-scatterer · Moderate
Spring spawner in warm ponds.
Group in spring.
Warm pond with weeds.
Warm water above 20°C.
Thousands of eggs.
Fry eat plankton.
- Cold ponds
Where it lives in the wild
The story of the tench
A hardy European pond fish with tiny scales and a slimy coat. The golden form is a popular pond fish.
Linnaeus described the tench in 1758 as Cyprinus tinca. It is sometimes called the 'doctor fish' because of an old belief that its slime could heal other fish. Golden varieties are kept in ponds.
First described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.
- It was once believed its slime could heal other fish.
- It is tolerant of low oxygen water.
- Its tiny scales are covered in thick slime.