# Dither fish and cichlids



## MSDdivers (Nov 24, 2014)

I found this article from Wikipedia, on the subject of dither fish and cichlids.

The following is the quote from Wikipedia,

"The term dither fish refers to an arbitrary group of aquarium fish used by cichlid keeping aquarists to reduce innate timidity in some species of cichlids.

Dither fish typically swim around the top of a tank and this behavior encourages more timid fish to relax and venture out more by reassuring them no predators are around. The technique relies on the ability of cichlids in an aquarium to use the behavior of other fish species as a measure of environmental security.

Good dither fish are typically schooling species, such as some Danio species, Barbs and some Tetra species."

Is this true?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dither_fish


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## typie88 (Jan 10, 2015)

I've also heard this. I've seen a tank with the danios in it and seemed to make the fish calmer. Most of them were all the same species


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## The Cichlid Guy (Oct 18, 2014)

All basically true. If using dithers, I would go with zebra danios. They don't get very big, they're hardy and adaptable, and they're interesting to watch on their own. They're also fast enough to escape any negative attention they might receive from cichlids.

I probably wouldn't bother with barbs (bigger, possibly aggressive) or tetras (lower pH fish, and small enough to be eaten in most cases).


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I has been said that the best dithers for Malawi are more Malawi and I agree with this.


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## CjCichlid (Sep 14, 2005)

That definition is spot on. People often confuse "dither fish" with "target fish". Dithers are exactly as that definition has described, used to make the cichlids more comfortable and less timid. Where as target fish are used to help spread out aggression. So for example, in a Central American setup people often use convicts as targets as they are seen as competition by the other cichlids which in turn helps spread aggression throughout the community. However, in some instances dithers can act as targets as well..


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