Neon tetras disappearing from tank??

[Theresa_M]

Three weeks ago, I added 10 neon tetras to my tank. Today, I’m down to 4. The tank has 9 female bettas, two African dwarf frogs and a small hillstream loach. All in a 75 gallon tank.
 

The tetras are juveniles, but they’re not teeny tiny.
 

The missing fish are not in my plants, floating around aimlessly or in my filter. What could be happening? The only thing I can think is that maybe my frogs are eating them? Is that possible? They are disappearing without a trace!

[FrozenFins]

I'm the same problem with my cardinal tetras.

Does your tank have a lid, neon tetras are know to be jumpers.

I have never owned a african dwarf frog all though I would imagine that they may eat some of the neon tetras. Hopefully someone with more experiance with african dwarf frogs can pipe in.

[Theresa_M]

40 minutes ago, James Black said:

I'm the same problem with my cardinal tetras.

Does your tank have a lid, neon tetras are know to be jumpers.

I have never owned a african dwarf frog all though I would imagine that they may eat some of the neon tetras. Hopefully someone with more experiance with african dwarf frogs can pipe in.

I do have an enclosed tank, so, thank goodness, escape shouldn’t be a problem for me 🙂

[AdamTill]

Everything has to sleep eventually, so the tetras might have become frog lunch then. Quick Google search has other people reporting that happening.

[Theresa_M]

11 minutes ago, AdamTill said:

Everything has to sleep eventually, so the tetras might have become frog lunch then. Quick Google search has other people reporting that happening.

Yikes! Now I’m wondering, safety in numbers, or just let them go and never do small tetras ever again.

[Sapere_Ceta]

I agree that it definitely could be the frogs snacking on them. Some bettas can pick on tetras until they die and then eat them, though I think you’d have seen signs of nipping and aggression from them by now, most likely. Dwarf frogs have bad eyesight and kind of bonk into their prey until they scent it enough to know it’s food. I wonder if they’re doing this at nighttime when the neon tetras are sleeping relatively still.

Since tetras are usually sleeping at nighttime anyone up that is predatory could make an easy meal out of them by catching them off guard. So personally, I wouldn’t add any more tetras because it’s likely the numbers won’t matter and they’ll be devoured. 

For the remaining, some pet stores will even take them in, or you could set up a small tank or even a small food grade bin set up as a tank, if you wanted to keep them. 

Edited January 9, 2021 by Sapere_Ceta

[Theresa_M]

6 minutes ago, Sapere_Ceta said:

I agree that it definitely could be the frogs snacking on them. Some bettas can pick on tetras until they die and then eat them, though I think you’d have seen signs of nipping and aggression from them by now, most likely. Dwarf frogs have bad eyesight and kind of bonk into their prey until they scent it enough to know it’s food. I wonder if they’re doing this at nighttime when the neon tetras are sleeping relatively still.

Since tetras are usually sleeping at nighttime anyone up that is predatory could make an easy meal out of them by catching them off guard. So personally, I wouldn’t add any more tetras because it’s likely the numbers won’t matter and they’ll be devoured. 

For the remaining, some pet stores will even take them in, or you could set up a small tank or even a small food grade bin set up as a tank, if you wanted to keep them. 

Thank you so much! Yes, it’s when I feed them in the morning that I see I have lost one or two overnight. That’s got to be what’s happening. I do have a 10 gal Q tank that I can transfer them to for now. I appreciate the advice! 

[Colu]

You could  try some of the bigger species of tetras such as Columbian blue tetra or bleeding heart tetras  

[Chrisdis]

I have very small neons and glow light tetras in my 65 gallon with my betta and my ADF. I haven't lost any fish nor have I seen my frog snap at them. But we feed him just before lights out. Maybe you could try that.