 They are active and fast swimmers that will school together if kept in a group, but some individuals may display aggression to their own kind or related fish.In general, the red algae-eater can be kept in most community tanks and is reportedly much less aggressive than similar fish such as the Chinese algae-eater or the red-tailed black shark.It prefers water temperature range of , a pH range of 6.5–8.0, and a water hardness of 5–20 dH.