Multicolor ANGELFISH

The Multicolor Angelfish (Centropyge Multicolor) is a deepwater species that is sold from time to time in the marine aquarium hobby. Usually, the fact that it hails from deeper waters would mean it is a harder than normal dwarf angelfish to rear in captivity. This is untrue as far as the Multicolor angelfish is concerned.

The multicolor angel is an especially hardy member of the genus centropyge once it has been acclimated and adjusted to its new living quarters. Upon purchasing a specimen, they may be shy initially as they are used to waters without too much light. Multicolor angels are considered an aggressive species that will usually dominate smaller aquariums.

Their main body is mostly white with shades of orange, yellow and brown on its lower half. It also has a distinctive electric blue crown on its head. Its anal and dorsal fins are blue to black while its face and caudal fin are all yellow.

They do not tolerate other dwarf angels and will usually harass them to no end. Larger aquariums above 150 gallons are needed to keep another centropyge with the multicolor angelfish. They are considered an expensive fish, with prices ranging anywhere from $80 to $120 per specimen.

As they are from deeper waters, ensure there is no swim bladder damage present as it they can be damaged as the fish is brought up rapidly to the surface. Any specimen that is seen to be tilting side to side or from up to down should be avoided.

Feeding them is an easy matter as they will usual sample anything thrown into the tank once they recognize that you are a source of food. In the beginning they may be hesitant but this is usually taken care of over time. A good mix of foods including frozen meaty foods, greens and dry foods are a good way to ensure they get a balanced diet.

A specially formulated food for them is the Pygmy angel formula that is produced by Ocean Nutrition. This foods attempt so emulate their natural diet in the wild.

A dry pellet food that is suitable for the Centropyge Multicolor are from the New Life Spectrum line of pellets. A very balanced pellet, they are suitable not just for members of the genus Centropyge but also for surgeonfish, clown fish, damselfish and a host of other marine aquarium ornamental fish.

By Indran Manickam Article Source: EzineArticles

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DIAMOND KILLIFISH - Adinia xenica

Diamond Killifish - Adinia xenica

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Fact Sheet: NIGER TETRA - Big-Scaled African Characin - Arnoldichthy spilopterus

Family: Characidae

Species: Arnoldichthy spilopterus – Niger Tetra – Big-Scaled African Characin

Size: 7cm (2 three quarter inch)

Diet: Omnivorous

Tank levels: All

Habitat: Streams in Nigeria

Remarks: It needs plenty of swimming space and plants in which to hide.

Other Names: Arnold’s Red-eye Characin, Red-eye Characin, Red-eye Tetra

Comments: Arnoldichthy spilopterus The lower half of the body is silvery blue-green, shading to a pale belly. The dorsal fin has a white-edged dark blotch, and the caudal fin is grayish silver. Males have an orange and black anal fin and yellowish pelvic fins. Females anal fins have a dark blotch

Wikipedia: The Arnoldichthys spilopterus is kept as an aquarium fish. It is the only member of its genus. It is considered to be a freshwater species that are found in a pelagic range within a tropical climate. The average length of the Arnoldichthys spilopterus as an unsexed male is about 9.6 centimeters or about 3.7 inches. Their diet consists of worms, insects, and crustaceans. When kept in an aquarium for breeding, a female can lay about 1,000 eggs. They can hatch at the time of 30-34 hours. If kept in an aquarium, it is recommended to keep a group of at least five of this species together. The minimum size of an aquarium that is adequate for this species is about 100 centimeters.

This species is considered to be vulnerable to becoming an endangered species. In Nigeria, this species is found in less than ten different areas. Another influence that affects the population of this species in its natural state is oil exploration, deforestation, and pollution. There is also a population trend that is decreasing due to the fish trade that the Arnoldichthys spilopterus has become a part of for the aquatic system and commerce.

By Gary Bolton This fish comes from the “Tropical Fish” family species of fish. I hope you enjoyed this fish profile that I put together to help people to choose the right fish for the right aquarium tank setup you may own, or be thinking of buying in the future. Article Source: EzineArticles

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Make Good Efforts to Keep Aquarium Clean When You Keep PEARL GOURAMI Fish

Pearl Gourami is very attractive and very hardy fish so it is very easy to keep for the beginners as well have experienced fish-keepers.

Male Pearl gourami (Trichogaster leeri). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The body of Pearl Gourami is compressed and elongated. Its fins are thin as well as long, looking like feelers. Its mouth is always up. There are flakes of green color on the body which resemble appearance of pearls. One more specialty on the body of Pearl Gourami is a long black line. This line starts from their mouth and goes up to the tail where it becomes a spot.

Pearl Gouramis like to live in areas of heavy plantation in the nature, so they are happy with the same surroundings in the aquarium. In addition to the base plants, you should also provide some floating plants as a place for their hiding. There should not be much light in the aquarium and the substrate should preferably be of a dark shade.

Pearl Gouramis like to live in slightly acidic water but they can adapt to different conditions also. They can easily live in a community aquarium with other species. However you should take care not to keep aggressive species with them.

Pearl Gouramis will be happy to eat most of the foods which are offered to pet fish. However for balanced nutrition, you should offer them for vegetables like spinach, lettuce and peas. Occasionally, you can feed them with live food such as blood-worms and brine shrimp which will help for preparing themselves for breeding.

The males of Pearl Gouramis are different from the females because of their colors. They have a red and orange color combination on their throat as well as on their breast. Their dorsal fin is also much longer and pointed. On the other hand, the females will have slightly bigger body than the males.

Before their breeding begins, you should feed Pearl Gouramis some good live food like brine shrimp. You should also reduce the water level of the tank, and keep it up to 8 inches. Increase the temperature of the tank up to 80° F and leave lot of floating plants in the tank.

The males will start building a bubble nest and their spawning will begin below it. At the time of spawning the males will wrap their body around the body of the females and the females will start releasing eggs. The females can lay hundreds of legs at a time. You should remove the females from the tank after laying the eggs.

The young ones will come out after 3 to 5 days and they will start swimming. You should immediately remove the males from the tank because they may start chasing the young ones and troubling them.

The young ones should be fed with baby brine shrimp up to two weeks. Crushed flakes of food can also be offered to them. After about a month later, they will grow up and you can shift them to the main tank. During this time, you should look after the conditions of water and you should change it at least every three days.

What other very important feature of Pearl Gourami is their habit of creating waste. They will generate a lot of waste which will be accumulated at the bottom of the tank. This waste will quickly start contaminating the entire water. So when you are keeping Pearl Gouramis, you must keep the water clean both by keeping a good filtration system and by physically removing the dirt from the tank. If they are forced to stay in dirty water, they will immediately get sick. If the fry is kept in dirty water, their growth will be poor.

One more precaution you need to take about Pearl Gourami is regarding their habit of eating. When you feed them to the fish in the tank, the fast more wing fish will grab the folder quickly. However, Pearl Gourami will wait for others to grab the food and they will just collect the leftovers from the bottom of the aquarium. So if you are keeping them with fast moving fish, they will remain hungry.

By Chintamani Abhyankar Chintamani Abhyankar is a goldfish enthusiast and has been raising and breeding goldfish for many years. He is an expert on their care and an advocate for raising healthy goldfish the natural way. Article Source: EzineArticles

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Fact Sheet: MOLLY FISH - Poecilia sp.

Molly
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Molly is actually more than one species. This fact sheet is an attempt to give information common to most of the ones frequently kept in aquariums. One of the most popular species of Molly is the Sailfin Molly, Poecilia latipinna. Another common Molly is Poecilia sphenops. The Molly is in the same genus as the Guppy, Poecilia reticulata. The Molly tends to be bigger than the Guppy. Mollies normally grow to about 4 inches (10cm), but under very good conditions will grow bigger than this. Mollies in the Brisbane River are reported to reach 7 Inches (18cm).

Water Conditions

The Molly is a salt loving tropical fish. They do not do well in water that is too pure in the sense that it is lacking in salt. The Molly will even live in sea water, and is sometimes added to marine aquariums. A suitable temperature is 24 degrees C (75 degrees F). They prefer alkaline water, and like plenty of hardness.

Food

The Molly is an omnivore with a preference for vegetable matter. They will relish live food like daphnia and mosquito larvae like most fish, but also eat soft algae. A normal fish food is suitable, and some people like to supplement this with algae wafers or spirulina flakes.

Companions

The Molly can be kept as a community fish as long as you choose suitable companions. Mollies are a little bigger than many of the small fish often kept together. While I have kept Mollies with Neon Tetras they are not ideal companions. This is not so much the size difference as the different water preferences. Mollies are generally peaceful fish, but I would avoid putting them with Siamese FightingFish. I know of one case where two male Mollies were kept with a male Siamese Fighting Fish and attempted to mate with it. Eventually the Mollies harried the poor fighting fish to death.

Some suitable companions for Mollies are Glass Bloodfin Tetras, Emperor Tetras, Black Widow Tetras, Peppered Catfish, Swordtails and Platies.

Pest Fish

Any fish released or that gets away and gets into natural waterways is a potential hazard to the native fish of the habitat. In some parts of Queensland Mollies are becoming a problem. In Queensland, Mollies can legally be kept in aquariums, but not in situations where they can get into natural waterways.

By Steve Challis Steve Challis has many other fish fact sheets and other articles at http://www.bettatrading.com.au. Article Source: EzineArticles

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Tips on PARADISE FISH Care and Spawning

The paradise fish or Macropodus opercularis are members of the family Belontidae. This family grouping includes both betta fish and gouarmis. The paradise fish is a gourami. They are also commonly referred to as paradise gouramis.

Paradise fish are native to East Asia. They populate the rice patties and ditches of Northern Vietnam and the Korean Peninsula. They were one of the first ornamental fish introduced to western society. They were first exported to Europe in the 1800s.

This image shows a Paradise fish (Macropodus opercularis).
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Despite their long history as a commercial ornamental fish, you are unlikely to see one in a home aquarium. They aren't even stocked in most fish specialty stores. This may be because paradise fish do not make good aquarium fish. Paradise fish are predators by nature. They are combative and harassing. They will attack each other and other species often seriously or fatally wounding them. You can no sooner put two males in the same tank together than you can betta males. Paradise fish are even more aggressive than bettas when it comes to male territorialism. Just like bettas, females can be housed together without incident. The popularity of this species waned with western aquarists when much less aggressive gouramis began to be exported.

Aquarist who levitate toward more aggressive species have a limit number of choices as far as tank-mates for paradise fish. Suitable candidates include larger danios and tetra, catfish and less aggressive cichlids such as firemouths. They can hold there own against most South American cichlids of equal size.

Paradise fish, like bettas and other gouramis belong to the suborder Anabantid. Regardless of geological location, all members of this suborder evolved in low oxygenated water. The rice patties and ditches of Eastern Asia are a prime example of such an environment. They are often muddy and inhospitable to any fish that do not fall into the Anabantid suborder.

Evolution provided Anabantids with a unique means of surviving in these adverse conditions. They evolved a lung-like organ known as a labyrinth organ. The labyrinth allows them to breathe oxygen straight from the atmosphere. You will see all such members of this suborder frequently rise to the surface to gulp air. Without a combination of dissolved and atmospheric oxygen they will not survive.

Paradise fish grow to approximately four inches with an average life span of six years. Paradise fish prefer slightly alkaline water. They can tolerate levels varying anywhere between 6.0-8.0 and water temperatures ranging between 68-78°F. They are omnivores but should be provided a diet reasonably high in protein. The males are more colorful than the females and have larger fins.

Breeding Paradise

To induce spawning, place the male and the female in a breeding tank with a divider between them. Male paradise fish may kill a female if she is not carrying eggs. You will want to have an abundance of plants for the female to hide in once the divider is removed. The water temperature should be toward the higher end of the fishes' tolerance level. They are less likely to breed in cooler water. Have your water filter turned down. Paradise fish breed in still waters in their natural habitat.

If the male feels the inclination to spawn he will use his labyrinth to build a bubble nest on the water's surface mixed with small pieces of the plant matter you provided. If this occurs it is safe to remove the divider.

If the female accepts the male's invitation to breed the two fish will embrace releasing both the eggs and semen into the water. After each embrace, the male will gather the fertilized eggs and spit them into the bubble nest.

Once spawning has occurred, the male no longer has any use for the female. Promptly remove her from the tank to prevent the male from killing her. Leave the male with the fry until they hatch and begin to swim freely. Now the male must be removed to prevent him from eating the fry.

Free swimming fry can be fed infusoria. In a few days their diet can be switched to newly hatched shrimp brine or powdered fry food.

Aquarium keeping is a fun and rewarding hobby. Freshwater aquarium fish care is the easiest and most economical way to enter the field of aquarium ownership. Less than a decade ago freshwater or saltwater fish were the only options available. But that has all changed.

By Stephen J Broy Keeping pet jellyfish is the latest trend in the world of aquariums. Pet jellyfish are a happy medium between the ease of freshwater fish and the demands and expense of keeping saltwater specimens alive and healthy. Jellyfish have much slower metabolisms than saltwater fish. Jellyfish Fish Tank Aquariums are less expensive to set up and maintain than saltwater tanks. Pet Moon Jellyfish look absolutely incredible under a fading LED lighting system. Article Source: EzineArticles

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The Royal Gramma - A Guide on The Stunning BASSLET, Gramma Loreto

The royal gramma (Gramma Loreto), along with the percula clownfish, flame angel, yellow tang and the blue tang make up the five most recognizable fishes in the marine aquarium hobby. It is also known as the fairy basslet.

Royal Gramma -Gramma loreta - Photo: Wikimedia

The royal gramma is brilliantly colored. Its front half is a rich bluish-purple while the rest of its body is a bright yellow mixed in with some orange. There is a single black stripe that streaks through its eyes.There is also a single black spot at the front of its dorsal fin.

They are commonly found throughout the Caribbean Sea. They retail for as little as $15 dollars and are disease resistant and hardy. A winning combination. Cheap, beautiful, plentiful and easy to keep in an aquarium.

They are commonly mistaken for the bicolor dottyback (Pseudochromis Bicolor) as they both have very similar colors. Telling them apart is easy. The bicolor dottyback does not have a black streak running from its snout through its eyes.

The royal gramma is a good candidate for a wide variety of aquariums. They are a relatively peaceful fish, provided they have a small territory of their own.

I have personally kept the royal gramma with clownfish, dwarf angels, large angels, gobies, damsels and dottybacks and have found that it does well with all of them. Again, only if they have their own territory. There can be trouble if any fish continually attempts to enter its shelter.

They can reach lengths of nearly 4 inches in their natural habitat. Such lengths are generally unseen in captivity. Expect your royal gramma to get as big as 3 inches.

I've seen hobbyists successfully keep one in a 10-gallon tank. Personally, i think at least a 20 gallon is the minimum size you should use with the royal gramma. The only way I'd ever keep one in a 10 gallon is if its the only fish in the tank.

Royal grammas are carnivores that eat copepods and plankton in the wild. They are completely reef safe so you don't have to worry about any coral nipping.

A variety of meaty foods should be offered. Krill, Mysis shrimp and Prime Reef (A great blend of seafood) are all great frozen foods to feed. They normally begin eating very quickly after introduction.

Efforts to breed the royal gramma have been successful. They are nest builders that use macroalgae as material for their spawning site (usually a cave).

The male attempts to lure the female into its newly built spawning site by quivering and flaring his fins. If the female is receptive to the males advances, she will then enter his cave and begin spawning. Their larvae accept rotifers and eventually baby brine shrimp without hesitation.

While breeding in captivity has been successful, the vast majority of royal grammas sold are still wild caught. Breeding of this fish isn't wide spread by any means and high rearing costs normally mean losing out to cheaper, wild caught specimens.

By Indran Manickam On my hubpages site I've written many guides covering this fish, the royal gramma as well as other popular species like the blue tang. All guides are photo and video heavy. Article Source: EzineArticles

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