FAQs

The general tap water is just fine for the freshwater aquariums. But if you plan to use the water of a well then the pH testing is must. The general pH level should be somewhat between 6 and 8. In case of the saltwater aquarium you will need to maintain the salt level of the water separately.

The freshwater aquariums should not be kept in direct sunlight. This will increase the growth of the algae which are unwanted and can pollute the environment of the entire aquarium.

If you are setting up a saltwater aquarium then it is okay to decorate it with the shells. But in case of fresh water aquariums it should be avoided as they will create an imbalance in the mineral level of the water as the shells are rich in calcium content.

This might cause some problem if you are keeping the slender gold fishes with the fat and oval shaped gold fishes. The slim ones will feel that the fat gold fishes are pregnant and they will chase them.

The sharks can grow up into huge specimens. The smallest one will probably grow up to 36 inches and they will need at least a 180 gallon aquarium to fit in. There are other specimens as well which can grow up to 6.5 feet and need 400 gallon space to swim comfortably. So they are not at all fit for the small aquariums and are perfect for the public aquariums.

The commonest coldwater fishes are gold fishes and slightly larger ones are koi. Then there are barbs, Bloodfin tetra, Croaking tetra, Guppy, Hillstream loaches, Pearl danio, Zebra danio etc.

Generally the fishes which prefer to stay in warm water and can survive only in this condition are called the tropical or warm water fish. In an aquarium they should be kept under controlled warmth using a heater.

The Labyrinth fishes are the ones which bear an accessory respiratory organ in their body. This organ is called the Labyrinth. The labyrinth contains a number of blood vessels and they can exchange oxygen from the atmosphere directly. This is the reason they can breathe the atmospheric oxygen when the water is polluted or lacks sufficient oxygen. The examples are Anabus, Latimeria etc.

Most of the marine fishes and some freshwater fishes are carnivores. They eat the worms, insect larvae, small fishes, bloodworms etc. some of them like to eat brine shrimps. The sharks like to gobble their whole prey at a go. Then there are many fishes which occasionally eat the flakes and frozen food.

There are many fishes which are predatory in nature. They like to wait for their prey and then jump on them like a seasoned hunter. These fishes prefer to have living food even in captivity. The Sharks are the most prominent predators in the fish kingdom.

The angel fish are often called the pigmy fish. But the ones which belong to the Centropyge genus are the smallest ones and thus named likewise.

They are a particular type of saltwater fish which are named like this because they have a pair of spines at the base of their body which look like scalpels. They are sharp enough to cut anything like a knife.

For human beings sleep is all about closing your eyes and taking rest without any consciousness. Most of the fishes apart from the sharks do not have eyelids. So they cannot close the eyes like us. Many fishes are there which are nearly motionless even when they are awake. But some of them keep moving or floating while they take rest. There are some fishes which are nocturnal and become active in the night and some of them go for resting in the night. So generally they take rest in such a manner which is called daydreaming for us. That means they sleep but not in the conventional way.

Generally it is estimated that there are about 20,000 fish species in the world. But the count can be more than that.

The oldest aquatic animals which resemble a fish are hagfish and lamprey. They have mouths that look like suckers. They have jaws to bite. They are basically the bottom dwellers. As these fishes have a great role to play in revealing some interesting secrets of animal revolution, the zoologists take keen interest in them.

The largest fish of the world is the Whale shark that can grow up to 50 feet or sometimes even more and the weight can go up to few tons. The second position is secured by the basking sharks that can become about 35 to 40 feet long.

The smallest fish is the tiny goby. They are the natural inhabitants of the freshwater or brackish water lakes in Philippines and Luzon. The adult ones can hardly grow larger than half inch.

The species of the Cyclothone family are the commonest fish of the sea. They are also called the bristle mouth fish and are observed at a depth of 500 meters in the seas all over the world.

If you are looking forward to set up a saltwater aquarium you will need a hydrometer which will measure the salt level of the water. The specific gravity of the saltwater needs to fall in between 1.020 and1.023.

The test kits are available in the market and they are quite helpful in deciding various factors about the water. The most important ones are the kits which test the nitrite and ammonia level of the water. The pH test kits come really handy to estimate the pH level of the aquarium water. The expensive ones are the nitrate test kits and they are pretty tough to find.

The trigger fish are a type of marine fish which are named like this because they have a special mechanism of locking and unlocking the dorsal fins.

The Hillstream loaches are basically the fishes whose natural habitats are rivers, streams etc. Though they are adaptive enough to accommodate in all sorts of aquarium but they will like to stay in the river shaped ones.

There is no point for a simple guess like this- it is Gold fish. They can be kept even in a glass bowl and are very attractive to watch. They are the oldest pet fish and were found in Southern China. But later on they became popular in all parts of the world.

The fishes that feed on various meaty substances as well as vegetable matters are called the omnivorous fishes. They have teeth and digestive system which resembles to both the herbivores and carnivores somewhat. In an aquarium it is quite easy to arrange food for these fishes. They will eat the flakes or frozen food and the living food as well. This is the reason why they are considered to be an excellent choice for the community aquariums.

The piranhas when hungry can be aggressive enough to attack and bite almost everything that comes into their sight. In fact they will not stop to bite the members of their own species. But generally they like to eat the fishes from other species or the wounded ones. They will rarely attack human beings. As a matter of fact the people of South America eat piranhas. So in other words human are dangerous to piranhas rather than them.

The brine shrimps are a typical shrimps which are now-a-days considered to be popular fish food. They are rich in all types of fatty acids and necessary elements and can fulfill the nutritional need of most of the marine and other fishes.

A species of Cuskeel belonging to the family Ophidiidae lives in the deepest part of the ocean. They are about 20 cm in length and are found in the trench of Puerto Rico that is 27,455 feet deep.

This is not at all an easy task to measure the speed of a fish. But the one which is recorded to swim the fastest in the world is the Indo-Pacific Sailfish, which is scientifically called Istiophorus platypterus. They can swim at a speed of 110Kmph.

The fish commonly known as Sign Eviota, whose scientific name is Eviota sigillata is the shortest living fish of the world. This is a very small fish living in the coral reef and can live for just 8 weeks. In fact they are considered to be the shortest living vertebrate. Does a fish have a tongue?

Most of the fishes have tongues but not exactly like that of ours. Some of the boney fishes also have teeth on their tongue which help them in taking food and are often called the tongue teeth.

Yes, the fishes are capable of hearing. They have sensory chambers inside the ear region. In some species the swim bladder helps them to hear.