Search Species
Search for fish species by common or scientific name, or use filters to browse by water type, size, temperament, and difficulty.
Water Type
Search for fish species by common or scientific name, or use filters to browse by water type, size, temperament, and difficulty.
Found 365 species
Xyliphius kryptos
Xyliphius kryptos is one of those super-weird little banjo catfish that basically disappears into sand and leaf litter and acts like a living chunk of driftwood. It comes from the Lake Maracaibo basin in Venezuela, stays fairly small (around 11 cm), and spends most of its time hiding and cruising the bottom after dark.
Kryptopterus schilbeides
Kryptopterus schilbeides is a slim sheatfish from Southeast Asia that looks super "knife-like" because it has no dorsal fin, plus a neat narrow pink stripe along the side. In the wild it cruises rivers, canals, and swamps and even pushes into flooded forests when the water is high, picking off little fish, prawns, and insect larvae. Its not really a standard aquarium fish, so most people who want a "glass catfish" vibe are actually thinking of other Kryptopterus species.
Trigonostigma espei
This is that tiny coppery-orange rasbora with the sharp "lambchop" black wedge on its side-super slick-looking in a planted tank. Keep a proper little gang of them and they'll cruise the midwater together, flashing color way more than when they're kept in a sad little trio. They're gentle, easy to feed, and honestly one of my favorite small-school fish for calmer community setups.
Gymnocypris chui
Gymnocypris chui is a high-altitude Tibetan "naked carp" from cold endorheic lakes, and it gets that name because its body is largely scaleless. Its whole vibe is built for chilly, oxygen-poor plateau water - not your typical tropical aquarium fish, but super interesting if you're into oddball cyprinids.
Yunnanilus macrolepis
This is a little Chinese stream loach from Yunnan that spends its time down low, cruising the bottom and picking at tiny foods like a mini vacuum. It is not super common in the hobby, and it tends to get mixed up with close relatives (some references even treat it as the same species as Yunnanilus paludosus), so good ID matters if you ever see one for sale.
Yunnanilus macrositanus
Yunnanilus macrositanus is a little Chinese stone loach from the Heilongtan (Black Dragon Pool) area in Yunnan. Its wild biology is barely documented in the hobby, so I would treat it like a small, cool-water to mid-temp Nemacheilid: lots of oxygen, hiding spots, and a peaceful setup where it can poke around the bottom without getting bullied.
Chela macrolepis
Chela macrolepis is a tiny, super-sleek Indian danionid from Chembarampakkam Lake near Chennai. Its whole claim to fame is right in the name - it has noticeably larger scales than close relatives, and it has that fast, open-water "minnow" vibe that makes these fish fun to watch in a group. Its wild range is extremely limited, so it is not something you should expect to see regularly in the aquarium trade.
Springeria folirostris
This is a deepwater skate from the Gulf of Mexico with a really funky leaf-like snout extension and those "leg-like" pelvic fins skates are famous for. It lives way down on soft mud/sand bottoms, so its whole vibe is slow, bottom-oriented, and built for cruising the seabed rather than darting around the water column.
Hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis
Lemon tetras are one of those fish that look kind of subtle at first, then you catch the light and the whole body glows yellow with those punchy black-and-yellow fins. Get them in a proper little group and they're constantly cruising together, super active but not obnoxious. I also love how their red eyes pop when they're settled in and feeling good.
Rhinichthys falcatus
Leopard dace is a little cool-water river minnow from the Pacific Northwest that hangs around gravel runs and flowing pools, and it spends a lot of its day picking at insect larvae. Its speckly, "leopard" look is subtle but really nice in person, and it does best in a tank that feels like a stream - lots of oxygen, clean water, and some current.
Xenotilapia leptura
Xenotilapia leptura is a Lake Tanganyika ectodine cichlid that hangs around rocky areas and stays pretty small, topping out around 11 cm. What I love about these is the social vibe - females can school in big groups - and they do best when you keep the water hard, alkaline, and super stable.
Parosphromenus linkei
This is one of those tiny, dark little gouramis that looks kind of understated in a store tank... until it settles in and the male starts flashing those deep reds and blues with the fancy fin edging. They're shy and a bit secretive, but when you keep them the way they like (soft, acidic, calm), they turn into these surprisingly bold little show-offs around spawning time.