Search Species
Search for fish species by common or scientific name, or use filters to browse by water type, size, temperament, and difficulty.
Found 275 species
White-edged cardinalfish
Jaydia albomarginatus
Jaydia albomarginatus is a small marine cardinalfish from the Western Central Pacific. Like a lot of cardinalfish it is a mouthbrooder, and FishBase notes distinct pairing during courtship and spawning - the kind of behavior thats really fun to watch when a pair settles in. Its not a big open-water swimmer, so it does best with plenty of rockwork and calmer tankmates.
Wicker-work sole
Zebrias craticulus
This is a small striped sole from northern Australia that basically lives life glued to the sand, doing that classic flatfish thing where it vanishes the second it settles in. Those tight cross-bands that run right onto the fins are the whole vibe - it really does look like wicker-work up close. Not an aquarium fish for most people, but it is a super cool species if you are into oddball bottom-dwellers.
Wouter's pygmygoby
Trimma woutsi
Trimma woutsi is a true pygmy reef goby - maxing out around an inch - that spends its life perched close to the rockwork in shallow reef zones. Its tiny size is the whole game here: it is perfect for a peaceful nano reef where it can pick at micro-foods all day and not get bullied off meals.
Wry snailfish
Careproctus staufferi
Careproctus staufferi is a deepwater snailfish (family Liparidae) described from the central Aleutian Islands, Alaska (North Pacific) in 2016. The original description notes an overall red/pale coloration and a distinct lateral yellow slash across the dorsal part of the abdomen and posterior. It is a bathydemersal deep-sea species and is not a typical aquarium fish.
Yellowfin croaker
Umbrina roncador
Yellowfin croaker is a nearshore drum that cruises sandy surf zones, bays, and harbors, usually in little schools. The cool giveaway is that single chin barbel - it uses it while rooting around for worms, crustaceans, and clams, and it can get surprisingly chunky for a "beach fish."
Yellow-lined shrimpgoby
Vanderhorstia flavilineata
This is a tiny sand-dwelling shrimp goby from Papua New Guinea that likes to hover right at the front door of a burrow and bolt inside when it gets spooked. In the wild it hangs out with an alpheid (pistol) shrimp in a rubble-lined burrow, which is exactly why it does best in a tank with a sand bed and some small rubble pieces it can use as "building material." Those yellow lines and little head spots pop way more than you'd expect from a fish that barely breaks an inch.
Yellowmouth jawfish
Opistognathus nothus
This is a deepwater Atlantic jawfish that lives in burrows on sand and rubble, and it has that classic jawfish vibe of popping up like a little periscope from its hole. The yellow edging inside the mouth is the giveaway, plus the spotty head and striped/yellow-edged fins. Because it comes from about 92-100 m depth, it is not something you should treat like a typical warm, shallow-reef jawfish in a home tank.
Yellownose skate
Zearaja chilensis
This is a big, cold-water skate from Chilean waters that lives on sandy and muddy bottoms and lays those classic horned skate egg cases. It gets seriously large (around 1.5 m max reported on FishBase), so it is more of a fisheries and public-aquarium animal than a home-aquarium fish.
Yellowtip halfbeak
Hemiramphus marginatus
This is a true marine halfbeak - it cruises right under the surface in open water and that goofy half-length lower jaw is exactly as cool in person as it sounds. Adults get pretty long (about 10 inches), so its more of a big, fast, jumpy schooling fish than a typical home-aquarium species.
Zebra goby
Zebrus zebrus
Tiny Mediterranean goby with bold zebra stripes that spends its day wedged under stones and seagrass like a little tide-pool ninja. It is shy but fun to watch once settled, picking at tiny critters and darting between rock crevices. Keep it in a stable marine setup and it will reward you with lots of peekaboo behavior.
Zebra sole
Zebrias crossolepis
Zebrias crossolepis is a small marine sole with bold zebra-like bands, the kind of flatfish that spends its life glued to the bottom and trying to vanish into sand. It is a subtropical, demersal species from the northwest Pacific (reported from Guangdong, China) and tops out at around 14 cm standard length, so it stays pretty compact for a flatfish.