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 362 species
Zapteryx xyster
This is a little guitarfish from the tropical eastern Pacific that cruises sandy and rocky bottoms and comes out more at night to hunt. The coolest thing on adults is the yellow ocelli (eyespots) sitting in the dark bands across the back - it looks like someone dotted it with paint. It is a true saltwater ray-like elasmobranch, so think big footprint, lots of sand, and a heavy meaty diet.
Ichthyococcus australis
This is a deep-ocean little lightfish that lives way down in the dark and uses photophores (tiny light organs) for camouflage and signaling. It is a pelagic marine species from the southern hemisphere, and its whole vibe is "midwater stealth" rather than anything you would ever keep like a normal aquarium fish.
Xiphophorus monticolus
Xiphophorus monticolus is a small, wild-type swordtail from Mexico that tends to hang in deeper pools in fast headwater streams with rocks and riffles. Males show a slender sword with darker edging and faint orange striping that can fade as they age, so its charm is more subtle than the gaudy domestic swordtail strains. Its big "gotcha" is that it is not a generic warm, hard-water livebearer - it comes from cooler, cleaner, flowing habitats, so it appreciates lots of oxygen and good maintenance.
Xiphophorus maculatus
This is the classic platy-the little livebearer that's been bred into a ridiculous number of colors, but the wild-type is more of an olive-brown fish with dark blotches. They're super active, always cruising for snacks, and you'll see fun social behavior when you keep them in a small group. Also: if you mix males and females, you'll almost certainly end up with fry-these guys don't waste any time.
Siokunichthys southwelli
A tiny tropical marine pipefish from Sri Lanka and the Philippines. Like many syngnathids, it is a slow, deliberate feeder that may require abundant small live foods and low-competition tankmates in captivity.
Beaufortia polylepis
Beaufortia polylepis is one of those little hillstream loaches that looks like a tiny freshwater stingray with a speckled pattern, and it spends its day suctioned onto rocks grazing biofilm. The big trick with them is not "special water" so much as lots of oxygen and brisk flow - think cool, clean stream vibes, not a warm, still community tank.
Discordipinna griessingeri
This is that tiny little reef goby with the crazy tall first dorsal spines and orange striping that makes it look like a living piece of candy. It spends a lot of time tucked into coral rubble and little crevices, then darts out to grab food, so giving it real hiding spots is the whole game. Also, it gets mixed up in the trade with the wrong name sometimes, so its worth double-checking the label before you buy.
Microphis spinachioides
This is a freshwater pipefish from Papua New Guinea - basically a tiny river cousin of seahorses with that stiff, armored "stick" body and a little tube snout for picking off micro-crustaceans. The really wild part is the males brood the eggs, and the species is so rarely seen in the wild that a lot of info we normally lean on for aquarium care just straight-up is not documented.
Yunnanilus elakatis
Yunnanilus elakatis is a nemacheilid (stone loach) endemic to Yunnan, China (type locality: Yiliang County). Aquarium-specific husbandry data for this exact species is scarce in major references; when kept, it should be maintained like other small stream-associated stone loaches: high water quality, good oxygenation, and a fine, smooth substrate with cover.
Dasyscopelus spinosus
This is a little deep-ocean lanternfish that does the classic nightly commute - hanging deeper in the day, then rising toward the surface after dark to feed. Its body is studded with light organs (photophores), and the species name 'spinosus' comes from the spiny scales around the anal-fin base. Not really an aquarium fish at all, but it is a super cool example of open-ocean life.
Diaphus metopoclampus
This is a deep-sea lanternfish with rows of photophores (little light organs) that it uses down in the dark, and it does that classic up-at-night, down-by-day vertical migration. Super cool animal, but its whole lifestyle is built around cold, high-pressure midwater life, so its not really an aquarium fish in any normal sense.
Synchiropus picturatus
This little dragonet is basically a living piece of reef art-chunky fins, goofy "hovering" swimming, and those crazy psychedelic spots that look painted on. The big thing with them is they're constant pickers, cruising rockwork all day hunting tiny critters, so they're happiest in a mature tank with tons of pods (or a keeper who's ready to meet them halfway on food). If you like chill fish with tons of personality that don't bother anyone, mandarin time is hard to beat.