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
Phoxinus phoxinus
Phoxinus phoxinus is a small, fast-swimming minnow associated with cool, well-oxygenated waters. It is a gregarious shoaling fish; males intensify in colour during breeding. Note: the name P. phoxinus has historically been applied broadly across Eurasia, but the group is now treated as a species complex in which true P. phoxinus may be restricted to parts of Western Europe.
Gobio gobio
The European gudgeon is a small bottom-dwelling cyprinid with a slender body, sandy-brown mottling, and distinct barbels at the corners of the mouth used to locate food in the substrate. It is an active schooling fish that prefers well-oxygenated water and a sand or fine-gravel bottom, often resting on the substrate between foraging bouts. Best kept in cool, river-style aquariums with moderate flow rather than warm tropical setups.
Indoreonectes evezardi
This small Indian brook/stone loach occurs in stream habitats in India (Western Ghats and Satpura range). The species includes cave-adapted forms (e.g., reported from Kotumsar Cave) that may show reduced pigmentation and regressed eyes.
Cirrhilabrus exquisitus
This is one of those fairy wrasses that looks like it was painted with highlighters - males can shift through greens, reds, blues, and purples depending on mood and whether they are showing off. In a reef tank its usually out and cruising the water column, grabbing tiny meaty foods, and doing little display flare-ups at its own reflection or other wrasses. Biggest real-world gotcha is they are jumpers, so a tight lid or mesh top is basically mandatory.
Careproctus cypselurus
Careproctus cypselurus (falcate snailfish) is a marine, bathydemersal snailfish (Liparidae) from the North Pacific (off Japan and from the Sea of Okhotsk to off Washington, USA), recorded from deep water (about 35–1993 m). It is not a typical aquarium species due to its deep-sea/coldwater ecology and specialized life-support needs.
Zenarchopterus dispar
Zenarchopterus dispar is a surface-hanging halfbeak from mangroves and sheltered bays, with that classic long lower jaw for snapping up insects and other floaty foods. Males get those funky elongated fin rays (the "feathered" look), and they are livebearers, so once they settle in you can occasionally get surprise babies. Biggest thing with this fish is giving it calm water up top, room to cruise, and a tight lid because halfbeaks can rocket-jump.
Xenisthmus oligoporus
This is a teeny little Red Sea reef wriggler that lives down in sandy spots and stays pretty secretive. At barely around an inch long, its whole vibe is "blink and you miss it" - more of a cool oddball micro-predator than a display fish.
Barbucca diabolica
This is one of those tiny, oddball loaches that spends its whole day scooting along wood and rocks like a little vacuum cleaner, and those glowing red eyes are the whole vibe. It is peaceful and shy, but it gets way more confident in a dim, cover-filled tank with leaf litter and lots of little hideouts. Biggest thing people miss is feeding - it is a bottom grazer and pretty much will not chase food up in the water column.
Nemateleotris magnifica
This is that little "hover-and-dart" reef fish with the yellow face and the white-to-red fade that looks like it was airbrushed on. It'll pick a bolt-hole in the rockwork, hang in the water column facing the current, and do that cute little flag-flick with the tall first dorsal fin when it's feeling bold.
Zesticelus profundorum
This is a tiny deepwater sculpin from the North Pacific that lives way down on the bottom, not cruising around the reefs like typical “aquarium marines”. The wild habitat is cold, dark, and high-pressure (down to around 2580 m), so it is basically a “look up in a museum database” fish rather than something you can realistically keep at home.
Ambassis miops
Ambassis miops is a small, see-through little perchlet from Indo-Pacific estuaries and river mouths - you can often see the silvery organs and spine line inside the body when it turns just right. They tend to hang out in loose groups along weedy edges in slow-to-moderate flow, and that flag-like tail pattern is the quick giveaway once you spot it.
Fowleria amblyuroptera
Fowleria amblyuroptera is a very small Indo-Pacific/Western Pacific cardinalfish (to about 4 cm SL) associated with coastal reefs/bays and is primarily nocturnal. Like many cardinalfishes, the male mouthbroods the eggs; in captivity it should be provided with ample shelter and offered appropriately sized meaty foods/planktonic items.