Search Species
Search for fish species by common or scientific name, or use filters to browse by water type, size, temperament, and difficulty.
Found 528 species
Common stinkfish
Foetorepus calauropomus
This is a southern-Australia dragonet with a super long tailfin and a sneaky camouflage look, and the males can actually show some really neat color and filament action when theyre feeling bold. The whole "stinkfish" thing is real too - they have a strong-smelling body slime that can taste bitter and may be toxic, so its not a fish you handle unless you have to.
Compressed ilisha
Ilisha compressa
Ilisha compressa (compressed ilisha) is a Persian Gulf pristigasterid (longfin herring relative) described from the Persian Gulf and generally associated with coastal pelagic/neritic habitats.
Confused lanternfish
Diaphus confusus
Diaphus confusus is a small lanternfish (family Myctophidae) known from the southeastern Pacific, recorded from deep mesopelagic/bathypelagic depths around 545–560 m near the Sala y Gómez Ridge. It is a wild, deepwater species and not realistically maintained as a typical home-aquarium fish due to capture/shipping and pressure/light/feeding constraints.
Conger
Japonoconger sivicolus
Japonoconger sivicolus is a deepwater conger eel from the Northwest Pacific (Japan and nearby waters), the kind of fish you basically never see in the aquarium hobby because it lives way down on sandy-muddy bottoms. It tops out around 57 cm and is more of a science-and-fisheries-records eel than a home tank animal.
Constellationfish
Valenciennellus tripunctulatus
This is that tiny deep-sea hatchetfish with little light organs that sparkle like a night sky, which is why folks call it the constellationfish. It cruises the mesopelagic zone and snacks on copepods and ostracods, and while it looks awesome, it is not an aquarium candidate since it lives hundreds of meters down in cold, dim water.
Convict goby
Lythrypnus phorellus
A tiny Caribbean goby with bold dark-and-pale bars, the convict goby spends its days perched under ledges and picking micro-crustaceans from the rock. It stays under an inch long, so it does best in a peaceful nano reef with lots of nooks and a steady supply of small foods like copepods or finely chopped mysis. Think of it as a shy little cave gremlin that comes out when it feels safe.
Convict zebra sole
Zebrias captivus
Picture a tiny zebra-striped sole from the Persian Gulf that spends the day buried in fine sand with just its eyes showing. When the lights go down it slides out to nab worms and little crustaceans, so it needs a mature sand bed and meaty foods. Super cool pattern and stealthy behavior, but feeding makes it a specialist fish.
Cookiecutter shark
Isistius brasiliensis
This is the little deep-water shark that takes neat, round "cookie" plugs out of bigger animals - tuna, whales, even other sharks - then disappears back into the dark. It is got a stubby cigar-shaped body with a dark "collar" behind the head, and it does nightly vertical migrations up toward the surface. Not an aquarium fish in any normal sense, but an absolute legend of the open ocean.
Coral Beauty Angelfish
Centropyge bispinosa
Coral Beauty is that classic little dwarf angel with the purple-blue body and orange striping that looks different from fish to fish. It spends a lot of the day weaving through rockwork and picking at algae and other bits, so a tank with mature live rock really brings out its best behavior. It can be a little bossy (especially with other dwarf angels) and some individuals will nip corals, so it is reef-safe with caution.
Cortez skate
Caliraja cortezensis
Think of the Cortez skate as a pancake-shaped ray from the Eastern Pacific that cruises low and slow over sandy bottoms. It stays modest for a skate (topping out around 39 cm) and loves to bury itself, then pounce on small crabs and worms, and it lays those classic 'mermaid's purse' egg cases. Super cool animal, but it really belongs in a very large marine system with a soft sand bed.
Crosseyed cardinalfish
Fowleria aurita
Think of this little cardinal as a night owl that hangs in the shadows by day and pops out at lights-off to snack. It stays small, has that quirky crossed-eye look, and like other cardinals the male mouthbroods the eggs, which is super cool to watch if you ever get a pair to spawn. Give it rockwork to hide in and it settles right in.
Cutthroat eel (Ilyophis robinsae)
Ilyophis robinsae
This is a deep-sea cutthroat eel that lives way down on the seafloor - like, thousands of meters deep. Its whole vibe is "muddy abyss predator/scavenger" with that classic eel-shaped body, and its name honors ichthyologist Catherine Robins. Not an aquarium fish in any realistic sense, but it is a seriously cool species from an extreme habitat.