Fish That Start With B
Browse all aquarium fish species with common names beginning with "B". Each profile includes care requirements, water parameters, tank size recommendations, and compatibility information for freshwater, marine, and brackish species.
The letter 'B' features a variety of aquarium species that appeal to different hobbyist preferences. Notable entries include the striking Betta splendens, popular for its vibrant colors, and the unique Bumblebee goby (Brachygobius doriae), known for its small size and distinct patterns. Whether you're interested in community fish or more specialized species, this section presents a variety of options for all aquarists.
Banded Archerfish
Toxotes jaculatrix
This is the fish that literally spits jets of water to knock insects off branches-watching one "take aim" is unreal. They're super aware of what's going on outside the tank and will even learn to beg and snipe food from the surface once they settle in. Give them height and some open swimming room and they act like little aquatic sharpshooters.
Banded Borneo hillstream loach
Gastromyzon fasciatus
Gastromyzon fasciatus is one of those super-cool little Borneo hillstream loaches that scoots around rocks like a tiny stingray and parks itself in the current. It really shines in a river-style setup with lots of smooth stones to graze on and high oxygen - they look busy all day and have a neat, banded pattern.
Banded Leporinus
Leporinus fasciatus
Banded Leporinus are those torpedo-shaped, black-and-yellow striped fish that look like they're wearing a little prison outfit-and they stay on the move. They've got a ton of personality and they're awesome to watch cruising and picking at stuff, but they're also the kind of fish that will redecorate your tank and "taste test" anything soft-looking.
Banded dwarf three-barbel catfish
Nannoglanis fasciatus
This is a tiny little Ecuadorian heptapterid catfish with bold banding - a real under-the-radar oddball that almost never shows up in shops. Since there is basically no solid aquarium-care literature for it, I would treat it like a small, shy, bottom-hugging Amazon/upper Amazon tributary catfish: lots of cover, gentle flow, and clean, well-oxygenated water.
Banded stargazer
Kathetostoma binigrasella
This is a New Zealand stargazer that lives half-buried in sand or mud with its eyes pointed up, waiting to rocket upward and nail passing prey. It has those neat dark saddle-bands across the back (especially as a juvenile), and like other stargazers it is venomous with spines near the gill cover/pectoral area - definitely a look-dont-touch fish.
Banded-tail glassy perchlet
Ambassis urotaenia
This is one of those see-through glassy perchlets where you can literally watch the organs shimmer when it turns-super cool in the right lighting. In the wild it hangs around river mouths and mangroves and cruises in groups, so it does best when you keep a little gang of them and give them some open swimming room.
Bandi cichlid
Wallaceochromis signatus
Wallaceochromis signatus is a West African (Guinea, Kolente basin/Bandi River) dwarf cichlid that has appeared in the hobby under trade names such as “Bandi I/Bandi 1” and “Guinea” prior to/alongside its formal description. It is a cave-associated dwarf cichlid; provide cover and caves and expect heightened territoriality during breeding.
Banggai Cardinalfish
Pterapogon kauderni
Banggai cardinals just sort of hover like little underwater satellites, and the bold black bars with those long, polka-dotted fins look unreal under reef lighting. They're super chill most of the time, but once a pair forms you'll see real "fish drama," and the male will even mouthbrood the babies like a champ.
Barbed pipefish
Urocampus nanus
Urocampus nanus is a skinny little pipefish from sheltered seagrass and estuary areas around southern Japan and nearby coasts, where it hangs out down low among eelgrass. The really wild part is the males brood the eggs in a pouch under the tail and give birth to fully formed mini pipefish. Its care is basically "pipefish rules" - calm tank, lots of live/frozen tiny meaty foods, and tankmates that will not outcompete it at feeding time.
Barlip reef-eel
Uropterygius kamar
Uropterygius kamar is a smaller moray (a reef-eel) that spends its time tucked into rockwork and coral rubble, poking its head out when it smells food. FishBase notes it comes in two color morphs and lives on reef-associated rubble areas, so in a tank it really appreciates lots of tight caves and crevices. Like most morays its whole vibe is secretive ambush predator, not open-water swimmer.
Barred mudskipper
Periophthalmus argentilineatus
This is one of those classic "walks around like it owns the place" mudskippers-big goofy eyes, climbs, hops, and spends a ton of time out on the mud when it's humid. In the wild it lives on intertidal mangrove/nipa mudflats and even shuttles between little pools and open air, hunting worms, insects, and small crustaceans. It's super fun to watch, but it really wants a brackish paludarium setup (not a normal aquarium).
Barred snake eel
Quassiremus polyclitellum
This is a temperate, demersal snake eel (Ophichthidae) known from New Zealand, collected from moderately deep water over rocky ground (reported depth range ~35–58 m). It is not commonly represented in aquarium care literature and should be considered a wild marine species rather than a typical aquarium trade eel.
Barred topminnow
Quintana atrizona
This is a tiny Cuban livebearer that likes to lurk in thick plants and do that classic livebearer "hover and peck" routine all day. The cool part is the subtle black barring and how the fish kind of vanishes into floating plants, then pops right back out when food hits the water.
Bates' labeobarbus
Labeobarbus batesii
This is a large freshwater African cyprinid (genus Labeobarbus) reported from Cameroon, Chad, and Gabon. It is not a commonly profiled aquarium species; husbandry information is limited in mainstream hobby references.
Bathybagrus platycephalus (claroteid catfish)
Bathybagrus platycephalus
This is a Lake Tanganyika claroteid catfish (Bathybagrus platycephalus; synonym Chrysichthys platycephalus) reported from deeper water (about 20-110 m) and associated with rocky substrate. It reaches ~22 cm TL and is a demersal predator, so small fish may be eaten if they fit in its mouth.
Beach silverside
Atherinella blackburni
This is a little coastal silverside that cruises the shallows in loose groups and flashes like a tiny chrome dart when the light hits it right. In the wild it hangs around beaches, estuaries, and lagoons, picking at small drifting foods in the surf zone. It is cool, but its real "gotcha" is that it is an open-water, salt-tolerant schooling fish that does best in bigger, well-oxygenated setups rather than a typical planted community tank.
Bearded puffer
Pao barbatus
This is a chunky little Mekong River puffer that gets a cool "bearded" look from the dark spotting around the lips. It is one of those puffers that acts like a tiny water-dog - always watching you, always investigating, and always ready to crunch something shelled. Not a great community fish though, because puffers are basically curious biters with a beak.
Bellfish
Johnius fuscolineatus
Johnius fuscolineatus (Bellfish/African bearded croaker) is a small coastal sciaenid from the southwestern/western Indian Ocean (Mozambique, South Africa, Madagascar), occurring in shallow marine waters (reported 0–50 m) and also associated with coastal/estuarine habitats.
Ben-Tuvia's goby
Didogobius bentuvii
This is a tiny little Mediterranean goby from the Israeli coast that lives down on the bottom over muddy-sand, and it is likely a burrower. In other words, it is a blink-and-you-miss-it kind of fish - super small, demersal, and more about sneaky bottom-dweller vibes than flashy swimming.
Bertelsen's duckbill conger
Gavialiceps bertelseni
Deepwater marine conger eel from off western/southwestern Madagascar (western Indian Ocean), reported from roughly 670–1200 m depth; maximum length about 84 cm TL (reported for males). Not a typical aquarium species due to deepwater habitat.
Betta
Betta splendens
Betta fish, also known as Siamese fighting fish, are popular for their striking colors and flowing fins. They are known for their territorial nature, especially males, which can display aggressive behavior towards each other.
Bicolored foxface
Siganus uspi
Siganus uspi is that super sharp-looking Fiji rabbitfish with the hard two-tone split - dark front half, bright yellow rear half. It is an algae-grazer that tends to cruise calmly, but it has venomous fin spines, so you treat it with respect any time you are netting or working in the tank.
Bidentate conger
Xenomystax bidentatus
A deepwater conger eel (family Congridae) from the tropical western central Atlantic off northern South America, reported from roughly 494–604 m depth; not a species typically encountered in the aquarium trade.
Bigeye brotula
Glyptophidium longipes
Glyptophidium longipes is a deepwater cusk-eel (brotula) from the western Indian Ocean - a slender, eel-ish fish with oversized eyes and long ventral-fin rays. It is a bathyal slope species from a few hundred meters down, so its real-world needs (cold, dark, high-pressure habitat) make it essentially an observation-only "research" animal rather than a practical aquarium fish.