Fish That Start With C
Browse all aquarium fish species with common names beginning with "C". Each profile includes care requirements, water parameters, tank size recommendations, and compatibility information for freshwater, marine, and brackish species.
The 'C' index showcases a range of aquarium fish, from the popular Goldfish (Carassius auratus) to the interesting Dwarf Pufferfish (Carinotetraodon travancoricus). This section includes a variety of community-friendly species such as the striking Clown Loach (Chromobotia macracanthus) and several charming Corydoras catfish like the Bronze Corydoras (Corydoras aeneus). Whether you're looking for eye-catching displays or peaceful tank mates, the 'C' listings have something for every aquarist.
Cahual tridentine catfish
Tridentopsis cahuali
Tridentopsis cahuali is one of those truly tiny South American pencil catfishes - think around 2 cm, basically a living sliver. It is from the Paraguay River basin, and its whole vibe is secretive micro-catfish life in warm freshwater. Real talk: there is very little hobby-grade care info out there, so I would treat it like a delicate specialty fish and plan on a species tank and careful observation.
Calabazas shiner
Aztecula calabazas
Aztecula calabazas is a tiny Mexican shiner/minnow from the Rio Panuco basin, basically a little stream fish that spends its whole life in a very small area. Its big claim to fame is how localized and rare it is - this is one of those species thats more of a conservation fish than a normal aquarium fish you see for sale.
Cameroon goby
Wheelerigobius wirtzi
This is a tiny little marine goby from the Gulf of Guinea that hangs out shallow on rocky faces. Its whole vibe is "small, shy, and clingy to cover," so it does best when you give it lots of rockwork and calm tankmates. Not something you see in shops often, but its micro-goby size and habitat style make it a really interesting oddball.
Campeche Bank hamlet
Hypoplectrus espinosai
This is a hamlet (a small serranid) that lives on shallow coral reefs on the Campeche Bank off the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. Its max recorded size is under 10 cm, and in the wild it is described as a diurnal, solitary little predator that hangs around the reef picking off meaty prey.
Candystick goby
Vanderhorstia delagoae
This is a shrimp-associated sand goby from the western Indian Ocean and Red Sea area, and it spends its life hovering right by a burrow (usually shared with a snapping shrimp). In a tank it is all about a fine sand bed and feeling secure - when its setup is right, you get that cool watchman-style behavior and constant "standing guard" at the entrance.
Caniscapulus eel goby
Taenioides caniscapulus
This is one of those super-weird mud-burrowing eel gobies (Amblyopinae) with that long, eel-like body and tiny reduced eyes. Its natural world is silty coastal/brackish zones around the Philippines, so it is way more of a "mudflat fish" than a typical community-aquarium goby.
Cantor's croaker
Johnius cantori
Johnius cantori is a tiny little tropical croaker from the eastern Indian Ocean, and its whole claim to fame is how obscure it is - FishBase lists it as known only from the holotype collected in Malaysia. Like other croakers, it lives near the bottom in coastal waters, making it unlikely to be found in aquarium trade.
Caohai stone loach
Eonemachilus caohaiensis
This is a tiny Chinese stone loach from high-elevation Caohai Lake in Guizhou, and it is basically a bottom-hugging little noodle that wants clean, well-oxygenated water. It is not something you will see in the trade much, but if you ever did, I would treat it like other small cool-water nemacheilid loaches: lots of cover, smooth sand, and steady filtration.
Cape codling
Lepidion capensis
Lepidion capensis (Cape codling) is a deepwater morid cod from the continental slope off southern Africa - think chilly, dark water hundreds of meters down. Its whole lifestyle (4-6 C water, 457-1152 m depth) makes it basically not an aquarium fish at all, but it is a neat one to read about if you like deep-sea oddballs.
Cape Fear shiner
Notropis mekistocholas
This is a tiny, super-local North Carolina shiner from the Cape Fear River basin, and it has a weirdly long, coiled gut for a shiner because it can make a living on a lot of plant-y, detritus-type foods. In the wild it hangs around rocky and sandy pools and runs and often schools up with other minnows, plus it shifts into slower pools to spawn in late spring into summer.
Capitlineata silhouette goby
Silhouettea capitlineata
This is a super tiny tropical marine goby that basically lives its life glued to the bottom, blending in and keeping a low profile. The neat name clue is the "head lines" - it was named for dark lines running down from the eye, so its face patterning is part of the whole deal. Because it tops out around an inch, its care info in the aquarium hobby is pretty scarce compared to bigger, commonly-sold gobies.
Caqueta whiptail catfish
Sturisoma caquetae
Sturisoma caquetae is one of those sleek, sturgeon-bodied whiptails that just glides around like a little underwater paper airplane. It stays pretty slim and spends its time clinging to hard surfaces and grazing biofilm, so it does best in a mature, super-clean tank with good flow and oxygen.
Cardinal Tetra
Paracheirodon axelrodi
The Cardinal Tetra is a small, vibrant freshwater fish known for its striking iridescent blue and red coloring. It is closely related to the Neon Tetra but can be distinguished by the extended red stripe that runs the entire length of its body. People love keeping Cardinal Tetras in their tanks because they're peaceful and great at schooling together.
Carens barb
Enteromius carens
Enteromius carens is a small freshwater cyprinid from West-Central Africa. It is known from the Kouilou basin to the Chiloango basin (Republic of the Congo, Cabinda/Angola, and DR Congo), with a single record from the Foulakari River in the lower Congo basin. Maximum recorded size is about 3.2 cm standard length.
Cartier's deepwater snake eel
Benthenchelys cartieri
A deepwater marine snake eel (Ophichthidae) known from the Philippines (Western Central Pacific). FishBase notes members of the genus Benthenchelys are pelagic; recorded depth range to 1168 m. Not an established aquarium species.
Carvalho's tetra
Tetragonopterus carvalhoi
This South American characin is described from northern Brazil (rio Jari, Amazon basin) and reaches about 6.5 cm SL. It is distinguished from congeners by a lozenge-shaped dark spot on the caudal peduncle.
Cascudo-viola
Loricariichthys anus
Large Loricariinae whiptail (Loricariichthys) from southern Brazil/Uruguay–lower Paraná basins; benthic detritus/iliophagous-omnivorous feeder. Males show an elongated lower lip during the reproductive season, and the genus includes facultative air-breathers; provide clean, well-oxygenated water and fine sand.
Celestial Pearl Danio
Danio margaritatus
This is the little "galaxy fish" everyone stops to stare at-dark bluish body sprinkled with pearly spots and those punchy orange/red fins. They're peaceful but kinda shy, and you'll see the best color and the cutest little male sparring displays when you keep a proper group in a heavily planted tank with gentle flow.
Chapala catfish
Ictalurus ochoterenai
This is a Mexico-native Ictalurus catfish from the Lerma River basin/Lake Chapala system. Think of it like a regional channel-catfish cousin - a bottom-hugging, food-motivated predator/omnivore that gets big enough that an aquarium becomes impractical fast unless you're basically running an indoor pond.
Chapultepec splitfin
Girardinichthys viviparus
This is a little goodeid livebearer from the Valley of Mexico where it comes from cool, oxygen-rich waters - think more like a temperate pond fish than a tropical livebearer. Males can get really sharp-looking with black edging (sometimes almost fully black) on the fins, and they do best when you keep them on the cool side with big, regular water changes.
Chekopa Mylochromis
Mylochromis chekopae
This is a Lake Malawi "hap" from the Mylochromis group that hangs out deeper over sand and works the bottom for tiny foods. In the wild its menu is basically little crustaceans plus some algae, so it does best long-term when you feed it like a grazing micro-predator instead of a pure carnivore.
Chereshnev's horsefish
Zanclorhynchus chereshnevi
This is a weird, cold-water Southern Ocean bottom-dweller from around the Prince Edward Islands. It is a deep, polar marine fish (recorded down to at least 170 m) and not something that shows up in the aquarium trade - it would need chilled, high-oxygen seawater and a public-aquarium style setup.
Cherry barb
Rohanella titteya
Cherry barbs are small Sri Lankan barbs; males intensify to deep red (especially when breeding). They're generally peaceful and can be shy unless kept in a group, and they look best in planted aquariums with subdued lighting and darker substrate.
Chessboard cichlid
Dicrossus filamentosus
Dicrossus filamentosus is that classy little blackwater dwarf cichlid with the crisp "chessboard" pattern and, in mature males, a super cool lyretail with streamers. It's generally mellow and shy, but when a female is guarding eggs/fry she turns into a tiny, fearless bulldozer (and it's honestly awesome to watch). Give them soft, clean water, leaf litter, and calm tankmates and they really settle in and show their best colors.