Fish That Start With S
Browse all aquarium fish species with common names beginning with "S". Each profile includes care requirements, water parameters, tank size recommendations, and compatibility information for freshwater, marine, and brackish species.
The letter 'S' features a diverse range of aquarium species, from the vibrant Blue discus (Symphysodon aequifasciatus) to the unique Pajama Cardinalfish (Sphaeramia nematoptera). This section features a mix of popular community fish and interesting rarities, like the Spotted Mandarin Dragonet (Synchiropus picturatus), perfect for hobbyists wanting to enhance their aquariums.
Saadi dwarf stone loach
Turcinoemacheilus saadii
This is a little Iranian stone loach that lives glued to the bottom in fast, rocky streams, kinda like a tiny current-loving goby-but its a loach. The body has 7-9 dark saddle-shaped bands instead of a solid stripe, and it is built for scooting around coarse gravel and boulders in strong flow. Its not really an aquarium trade fish, but if you ever did keep one, you would set it up like a mini river tank with tons of oxygen and current.
Saikai grenadier (rattail)
Ventrifossa saikaiensis
This is a deepwater grenadier (rattail) from the western Pacific - the kind of fish that lives way down on the slope where its "aquarium" is basically cold, dark, and high pressure. It tops out around 25 cm and has that classic rattail look with a chin barbel, plus a ventral light organ. Cool animal, but realistically its not an aquarium species at all unless youre talking public-aquarium level coldwater deep-sea systems.
Sailfin Pleco
Pterygoplichthys gibbiceps
The Sailfin Pleco is a large armored catfish from South America, recognizable by its tall, sail-like dorsal fin and the leopard-like pattern on its dark body. It is a hardy algae grazer when young but quickly becomes a very large, heavy-bodied fish that produces significant waste and requires substantial filtration and space.
Sailfin cardinalfish
Quinca mirifica
This is a chunky, almost jet-black cardinalfish with a crisp white tail and an absurdly tall second dorsal fin - it looks like it belongs in a comic book villain lair. It hides in caves and crevices by day and comes out to hunt at night, and the males mouthbrood the eggs (with a wild courtship color change to bright silvery-white). It is a super range-restricted Western Australia species, so you do not see it often in the hobby.
Saka
Oreochromis saka
Oreochromis saka is a big Lake Malawi tilapia (one of the "chambo" group) that hangs around shallow, weedy shorelines and spends a lot of its time grazing diatoms and picking at bottom debris. Breeding males go very dark and the fish form breeding colonies off reedy shores, so they are way more "cichlid-y" in behavior than people expect from a tilapia. Taxonomy note: some references argue it may actually be the same species as Oreochromis karongae, so you will sometimes see that debate pop up when you research it.
Salt and pepper cory (Habrosus cory)
Corydoras habrosus
This is the tiny "salt and pepper" cory that scoots around the bottom like a little wind-up toy, constantly sifting and picking through the sand. Keep them in a real group and they get way bolder-lots of quick little dashes, little pauses, and then back to foraging. They're also one of those fish that really rewards a soft sandy bottom and calm tankmates.
Salvin's cichlid
Trichromis salvini
Trichromis salvini is that loud, high-contrast Central American cichlid that goes from kind of plain as a juvenile to straight-up neon yellow with blue spangling and a black spot-stripe as it matures. Its attitude ramps up hard once it pairs off, and it will absolutely claim a chunk of the tank like it owns the lease.
Samanti loach
Oxynoemacheilus seyhanensis
Oxynoemacheilus seyhanensis is a small Turkish brook loach from the Seyhan river system area - a bottom-hugger that wants clean, oxygen-rich water and lots of cover down low. In the wild it is a river fish and it's listed as Critically Endangered, so its real "cool factor" is more about being a rare, localized species than something you'll reliably see for sale.
Samoan surf sardine
Iso nesiotes
Iso nesiotes (Samoan surf sardine) is a very small surf-zone marine fish (family Isonidae) reported from places such as American Samoa and Pitcairn Island, inhabiting surf and waves around rocky headlands and reefs. Maximum reported size is about 4 cm TL; detailed life-history and aquarium husbandry information is limited.
San Marcos redtail splitfin
Xenotoca doadrioi
This is a little Mexican goodeid livebearer where the males do that awesome "blue body + orange/red tail" thing when they color up. They're super active, always grazing and pecking at surfaces, and they really appreciate cooler, clean, well-oxygenated water compared to your typical tropical livebearers.
Sanaga elephantnose (elephantfish)
Campylomormyrus phantasticus
This is a big, oddball elephantnose from Cameroon's Sanaga River, and it lives in that dim, sandy-bottom world where it uses a weak electric field to "see" and hunt. The long downturned snout is not just for looks - it is basically a living metal detector for worms and tiny critters in the substrate. Plan around its size and nighttime feeding habits, and it becomes one of those fish you can watch for hours.
Sandyback stingaree
Urolophus bucculentus
This is a deepwater Australian stingaree that hangs out on soft bottoms along the outer continental shelf, not something you will ever see in a normal home aquarium. It tops out around 80-89 cm and has that classic diamond-shaped disc and a tail spine, so it is very much a "look, dont touch" kind of ray.
Sanzo's goby
Lesueurigobius sanzi
Sanzo's goby is a small offshore goby from the eastern Atlantic and western Mediterranean that lives out on muddy sand/mud bottoms in fairly deep water. Its whole vibe is a subtle, bottom-hugging demersal fish rather than a rockpool goby, so its "best life" is more about open sandy areas than reefy structure.
Sargassum triggerfish
Xanthichthys ringens
Xanthichthys ringens is that slick, open-water-ish Atlantic trigger that looks like it got dusted with tiny freckles, then finished off with a red-trimmed tail. In the wild it hangs on deeper reef slopes and the juveniles cruise around floating Sargassum, which is just a cool life story for a trigger. Its vibe is generally calmer than the really nasty trigger species, but it is still a triggerfish with real teeth and opinions once it settles in.
Saul's whale catfish
Denticetopsis sauli
This is one of those ultra-tiny South American whale catfish that most people will never see in the trade - it tops out around 2 cm. Its whole vibe is "secretive little bottom-hanger" from blackwater-style habitats, so in an aquarium it would spend a lot of time tucked into leaf litter and small caves if you could even source one.
Scale-eyed flounder
Lepidoblepharon ophthalmolepis
Deepwater bathydemersal citharid flounder from the western Pacific, reported from ~310–428 m on mud bottoms. Notable for very large eyes on the right side that are covered with scales. Rare and apparently not marketed; aquarium husbandry is essentially undocumented and this species is not a practical home-aquarium fish.
Scaly-headed triplefin
Karalepis stewarti
This is a New Zealand triplefin that hugs rocky reef structure and comes out more at night, so you often spot it perched and watching everything rather than cruising the water column. It tops out around 15 cm and lives in cool-temperate coastal water, picking at tiny crustaceans and mollusks.
Scopas tang
Zebrasoma scopas
Scopas tangs are those earthy brown-to-olive Zebrasoma tangs with fine little blue-green lines that shimmer when theyre happy and settled in. They cruise the rockwork all day picking at turf algae, then can get a bit spicy with other tangs if the tank is tight. In the wild theyll hang in small groups and even bigger grazing mobs, which is pretty cool to watch them mirror that patrol behavior in a big reef tank.
Seba's goby
Feia seba
Feia seba is a tiny little marine goby from Papua New Guinea that lives tight to the reef and spends a lot of time perching and darting between cover. Its whole vibe is "blink and you miss it" - super small, super subtle, and really more of a nano reef curiosity than a fish you build a tank around.
Seerussling
Vimba elongata
Vimba elongata (Seerussling) is a temperate European cyprinid from the Danube basin, especially alpine lakes in southern Bavaria and Upper Austria. It is a slim, silvery bottom-forager that roots around for small benthic critters, more like a wild "nase/bream" vibe than a typical colorful aquarium fish.
Senegal needlefish
Strongylura senegalensis
This is a long, sleek coastal needlefish with that classic beak full of teeth, built to rocket around the surface and ambush smaller fish. It naturally cruises marine water but also pushes into estuaries and brackish lagoons, so it is a true salt-to-brackish kind of fish. Cool predator, but it gets way too big for normal home aquariums and really needs serious space and a tight lid.
Serpae Tetra
Megalamphodus eques
Serpaes are those fiery little red tetras with the black "comma" behind the gill-super eye-catching in a planted tank. They're active and a bit spicy, so they do best in a real group where they'll squabble with each other instead of nipping slower tankmates. When they're settled in, you get this constant cruising-and-chasing vibe that makes the tank feel really alive.
Serrated flathead
Rogadius serratus
Rogadius serratus is a sneaky little flathead that basically lives glued to the bottom, blending into sand and rubble like a living leaf-litter camouflage job. It is the kind of fish that does almost nothing until food shows up, then it strikes fast. Super cool look up close, but it is absolutely not a community tank fish.
Seven khramulya
Capoeta capoeta
Capoeta capoeta is a big, streamy scraper-barb from western Asia that spends a lot of its time cruising rivers and grazing on plant matter. Think of it like a coldwater-ish, current-loving algae grazer that gets way too large and active for most typical community tanks.