That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

With the wide range of body shapes and colors, it is hard to believe that all of the fish we call “goldfish” come from the same ancestor, a rather dull, silver/brown carp known as Carassius auratus. Almost two thousand years ago, Asian fisherman raised these fish in ponds for food, and soon the natural orange and yellow mutations of these fish caught the eye of Chinese royalty. Over time, the fish that we know as “goldfish” were selectively bred for specific traits and colors which would eventually become the varieties we see in fish stores today. Let me introduce you to some of the most popular “breeds” that have become aquarium mainstays over the past few hundred years.

Made for Outdoor Living

Comets – Perhaps the closest in appearance to the “natural” carp, Comets have longer fins than the common goldfish, and are often sold as “feeder fish”. They can be orange, white, silver, yellow or black. They get fairly large and are often sold for ponds rather than aquariums. The Sarasa Comet is a very popular variety whose coloration is a combination of pure white and deep red. Read More »

Ever play the board game “Guess Who?”? Its the one where you have to guess which character the other person is by asking questions like “Do you have a mustache?” or “Are your eyes blue?”. Sometimes identifying aquarium animals works the same way.

Banded Coral Shrimp, also known as Boxing or Boxer Shrimp, are popular for aquarists of all levels. Within this group, common names overlap, most are some variation of red-and-white-bands, two shrimp can be identical except for their antennae color and other subtle differences. These shrimp will almost always fight with another Stenopus species (and may not even tolerate their own species) so knowing which one you have is important. Read More »

I recently blogged on some tips and techniques for moving an aquarium, but what if you just want a larger tank? This was a question asked after that blog was posted. Some people start with a small tank for “simplicity” and get hooked enough to want to expand. Others want to switch the type of livestock they are keeping or have fish that have outgrown their existing tank. No matter your reason, many of the considerations and techniques that go into moving an aquarium apply to upgrading as well.

The “easiest” upgrade scenario would obviously be one in which the new tank is being set up in any location OTHER than where the existing tank already stands and has all new “stuff” in it (meaning substrate, rockwork, decoration, filter, etc.); you can be a bit more leisurely with this switch. On the other end of the upgrade-spectrum, you may be putting the new tank in the same place as the old one with some of the same substrate, decorations and equipment and will need to be more expedient with the transfer. Read More »

One of the most common questions we receive is about moving an aquarium, whether it is across the room or across the country. Larger tanks and larger fish are certainly more difficult than smaller ones and the larger the distance you are traveling, the more involved the process becomes (although I have used some of these methods when moving my saltwater tank from one room to another when the room it was in was being re-carpeted). For long distances, try checking with your local fish store. Some may be able to help you arrange to have your livestock packed up and shipped via Fedex Overnight or another service. If you are doing the move on your own, there are several tricks and techniques you can use to make things easier on you and your livestock. Read More »

By this time of year, we’re all at the end of a long, cold winter and have our sights set on the warmer weather ahead. So, in honor of the vacations and tropical beaches we all wish we were on, I thought I’d share some of the native Hawaiian names of some of our favorite tropical aquarium fish.

The fish on this list are those found around the eight Hawaiian islands. Some are endemic – meaning they are found only around the Hawaiian islands – while others are found in other areas of the Pacific and even Indian Oceans. Keep in mind that in native Hawaiian, some words have multiple meanings and some of these names may refer to a group of fish. This list is far from all-inclusive and are just some of the more interesting names that I’ve found. Read More »