That Fish Blog – Aquarium Advice and Information

Every now and then, we find a new fish or invert that jumps its way to the top of our wish lists. My new favorites? The Roundheads aka Longfins, Marine Bettas, Prettyfins, Comets, Devilfish,  Spiny Basslets – fish from the family Plesiopsidae.

There are a few genera in this family that you may see in fish stores and aquariums. The most well-known (although still far from common) are the Assessors – the Yellow Devilfish (Assessor flavissimus) and the Blue Devilfish (Assessor macneilli). Wild-caught Assessors are still few and far between, but tankraised fish are slowly starting to become more common. Longfins, genus Plesiops are also becoming more common. The three you’re most likely to see are the Crimsontip Longfin (Plesiops coeruleolineatus), Northern Devilfish (Plesiops corallicola) and the Sharp-nosed Longfin (Plesiops oxycephalus). A few other fish from the Plesiopsidae family show up every now and then as well, like the Power’s Roundhead Grouper (Paraplesiops poweri) and the more well-known Marine Betta or Comet (Calloplesiops altivelis). Read More »

Hello, Frank Indiviglio here.  It seems to me that we sometimes take common aquarium fishes for granted, and overlook the fact that all are uniquely adapted to life in wild.  The Freshwater Angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare), is a case in point. Read More »

When you look at the hobby today, one can see that the popularity of freshwater planted aquaria has really taken off. With the cost of lighting and CO2 systems becoming more reasonable, it is becoming easier to keep a lushly planted aquarium than ever before. Not only has cost of equipment become more reasonable, but the selection of plants available at most hobby stores has certainly grown.

All kinds of plants are being cultivated for the aquarium hobby now. Everything from standard Amazon swords (Echinodorus bleheri) to new strains of Cryptocoryne that produce orange and pink and green leaves. Some plants available are certainly challenging, while other plants are virtually maintenance free. All plants that have needs, and when those needs are met they flourish and can become real centerpieces for your aquarium. One perfect example is the African Tiger Lotus – Nymphaea lotus (zenkeri). Read More »

So this is the final part of this long blog series highlighting my favorites…here are my final five:

Paretroplus tsimoly, for all purposes, looks and behaves like P. nourissati. The main difference in appearance is that the area along its throat and its bottom lip is blue (or sometimes black), depending on its mood. This particular species is vulnerable in the wild due to habitat loss.
Read More »

Hello, Jason here. Working in the fishroom at That Fish Place, I have a great opportunity to learn and discover new things about the fish and inverts so many people love to keep in their aquariums. My co-workers (being science majors and marine bio graduates) are able to work closely with these animals, observing captive behaviors and sometimes having the time to experiment with how they can keep the fish happier while they are held at our facility. Recently, we’ve been experimenting in our holding tanks –  I thought might share one of our recent tests, if for no other reason than to explain what you might see if you visit.  Read More »