Betta Tankmates

Tank Mates for Your Betta

Although many believe that bettas can only be housed by themselves because they'll "kill" anything alive in the tank, bettas CAN be housed with other fish/invertebrate. In fact, there are quite a few species that can successfully coexist with a betta. The general rule is that a betta can live with anything as long as it's

Not colorful or resemble a rival betta's colors (guppies)
Not a fin nipper (Tiger barbs are a big NO)
The right size for the size of the tank (No common plecos in a 10 gallon tank since they get to 2 feet in length)
Lives roughly in the same water conditions as a betta (no brackish fish)

If a possible tankmate qualifies for all 4 conditions, then they should make great tankmates with a betta. Another important condition is the betta's personality. Becuase every betta has his or her own unique characteristics, whether or not a tankmates will peacfully live with the betta varies widely.

An overly aggressive betta should only housed by itself while a shy/ peacful betta can possibly live with guppies or other colorful fish. However, bettas are solitary fish meaning they do best by themselves. That's how they live in the wild. Additionally, adding fish to a betta tank may cause the betta to become aggressive because it thinks that another fish is swimming over his/her territory. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't get your betta a tankmate. As long as your betta doesn't show any signs of distress or become aggressive, everything will be alright. It's up to the owner to decide whether or not to get a tankmate. Now, on to the common tankmates!

Highly Compatible

Fish listed here are the best possible tankmates you can have with your betta.

African dwarf frogs
African dwarf frogs make excellent betta tankmates. Because frogs look nothing like bettas (obviously), there's little to chance of a fight to occur. The betta will just let the frog do whatever frogs do. Additionally, african dwarf frogs produce little waste meaning that you don't have to worry about nitrates/nitrites/ammonia. The only problem is feeding them. Since they aren't particularly good swimmers, the betta will usually his own food and then proceed with eating the frogs food before the frog notices that food is ready.

Apple/Mystery/any snail
Snails make great tankmates with a betta because of its hard shell which protects it from curious bettas maybe even hungry bettas. Apple snails come in a variety of colors and can get up the size of a softball. For this reason, you could need more than a 2.5 gallon tank to house a betta with an apples snail. Another type of snail that fits well with a betta is a nerite snail. These snail only get up to around an inch in length and are excellent scavengers. They are also great algae eaters and have interesting shell patterns. However, all snails are highly sensitive to copper so any medicine containing copper cannot be used in a tank with snails (or any invertebrate for that matter). A better choice would be to have a hospital tank and put the sick betta there to treat and leave the snails in the main tank.

Ghost/Red Cherry shrimp

Although most ghost shrimp are sold as live food for larger fish such as cichlids, they make great pets and tankmates. Additionally, because their bodies are entirley clear, bettas have a hard time seeing them so they cause any harm. Red cherry shrimp, my favorite invertibrae, is also great tankmate for many reasons. Because they only get up to an inch long, they produce very little to no waste meaning you can have 10 shrimp per gallon. Additionally, they are easily bred so that 10 will become 100 in a month or two. You can keep 10 and then sell the rest for a huge profit.

Not only that, but they are one of the best algae eaters, behind the amano shrimp. If you had a choice between ghost shrimp and red cherry shrimp, definitely choose the red cherry shrimp. However, make sure that there is plenty of cover and that the betta is well fed or else your shrimp may become an expensive appetizer.

Cories (Corydoras Catfish)

Cories (panda, dwarf, albino, etc) are another great choice for a betta community tank. Because cories are bottom feeders while bettas swim at the top levels of the tank, there will rarely be any confrontations regarding territory. Additionally, cories are a peaceful bottom feeder, unlike chinese algae eaters which don't even eat algae but instead on the slime coat of its tankmates. However, cories do best in groups of 4 more so at least 10 gallons is necessary. But with a group, you can enjoy the interactions of a schooling group of fish.

Loaches

Similar to cories, loaches are bottom feeders and basically look like a bigger version of cories. Thus, a larger tank is necessary.

In fact some loaches can get as big as 16" (clown loach). However, all types of loaches are peaceful.

I recommend khuli loaches(4"), dwarf loaches(2.5"), hillsteam loaches(3"), and zebra loaches(4").

Otocinclus Catfish
Otocinclus Catfish, or otos for short, have similar needs as cories but are much more harder to acclimate since mainly because most of them are caught from the wild and have not been bred in an aquarium environment.

This causes them to be sensitive to any change in water conditions. However, once your oto survive the first 1-2 weeks, he'll live for a long time provided that the water remains stable and clean.

White Cloud Mountain Minnows

White clouds are similar to neon tetras in size and coloration but are more peaceful, hardy, and enjoy cooler water. Their temperature range is between 68-78 degrees but can survive in the 50 degree range. Their hardiness makes them an excellent fish for a beginner and their temperment makes them a great tankmate for a betta.

However, the temperature of the aquarium would need to be in the upper 70's (78F) to accomodate the bettas needs and the white cloud's needs. Additionally, similar to the red cherry shrimp, white clouds are easy to breed and are believed to not eat their young (the betta might though). White clouds are a very good choice for a tankmate and for a beginning aquarist.

Slightly Compatible

Fish listed here are suitable to live with a betta with no problems but should be a second priority to the fish listed above.

Neon/cardinal tetras

These tetras share the same water conditions as bettas, low pH, high temp, and soft water. However their colors may cause the betta to become aggressive.

Their speed though counters this problem in that they can easily avoid the bettas attack.

Additionally, tetras enjoy being in schools so 5+ in a 10gallon tank is necessary for healthy tetras. Make sure to have plenty of hiding places for any fish to escape to.

Plecos (not common pleco)

Plecos make excellent algae eaters but questionable betta tankmates. The only reason why they are are questionable is because of the tank size. Common plecos can get up to 2 feet, the length of a 10 gallon tank. And since most betta owners don't keep their betta in an aquarium more than 10 gallons, common plecos are a no. However, there are some smaller species of plecos. For example, clown plecos, bristlenose plecos, pit bull, and rubber lipped plecos max out at around 5 inches. So one can fit in a 10 gallon tank. Additionally, the armor plating on these algae eaters will protect themselves from any betta aggression.

Feeder/Wild guppies

If you really want to have guppies with your betta, your best bet is to get feeder guppies. Although really inexspensive, they are dull colored so they won't look as vibrant as fancy guppies.

This is why the can be housed with bettas. However, because they are sold as feeder fish, many of them will be sick and can transmit whatever disease they have to the betta. As long as you get healthy fish, they should be good tankmates.

Rasboras

Rasboras make good possible tankmates for the same reasons as neon tetras. They enjoy soft water and low pH. And similar to neon tetras, rasboras enjoy being in large groups.

One difference between rasboras and tetras is that rasboras are more peaceful than tetras.

However, their colors are less vibrant than those of a neon tetra.

Highly Questionable

Fish listed have been succesfully kept with bettas but are not recommended

Common pleco

The only condition where keeping a common pleco with a betta is even possible, let alone recommended, is if the tank is 30+ gallons, and that's before they're fully grown. Because common plecos can get up to 2 feet in length and produce plenty of waste, a tank of that size is extremely necessary. Unless you really want to house a pleco and betta together and are willing to get a tank 30+ gallons, then I don't recommend getting a common pleco. You can definitely get other types of plecos that stay small, such as clown plecos, bristlenose, and pit bull plecos. Or you can get other bottom feeders such as otos or cories.

Fancy guppies
There are certain requirements you must consider before thinking about housing guppies with a betta.

The betta has to have a peaceful personality
The guppies cannot resemble a betta (female guppies are a better choicethan males)
You must be prepared for the worst
The tank must have plenty of hiding places for injured or stressed fish

Although housing fancy guppies with bettas has been successfully done many times, it doesn't necessarily mean that this combination will work for everyone. Housing guppies with bettas is done at the fish owner's risk. Don't expect that they will all get along just fine.

Platies
Again, platies have the same requirements as fancy guppies. However, platies enjoy water conditions with a high pH and high alklinity (hard water). Additionally, platies may become agressive nip the fins of the betta.

Mollies

Mollies, as with all livebearers like guppies and platies, enjoy hard water with a high pH, the opposite of what a betta prefers. Additionally some mollies may become very aggressive if the tank is not big enough since mollies can get up to around 3 inches so a 5 gallon tank with 1 betta and 1 molly is pushing it. Mollies with shorter tails make better tankmates than the lyretail mollies since the fancy tails may cause the betta to mistake a molly as a rival.

Swordtails

Swordtails have the same cons as the other three livebearers, plus other characteristics that make them unappealing as tankmates.

Swordtails live in fast moving waters while bettas live in slow moving rice paddies. Additionally, swordtail colors and tails may cause aggression from the betta.

Chinese algae eaters
Another bad choice overall for all types of community tanks. Not only do they suck on the sides of fish, but they don't even eat algae.

As they get older, they become more aggressive and seem to enjoy the taste of the slime coat of fish. Without this slime coat, all fish become more suseptible to disease. I do not recommend getting this fish at all.

Other bettas
Unless you're trying to make a female sorority tank (which needs at least 5 females), or having a divided tank, don't even think about trying to house bettas together. There's a reason why they are called siamese fighting fish, they fight with each other. Usually, in the wild where they live in thousands of gallons of water fights are not to the death as many people believe.

In their homeland, whoever wins takes the territory and the loser swims away to live another day. In an aquarium, the loser tries to swim away but the tank too small. The loser is unable to escape and the winner continues the beating until the loser finally dies a painful death. Even a divided tank is dangerous since bettas are super athletic and can jump over a divider that's 1 inch above the surface.

Out of the Picture

Fish listed here shouldn't even cross your mind, let alone your bettas path.

Cichlids

Not only are cichlids highly aggresive, but they live best in water conditions that are opposite than those of a betta.

They enjoy high pH and hard water while bettas enjoy soft water with low pH. Additionally, most cichlids get way too big for tanks under 10 gallons.

Most cichlids need aquariums 20+ gallons and that's when they aren't fully grown.

Goldfish

Many people think that putting a goldfish and a betta is a great idea since both are believed to be able to live in a bowl. Putting goldfish and bettas together is a horrible idea for many reasons.

Goldfish are coldwater fish (enjoy the low 60's) and bettas are warmwater fish (enjoy the low 80's). That's a 20 degree difference. Try swimming in a heated pool at 80 degrees and then jumping into the ocean that's 60 degrees and you'll see how big a difference that is; quite a shock for both fishes.
Goldfish are extremely messy so the minimal size tank necessary is 20 gallons for one goldfish. Since the average fishkeeper doesn't follow this rule and keeps their betta and goldfish(es) in a 10 gallon, nitrates go through the roof within a few days.
Since goldfish are so messy, they require much stronger filtration than a regular fish. With a stronger filtration system, the stronger the current, and the more stressed the betta. A filter that strong would create a current that a betta cannot swim through.

Tiger barbs

Tiger barbs, or as I call them, fins shredders, are also an extremey bad choice for a tankmate. If you put a tiger barb with a betta, your garuanteed to get your betta's fins ripped into confetti by the next day or your money back.

And becuase tiger barbs are so fast, the betta doesn't stand a chance to defend itself. Tiger barbs are basically a bad choice for a peacful community tank. They are better off living with cichlids who can fight back.

Gouramis (all species)

Gourami's make a bad choice for tankmates because they are in the same family as bettas. And in-laws never get along so don't expect them to be best buddies.

Because they are in the same family, bettas and gourami's are more likely to fight each other. Additionally, both are very aggressive fish, adding to the danger of housing them together

Proper Feeding of Your Fish

How to Feed Aquarium Fish and Choosing Foods from the Wide Variety Available

Fish, like any other organism, need a supply of calories to sustain their metabolism. Properly feeding your fish helps them to stay healthy and is helpful in maintaining your aquarium. It is important to know the types of foods your fish need and how much food they need, which differs from species to species.

In most cases, fish only need to be fed once a day, and you only need to feed a small amount. Your fish should be able to get enough nutrients from the food they can consume in under two minutes, as long as the food provides for their nutritional needs. Food that stays in your tank longer than that can get caught in your gravel, decorations, or filter and will begin to decay, contributing to poor water quality.

This poor water quality will increase disease susceptibility and filter maintenance. It could also increase the need for water changes, which in turn stress the filtration system and the fish, again increasing disease susceptibility. Small, regular feedings provide fish with the nutrients they need and keep your tank cleaner than large or more frequent feedings. Over feeding can also contribute to algae growth, which can be unsightly, remove vital oxygen from the water, and increase your tank maintenance chores.

Most fish, like most cold blooded vertebrates, are primarily carnivorous, consuming mostly insects, insect larvae, worms, grubs, various shrimps and similar animals, and smaller fish, some even consuming small amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals in the wild. However, almost all fish also graze on live plants, and there are very few that do not consume at least some algae. So, you can see that most fish are really omnivorous and need to get foods that contain both animal and vegetable matter to remain healthy.

Like many children, a lot of fish would prefer to have a nice diet of rich meaty foods and push their vegetables under the table cloth, but this is not available in nature and should not be provided in the aquarium. Though there are fish that are more herbivorous or more carnivorous, there are few fish that are strictly herbivores or carnivores.

There are hundreds of food options for your pet fish, and a combination of foods from this selection is necessary to provide your fish with the nutrients they need. All of these foods fall into two broad categorizations of fish food: live and processed, which can be broken down further as described below.

Live Fish Food

Live food consists of plants, animals, and microorganisms that are living in your tank - or at least live when you introduce them to your tank - that your fish can eat. It is important to make sure that the live foods you provide for your fish provide all the nutrients that your fish need to remain healthy and to grow properly, and do not pose a risk to the fish. Many live foods, particularly feeder goldfish, are very common vectors for disease.

Many fish will graze a little on live plants and algae growing in your aquarium, but some herbivores will voraciously eat any live plants you put in the tank. Other fish will feed on microorganisms that are

free-floating in your aquarium water or growing on the surface of plants and decorations. Still other fish will gladly eat worms, snails, and/or other invertebrates that are introduced to the aquarium. Many pet stores also provide a variety of insects and insect larvae that are of nutritional value to fish.

The most common live foods used in the aquarium hobby are live feeder fish. These fish often do not receive the care they need to remain healthy and are often carrying diseases or parasites that could, in turn, infect any fish that eats them. The best way to spread a disease from one fish to another is for a fish to eat an infected fish! Also, in many areas, the live foods that are available are very limited in variety. A diet of just one food is almost guaranteed to be short on some vital vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients that your fish need.

Processed Fish Food

There are many categories of processed foods, including fresh, frozen, freeze-dried, and canned.

Fresh foods include meats and vegetables with minimal processing. Many fish will go wild for small (relatively) bits of beef, poultry, seafood, or game meats, but you don't want to cook these foods in most cases. A lot of fish will also enjoy bits of fresh vegetable matter, such as raw potato, squash, zucchini, pea, bean, apple (without the peel or seeds), and spinach.

Again, as with live foods, you need to make sure that the diet you have selected will meet the nutritional needs of your fish.

Frozen foods are available from most pet stores in a wide variety - from shrimp and squid to spirulina algae and vegetables to processed, vitamin enhanced staple diets to aquarium delicacies like sponges and insect larvae. The selection of frozen foods available can provide a varied and stable diet for most fish, and the processes that the foods go through when freezing greatly reduce the risk of disease transfer when compared to live foods or fresh seafood, wile maintaining a high nutritional value.

Many of the foods available as frozen foods also have a freeze-dried counterpart. These foods have all of the moisture extracted from them during processing so that they have a long shelf life and can be stored easily. Many worms, insect larvae, crustaceans, and meats are available in freeze dried forms.

One disadvantage of freeze dried foods is that the freeze-drying process often strips vitamins from the food as well, so freeze dried foods are not likely to make a balanced and complete diet. Remember when feeding freeze-dried foods, that these foods can absorb a lot of water, and will fill up your fish a lot more than you would think when looking in the package. We recommend that you moisten freeze-dried foods before feeding them to your fish to keep your fish from overeating and making themselves sick.

Canned foods are often the best for a fish's staple diet. The foods are engineered to provide a complete and balanced diet for your fish and are available in a variety of forms: floating pellets, sinking pellets, granules, tablets, and flakes.

Flakes are the most common type of processed foods, and are available in a very wide variety. Some flakes are engineered to provide the nutritional requirements of specific varieties or species of fish, and others are designed to counter nutritional imbalances, while still others are balanced to enhance color or growth or to encourage spawning.
Pellets are available in forms that are denser or lighter than water. This allows the fish to feed in a more natural way - if the right pellet is provided. Some fish prefer to feed off the bottom of the tank while others prefer to feed off the surface. Like flakes, pelleted foods are available in many varieties, each with a specific purpose.
Granules are like very small, hard flakes or tiny pellets. Currently only a limited variety of fish food granules are available, usually engineered for the general nutritional needs of small community fish.
Tablets are really just large flat pellets. Most tablets are of a sinking variety, but there are some that are engineered to adhere to the side of the aquarium so that you may observe your fish feeding. Most of the sinking tablets are engineered to provide for the nutritional needs of scavengers and bottom feeders.

Regardless of the type of foods you decide to feed your fish, you should provide them with a variety of foods. Variety in the diet reduces the chance of any nutritional shortcomings of one or more of your selected foods becoming a health or longevity problem for your fish. Providing a variety of foods will also reduce the chances that your fish loose interest in the foods that they are offered and go on a "hunger strike."

Breeding Goldfish Successfully A Step-By-Step Guide

When you've had your goldfish for a while it's normal to think about breeding them. It seems that everyone that has been keeping goldfish successfully goes down this path. Breeding goldfish in an aquarium will require some preparation and attention to detail.

It's not as easy as how you breed goldfish in outdoor ponds. This is because in their natural habitat fish have more, space, oxygen and plants to leave their eggs on.

Let's go step-by-step trough the things that you need to do in order to provide the ideal conditions to encourage goldfish to breed successfully.

It's a fact that goldfish are ready to breed from 1-2 years old, but usually they breed best at 3 years.

They spawn once a month from April to August, when the weather is warmer. Spawning provides a wonderful opportunity to learn more about your goldfish.

How to Sex Goldfish

Sexing goldfish is not as simple as telling the difference between a duck and a mouse. The only way to sex your goldfish is during the breeding season. You must know how many males and females you have before you can start breeding goldfish. Here are the differences:

Female :

has abdomen swollen
more rounded than the males (easier to observe when looked at from the top)
when she is ready to spawn, vent becomes protruded

Male :

has breeding tubercles or white "stars" covering its gills and pectoral fins
when he is ready to spawn, the vent becomes more open and longer

The "Chase"

Males start to pursue goldfish relentlessly, creating quite a splash. This behavior is normal, although males may start to appear "aggressive". The chase will continue as the male nudges the female's stomach area, encouraging her to release their eggs so he can release the milt.

The process of external fertilization means that both the milt(soft roe) and the eggs(hard roe) are released from the male and female outside their bodies. Females can lay up to 1000 eggs, though only a small portion of these become fertilized and grown into healthy adults.

Goldfish Breeding Cycle

The process is initiated by the female. She sends out pheromones to let the male goldfish know it's time to prepare for breeding. This encourages the production of milt.

Your male starts to nudge the female and chase to encourage her to release the eggs. He will follow by spraying his milt onto the roe to fertilize them.

Now, breeding goldfish is not that easy. Sometimes knowing how to breed goldfish is not enough. You have to be patient and encourage your fish to start the breeding process.

Encourage Your Fish to Breed: Step-by-Step

Goldfish are pre-programmed to reproduce when it's warmer. A heater is useful and consistency to water temperature or you can wait till the temperature changes naturally
Add some protein to their diets. Protein-rich foods like daphnia, insect larvae, bloodworms, brine shrimp should always be used as treats. Also add vegetables and fruit to their diet to keep them healthy and not constipated
Feed your goldfish 3 times a day to trigger the breeding response
Fresh water helps goldfish have more energy. Change 20% of the water every day to remove the waste resulted from extra foods
Keep a consistent water temperature of 70^oF(21^oC) during the day and 50^oF(10^oC) during the night
Sex the males and females
Separate the males and females into different tanks for 3 days, to create a greater desire to breed. You need to prepare the second tank a week in advance - later this will become the "fry tank" for the young goldfish
Reintroduce the fish together
Keep doing daily 20% water changes to maintain water conditions. Always treat the water with purifying conditioner before adding to the tank
Create a "spawning mop" and add it to the tank you want to breed in. This will help catch the eggs later, so you can remove them to a separate tank, to allow the fry to emerge

How to Make A "Spawning Mop"

In the wild, goldfish naturally mate amongst plants and vegetation. To create a natural environment in captivity you need to create a "spawning mop".

You need:

a shier(dark green) of acrylic yarn
a cork(from wine bottle)
A4-size hardcover book
pair of scissors

Steps to making the spawning mop:

Boil the yarn in the water to sterilize the wool and ensure it's not harmful to the fish
Open the book and put the start of the sting inside it(right behind cover). Remember where you started
Take the rest of the wool and wrap it about 50 times around the length of the book
Once you finish Step #3 cut off the sting from the book to the yarn. Then cut of a 5" piece of sting. Tie it together around the middle of the 50 strands of wool. This will keep them together
Turn the book over and cut the wool around the back right along the middle. This will create 2 equal length strands
Tie or pin the cork using the loose strand of the wool on the top t allow the mop to float. This will make it resemble the natural plants in the wild
Add it to your "breeding tank"

The Healthy Female Goldfish

When breeding goldfish, you must know that males can sometimes become "aggressive" towards females, constantly nudging them and forcing them to release the eggs. If this goes on for more than a week, you need to move the females into a separate tank to give them some rest.

This way you can prevent the female from losing too much scales, getting over-stressed and affecting the immune system. You must keep a close eye on them. Good Luck!

How do I Tell the Sex of My Fish?

Depending on the species, determining the sex of a fish ranges from easy to nearly impossible. These tips will help you sex common species of aquarium fish.

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but does provide a general overview of the differences between the fish sexes. If you need help with a specific fish, send me an e-mail and I'll give you details for that species.

Angelfish Gender

Angelfish are nearly impossible to sex accurately. Occasionally fully mature males will show a modest nuchal hump, which is a bump on the head just above the eyes. However, don't count on it.

The best way to establish a mating pair is to purchase a half dozen immature angelfish and raise them together. When they are mature enough they will pair off, and you will have at least one breeding pair out of the group.

Betta Gender

Bettas are a species of fish that is easy to sex. Males have the long flowing fins and brilliant colors that owners find attractive. Male Bettas are what is usually sold in shops.

Females are not as vividly colored, and have short stubbier fins. It is not always easy to find female Bettas for sale in pet shops. If you can't locate a female Betta, ask the shop owner or manager if they can order one for you.

Keep in mind that juvenile fish may not display sexual differences. Ideally compare mature specimens of the same species and color, and compare multiple factors rather than using a single trait to determine sex.

Catfish Gender
Generally speaking, catfish sexes cannot be distinguished. Many species of catfish have not been breed in captivity. The notable exception is the Corydoras species, which has often been breed in captivity.

Females are usuully more robust when viewed from above and are usually bigger.

Cichlid Gender

Some Cichlids are easier because males are usual more colorful than the females. Like the Maylandia estherae below:

Cichlids are such a diverse group, that it would take a small novel to give specifics for sexing each species. While many are not easily differentiated, there are a few rules of thumb that apply to quite a few species.

The only sure way to determine the sex of egg laying fish is to do what the experts call "venting" the fish.

You must remove the fish from the water (net it out of the tank) and turn it upside down (hold it very gently, they can be hurt easily) so you can examine the vent holes in the anal area. Only do this over a bucket of tank water so if you drop the fish or it flips out of your hands, it will fall into the water in the bucket.

You will see that the females will have a rounded vent (hole) and the males will have a tear-drop shaped vent. If the fish are young, it will be very difficult to discern the difference in shapes.

Males are often slimmer, but larger than females, and are more vibrantly colored. The dorsal and anal fins of the male are more pointed, larger, and more flowing than the female. In many species the male will display egg shaped markings on the anal fin. Some males have a bump on the head, referred to as a nuchal hump.

Although the above general rules apply to many species of cichlids, if you are considering breeding them I strongly recommend doing your homework on the specific species before seeking a breeding pair.

Cyprinids / Barb Gender

Barbs and other members of the cyprinid family are rather difficult to sex. Differences will vary by species, but generally males are more intensely colored and slimmer than females. Because most cyprinids are schooling fish, one way to obtain a breeding pair is to purchase a group of them.

One way to know is that female barbs are quite larger than the male ones.

For tiger barbs when mature, male tiger barbs will show bright red noses, his dorsal fin will have a red line above the mainly black fin and his ventral fins will turn bright red.

When in spawning condition or fighting for a higher “rank” in the shoal, the males stripes turn a slight metallic green colour. And the tips to his upper body scales turn almost black and shine bright orange in certain light.

The females however, keep their pale yellow noses (may turn slightly pale red at times, which makes it tricky to determine their sex in store). They only show a small area of red at the tip of the dorsal fins, and ventral fins will stay pale red. In females, their stripes stay black.

Gourami Gender

Gouramis are another species of fish that are not easily sexed. Males and females often are similarly colored and shaped. However, there is one fairly universal sexual difference seen in most Gourami species. The dorsal fin is long and and comes to a distinct point in males, while females have a shorter rounded dorsal fin.

In addition to the dorsal fin differences, certain species of Gourami show color variations between the sexes.

The male Pearl Gourami has a deep red-orange coloration on the throat and breast. The male Moonlight Gourami has orange to red coloration of the pelvic fins.

Livebearing Fish Gender

Perhaps the easiest fish to sex are the livebearing fish.

Males are usually smaller and more colorful than the females.

They also possess an external sexual organ, the gonopodium, which makes it easy to differentiate males from the females.

The gonopodium is a modified anal fin which is used to fertilize eggs. In the male the anal fin is rod shaped, while the female has a traditional fan shaped anal fin (see photo above).

Tetra Gender

Tetras are not easily sexed, but do have some differences, which vary based on the species. Generally the females are a bit larger and plumper than males. Males are often more vibrantly colored and may have longer fins than their female counterparts. Because Tetras are schooling fish, breeding pairs can be obtained simply by purchasing a small school of them at one time.

Generally speaking any fish that gives birth to live young is usually easier to sex. These are known as sexually dimorphic. These include the family,Poeciliidae, which are mollies, guppies,swordtails,platies and wags. They are easily distinguishable by the gonopodium which is male modified anal fin used for copulation.

The female has an anal fin shaped like a triangle. As is seen in some of the chidlids, the male has much more distinctive dorsal fins than the female. Even these fish can be difficult to tell until they are sexually mature. Up until then they pretty much look alike.

Telling Koi Carp apart for example is pretty impossible until the female is ready to spawn.

Ultimately the best way to tell the gender of fish is to obtain some information on the species you are interested in. If you study their behavioral differences as well as physiological make up you may be able to make an informed decision. Another source of good information is your local pet store who can probably give many helpful tips.

Who do you blame when your fish die?

Who do you blame when your fish die? Possible reasons why your fish died

Have you lost fish lately and are pinning the blame on someone or something else? Here are a few reasons why it may not be their fault after all...

"I tried shops A, B and C when I bought and set up my tank and all my fish died. A few months later I found shop D and all my fish from them have been healthy."

Possible reason:
Your tank was actually going through a phase called new tank syndrome, whereby there are insufficient beneficial bacteria in the filter and gravel to break down the harmful waste produced by the fish. Buying fish from A, B and C also causes concern as stocking levels should be kept deliberately low when setting up a new tank, and over the next six weeks or so.

"I put some new gravel in my tank and all my fish died. The gravel killed all my fish!"

Possible reason:
Even if the gravel was calcareous it would not raise the pH and hardness enough to cause a wipe out even for soft water fish. If you bought it from an aquatic shop there is no way that any materials used will be toxic either, even with coloured gravels.

A more likely answer is that by removing all your existing gravel you removed a lot of good bacteria with it, or even stirred up some nitrate in doing so. And most spring cleans coincide with other chores like filter maintenance.

Is it possible that you cleaned or replaced your filter media at the same time, causing a loss of bacteria to the whole system that was just too great, which in turn caused water quality problems and fish deaths?

"My new lights are causing algae. They're rubbish!" (

Possible reason:
Regardless of spectrum, which really doesn't matter, replacing old lights for new or upgrading from T8 to T5s for example will mean that your lighting will be brighter. Without having all those nutrients tightly cycled by plants or by other means like in a marine aquarium you will get algae.

To combat this the more light you have the more flow you need, and in the case of plants, the more fertiliser you will need to add too, so that they can ramp up their growth accordingly and combat algae themselves.

"My fish ate my other fish so I took it back to the shop."

Possible reason:
Unless you have added a known predator to your tank, like a Leaf fish, or you keep very small fish with much larger fish, it is unlikely that your fish have eaten each other. Instead a fish may have died from other causes and the other fish in the tank were keen to graze on the soft bodied corpse.

Always test the water if a fish dies to make sure that it is not water quality related.

Even vegetarian fish will dine on dead fish.

"My new filter is very noisy. I won't ever buy that make again."

Possible reason:
New filters, especially external canister filters, may well contain trapped air immediately after priming. Ceramic media, carbon and sponges will release air for several days after first soaked and this can collect around the impeller chamber, causing noise. Shake your filter, turn it on and off a few times and it should go away. Check that you fitted the impeller properly and that the shaft is not broken.

"That shop wouldn't let me have fish but I was told by someone else it would be fine. They don't know what they are talking about."

Possible reason:
If the shop is encouraging you not to buy a certain fish then the odds are they do know what they are talking about and are acting in your best interest, over their own sales. Maybe you want to add too many fish in one go, your tank and filter is immature, or by asking you what fish you currently have, they have flagged a species mix that may be trouble.

Fishkeeping is about patience so take your time and get it right. If you want too many sorts of fish or too many, the only realistic option is a second tank.

"My fish was fine for ages before it died. I'm getting another of the same species."

Possible reason:
Was it thriving or just about surviving, and actually taking a long time to die? Unsuitable conditions, stress from bullying, or inadequate food can take months to manifest itself.

Research the requirements of every species you purchase and always put welfare before your own personal wants. A marine Mandarin surviving for anything less than a year should be seen as failure through slow starvation.

"I was having terrible problems with my tank until I added this product. Now everything is fine."

Possible reason:
Few products work genuine miracles overnight, so again its use may have coincided with filter maturation or in the case of algae, either starving itself out of nutrients or plants kicking in and solving the problem themselves.

"I added this medication and all my fish died."

Possible reason:
Here you have to ask yourself why you were adding medication in the first place. Presumably because the fish were ill? The key to treating fish is to diagnose the problem quickly and treat it with the appropriate medicine. If water quality is bad your fish won't get better regardless of treatment, and few if any treatments are strong enough to overdose and kill your fish as they have to be idiot proof in their usage.

Tropical Fish Compatibility Chart

This Freshwater fish compatibility chart shows what types of fish are compatible with one another. To determine if a fish is compatible with another species just match up the two fish types and look for the corresponding color or letter code. A letter H means high fish compatibility. A letter M means medium fish compatbility. A letter L means low fish compatibility.

The types of fish compatibilities included in this freshwater fish compatibility chart are as follows:

African (asst.) compatibility tankmates

Angelfish compatibility tankmates

Asian Fish (asst.) compatibility tankmates

Barb compatibility tankmates

Betta compatibility tankmates

Catfish(Corydoras) compatibility tankmates

Catfish(Synodontis) compatibility tankmates

Catfish/Scavenger compatibility tankmates

Central American (asst.) compatibility tankmates

Danio compatibility tankmates

Discus compatibility tankmates

Dwarf Gourami compatibility tankmates

Eel compatibility tankmates

Fancy Guppy compatibility tankmates

Goldfish compatibility tankmates

Dwarf Gourami compatibility tankmates

Haplochromis compatibility tankmates

Invertebrate compatibility tankmates

Killie Fish compatibility tankmates

Knife Fish compatibility tankmates

Koi compatibility tankmates

Lake Malawi Cichlid compatibility tankmates

Lake Tanganyika Cichlid compatibility tankmates

Lake Victoria Cichlid compatibility tankmates

Loaches/Botia compatibility tankmates

Molly compatibility tankmates

Mono/Scat compatibility tankmates

Oscars compatibility tankmates

Platies/Variatus compatibility tankmates

Plecostamus compatibility tankmates

Puffers/Brackish compatibility tankmates

Rainbowfish compatibility tankmates

Rasbora compatibility tankmates

Shark compatibility tankmates

South American (asst.) compatibility tankmates

South American Cichlid compatibility tankmates

South American Cichlid (dwarf) compatibility tankmates

Swordtail compatibility tankmates

Tetra compatibility tankmates

West African Cichlid compatibility tankmates

Plant compatibility tankmates

Mixing fish together in the aquarium can be one of the biggest challenges faced by the hobbyist, especially in aquariums 200 liters and smaller, which is what most of us are dealing with.

Many times a hobbyist brings a fish home, a fish which "the guy at the pet shop said would mix ok", only to find that this fish doesn't get along at all with another fish in the aquarium. Learning to predict these situations before they happen often can only come with experience. Hopefully I can point out some things to consider and some things to avoid, when looking to develop a community of fish in a small glass box.

One thing you have to understand is that fish behave instinctively. You can not "train" a fish to get along with another fish. Fish instinctively are concerned with 2 things: feeding and breeding. When you add a new fish to an aquarium, the established fish now have competition for attracting a mate and for establishing a territory from which to feed. For many fish this "territory" can be the entire aquarium.

One of the most common mistakes I see aquarists make is to add more than 1 male Gourami to the same aquarium. Almost everyone knows that you can not keep 2 male Betta's together. But did you know that Gourami's and Betta's are very close cousins?

The behavior of 1 male Gourami toward another male Gourami can be nearly as aggressive as when mixing male Betta's. The reason for this is simple. The male Gourami does not want competition in attracting female Gourami's. When another male enters his swimming space he will chase this male viciously until it moves on to another part of the lake or stream. Unfortunately, in the aquarium the 2nd male Gourami has no place to hide and no place to escape.

The result is constant torment from the first male until one of two things occur: 1) the fish becomes sick and disease spreads throughout your aquarium OR 2) the fish finds a gap in your hood and jumps out of the tank. All of this could be avoided if the aquarist simply purchased 1 male Gourami and multiple females.

Many fish will display similar behavior. You may notice that male Livebearers do not get along all too well. Fortunately they do not require much space apiece, so you can mix multiple males in an 80 or 100 liter aquarium. But, trying to add 2 male Swordtails in a 40 liter aquarium can sometimes prove difficult. This usually does not apply to schooling fish.

Most Barbs, Danios, Rasboras, and Tetras do not pose a problem when mixing multiple males together. The problem arises when trying to add a new member to the school. Any school of fish will establish a pecking order in the aquarium. The dominant male will take the top spot in the pecking order and is rewarded by being at the center of the feeding area and with having the attention of the dominant female. There is a pecking order present throughout the entire school.

When you add a new member of this species, then entire school order is disrupted. The established members of the school are healthy and adapted to life in your aquarium. The newly introduced member of the school has not had the opportunity to settle into your aquarium and is stressed from the move. Its odds of survival are questionable at best.

Even if it does survive, odds are good that it will experience so much stress from battling within the school, that it will develop disease shortly after being added.

The easy solution to this problem is to add all of the members of a school to the aquarium on the same day. If you decide to add more members later, then add several more. This will disrupt the school further and allow the new fish to settle into the school with less stress.

Another thing to consider is the order in which you add your fish. Many times 2 fish will do just fine in a tank together, provided you add fish A before you add fish B. This commonly occurs when a hobbyist doesn't want to spend much money on their starter fish. They go out and buy a small school of Zebra Danios or Black Skirt Tetras.

The problem is these fish can become somewhat nippy toward new additions which have long flowing fins. This means if you want to add Angelfish to your aquarium later, you shouldn't start out with Black Skirts. The solution is simple: make a list of all the fish you wish to keep ahead of time. This will allow you to purchase the fish in an order which will best suite your selections.

Fish Breeding Made Easy

Fish Breeding Strategies

``How do fish make babies...and can I watch?''

Fish breed in many ways, and yes you can watch. In fact, watching fish breed is one of the great fascinations in the hobby because there are so many interesting breeding strageties among fish.

There are two main strategies that fish use: egglaying and livebearing.

Livebearing fish do what the name suggests. The female gives birth to fully formed, free-swimming young. The female fish is internally fertilized by the male fish, and carries the fry for about a month before delivering them. Upon delivery, the babies swim off, hide, and begin searching for food.

Livebearers include the popular mollies, platies, swordtails, and guppies. Other livebearers are halfbeaks, anableps, and fish in the Goodeid family. They are easy to sex, as the female is larger, and the male has a rod-like anal fin called a gonopodium that he uses to internally fertilize the female. After fertilization, the female can produce multiple batches of babies without a male present.

Egglaying is also what the name suggests: the fish lay eggs instead of giving birth to little fish. As the fish grow, they hatch into fry with an attached yolk sac, and then mature into fish. The process usually takes around a week to 10 days, although it can vary widely.

Egglayers have many methods of laying their eggs

Egg scatters usually scatter eggs around weeds, or onto gravel. The male chases the female during spawning, and the eggs are fertilized as they fall. Spawning runs can be spectacular to watch since the fish race around the tank and ignore anything else, including food. Examples of egg scatterers are tetras, barbs, rasboras, and danios.

Substrate spawners are a little choosier about where they put the eggs. They lay eggs that attatch to some sort of substrate. Plants, rocks, wood, and even the aquarium glass may be chosen as a spawning site. Both fish participate in the egg laying, with the male fertilizing the eggs as the female lays them. Examples of substrate spawners are many catfish, some cichlids, and killifish.

Bubblenest builders lay their eggs in a nest of bubbles blown by the male fish. The bubbles are held together with saliva and look like foam. They tend to attract infusoria that the babies can eat, and keep the eggs at the surface of the water, where they are well-oxygenated. The eggs are laid a few at a time, and carefully placed in the nest where they hatch. Examples of bubblenest builders are bettas and gouramis.

Mouthbrooders actually keep their eggs in their mouths until the eggs hatch. The eggs are again laid a few at a time, and once the male fertilizes them, the parent doing the mouthbrooding gathers them up in his/her mouth. That parent eats sparingly, if at all, until the baby fish are released. Examples of mouthbrooders are male arrowanas and female cichlids.

Marine fish also lay eggs. Some are substrate spawners, but many lay pelagic eggs that float in the plankton. There the eggs hatch into a larval stage, and the larvae float freely and eat tiny plankton until they grow into fish. See the Moe reference for a more complete description.

Breeding and Aggression

``Help! Why have my angelfish (or kribs or African cichlids) started killing everything in my tank?''

``Why did my female platy just turn around and eat her babies?''

``I think my tetras spawned. Where are the eggs?''

Parental care in the fish world varies widely. Parents can be anywhere on a continuum from eating all their eggs or fry, to both parents fiercely guarding their eggs and fry.

Many fish parents show some common behaviors, so I will discuss them here.

Most fish consider any and all fish eggs and young to be a tasty treat. Therefore most fish will not hesitate to snack on any they find, including their own. This means that egg scatters and many substrate spawners really cannot be bred in a community tank, as the eggs will quickly be eaten by the parents and other fish. Marine fish and invertebrates also eat eggs. Livebearers are especially notorious for eating their young.

A few fish ignore their eggs or fry, and so can be bred in a species tank. White cloud minnows can breed this way, and many killifish will at least ignore the eggs. Baby killies are fair game, though. Guppies will also often ignore babies.

Other fish have one parent that guards the eggs and fry. Most bubblenest builders and mouthbrooders operate this way, as do some substrate spawners. The responsible male or female stays with the eggs and young, until they are free swimming. With bubblenest builders, the male tends the nest, blows bubbles as they pop, and keeps any falling eggs or fry in it. He will also defend the nest against other fish. Mouthbrooders simply hide their eggs in their mouths, and some substrate spawning catfish will hide the eggs underneath them. Certain substrate spawning cichlids also have one parent care for the eggs and fry.

A more common setup among cichlids is to have both fish guard and care for the young. This setup can be really fascinating to watch. The parents will take turns fanning or blowing fresh water onto the eggs, and removing any fungused eggs. They will also fiercely defend the spawning site, which can often cause injury or even death to other tankmates. Once the eggs have hatched, the parents will also guard the fry. Some fish will even move the fry to a different place each day. Once the babies are free swimming, some fish continue to guard them, while others end their parental duties. Many African cichlids guard their babies until they spawn again. Discus even feed their babies off of their slimecoats.

A more extreme version of guarding is practiced by some Tanganyikan cichlids. There, older siblings will stay around the nest and help the parents defend subsequent spawns. The babies are allowed to stay until breeding age, when they are driven off.

Breeding Tanks

``My fish just laid eggs. How do I keep the eggs or babies from being eaten?''

The most common way to keep eggs from being eaten is to use a separate breeding tank. There the parents can spawn or give birth to their young, and be removed once they are done. Egg scatterers can be placed over a piece of netting, a grate, or a bed of marbles to protect the eggs as the fish spawn. Bubblenest breeders and mouthbrooders can be left in the tank until they stop caring for the young. Livebearers can be allowed to give birth in a dense thicket of plants or plastic spawning grass, so the babies can hide until the mother is done giving birth and is removed.

A breeding tank also is good because it can be kept clean. Eggs and fry need very clean water to hatch and grow. There are also no adults around to compete with the babies for food. Many breeders use a bare tank with only a sponge filter as filtration. Debris and extra food are easily seen and siphoned off daily. Frequent water changes can be done on the tank, as there are no other fish around to stress.

Another solution is to allow fish to breed on yarn mops, a plant, or a piece of slate or glass in the community tank. The eggs can then be moved to the breeding tank to grow. This works well for angelfish, catfish, and Australian rainbowfish. Killifish eggs can be collected from peat or yarn mops and set in a separate container or dried to incubate. Livebearers can be bred in a commercial breeding trap or breeding net within a community tank. The trap separates the babies from the mothers and then gives the babies a safe place to grow.

Some cichlids protect their babies well enough to just be left in a community setup, although this can stress the other fish in the tank. In fact, there are species of cichlids that will turn on each other if there are no other fish in the breeding tank for them to threaten.

Breeding Requirements

``I have fish in a breeding setup, but they just won't breed.''

``Why do my fishes' eggs keep fungusing and the fry dying?''

Many fish will not breed successfully without specific requirements. These include:

A mix of male and female fish.

I know this sounds obvious, but some fish are not easy to sex. In species that are difficult to sex, is best to start out with at least six young fish so that you are certain of getting both males and females. Starting with many fish also gives monogamous fish a chance to pick compatible mates. Sometimes if a single male and female are introduced, they will not breed. Other fish, like livebearers, killifish, and polygamous cichlids need more females that males so that females are not harassed by amorous males.

Extremely clean water.

Most fish will not breed if there is any ammonia or nitrite present, and large amounts of nitrate are toxic to baby fish. Some fish, especially tetras, must be bred in a breeding tank that is bare and sterile so that their eggs do not fungus.

A varied diet.

Fish that are producing eggs need better food that fish that are just living in a community. Breeders call the process of specially feeding parents conditioning. Conditioning foods include live foods, fresh frozen foods, or spirulina based foods. Find out the specific requirements of the fish you intend to breed.

The correct environment.

Fish that breed on substrates need proper substrates to breed on, like peat, rocks, shells, or plants. Some fish are shy and require a lot of cover, caves, or dim light. There are also fish that require a particular water chemistry to breed. Examples are discus, which require very soft, acid water or African cichlids which require very hard, alkaline water.

External cues.

Many tropical fish breed in the rainy season. When it rains, streams flood, the water hardness drops, and there is thunder and lightning. Adventuresome breeders with rainy season fish may try large water changes with distilled water, watering cans to simulate rain, strong currents, and even flashing lights and loud noises. Temperature changes may also stimulate spawning, as may changes in the light/dark cycle.

Raising Fry

``My fish bred, but I cannot raise the fry to adulthood.''

Rearing fish can take some work. Baby fish require clean water, and some require special foods.

Baby livebearers are usually the easiest to raise. Some will take finely crushed flake foods from the start, and only require frequent water changes to keep up with their growth.

They also need algae or spirulina.

Baby egglayers are often more difficult to raise. Most are too small to eat adult fish foods, and so require special foods. Live baby brine shrimp are the food of choice for most baby fish, although some require even smaller infusoria. Sifted daphnia also work. Baby algae eating catfish require algae or blanched vegetables. There are also commercial fry foods that work or, in desperate situations, cooked egg yolk. Be careful, though, because non-living foods pollute the tank water terribly -- especially egg yolk.

Actually, keeping the tank water clean is probably the biggest challenge in raising fish. The growing fish require lots of food, and they are not very good at finding it which means even more must be added to the tank. As in any fishtank, adding lots of food must be balanced with keeping the water quality extremely high. In fact, fry require cleaner water than adult fish. Frequent water changes are a must, as is efficient biological filtration. Baby tanks often require daily water changes of up to half the tank. Sponge filters are the preferred method of filtration because they are great biological filters but cannot suck up baby fish.

Marine fish larvae have the strictest requirements of all. They must be fed extremely small plankton or rotifers in a tank with near-perfect water.

Finally, as the baby fish grow, they must be transferred to larger quarters. Clearly the 10 gallon tank that housed 100 fry cannot house those 100 fish for long. Betta breeders have even more work on their hands, since the little male bettas will fight and have to be put into separate jars or a partitioned tank.

``I have a ton of baby fish. What do I do with them?''

``Can I make any money breeding fish?''

Finding homes for baby fish can be almost as much of a challenge as breeding them. Young fish can be given away, auctioned at aquarium society auctions, traded for other species, or sold. Pet stores will sometimes take African cichlids, guppies, and bettas, but many only give store credit rather than cash.

As for turning breeding into a commercial venture, remember the laws of supply and demand. For most common community fish, pet stores can order whatever they want whenever they want it from importers, fish farms, and wholesalers. The hobbyist, on the other hand, has occasional batches of fish that the store may not need or want at that time. The only thing on your side when you walk into a store with a batch of unrequested fish is that locally bred fish are often healthier and less stressed that fish that have been shipped and must be acclimated to local water conditions.

If you insist on breeding saleable fish, try rare catfish, rare rainbows, African cichlids, show quality fancy guppies, or marine fish. Those are all difficult for stores to obtain. To make money selling more common fish like angels, barbs, tetras, cory cats or livebearers (other than guppies), you need many breeding tanks and breeding pairs of fish to assure a constant supply. You must also have fish of consistent quality.

Personally, I would recommend that you breed fish for the sheer pleasure of it, rather than turning your fun hobby into a business venture. There is nothing like seeing a pair of ciclids court, disappear into a cave, and emerge in a few days with a swarm of babies.