Aquarium Fish
There are many types of fish aquarium – cold freshwater such as goldfish, tropical freshwater housing many different types either singly or in shoals, and various salt water types, either cold or tropical.
Though I accept I am biased, I see the tropical marine fish as at the top and the most desirable of the different types. Their shapes are many and their colours are sometimes nearly unbelievable. An aquarium housing tropical salt water fish is really something.
The marine fish commonly kept by aquarists nearly all come from the wild reefs. These reefs are a habitat into which the fish have evolved over centuries. Everything needed is available, from food to hideaways. Marine aquarists try to maintain their aquariums as naturally as possible nowadays and it seems that this has paid off; there are many splendid successful long term aquariums in existence.
So if the aquarist provides a ‘reef’ and good quality salt water, fish can go into the aquarium no problem? In theory this would seem to be so, as what is required is a high quality environment, suitable accommodation and a suitable diet. This is not so unfortunately.
When fish are put up for sale they are often small, but some grow to large sizes. Putting one of these small fish into the aquarium will see it outgrow the available space in quite a short time. Then the aquarist has to find a way of removing the fish and replacing it with one(s) more suitable.
When fish are removed from the wild reef they bring their natural instincts with them. It is possible that a group of apparently inoffensive fishes live together for a good while, but then the numbers begin to diminish. One fish looks very healthy and content however, and this is the predator that has been placed in the aquarium, has grown, and is now snacking on its tank mates. Again, the aquarist is faced with removing the predator.
There is more than one type of marine aquarium and, apart from one aquarium type, fish can be accommodated in them all. As said, these fish come from the wild reef and live with all of the other citizens of the reef whatever they may be. So it would seem at this point that any fish provided its size is known, and also any likely predatory tendencies relative to other fish are known, could be accommodated. This unfortunately is again incorrect.
Some of the most beautiful fish available will unfortunately damage corals. That dietary trait is not going to please the aquarist despite the beauty of the fish. Some fish will eat the tiny shrimps and other life that tend to establish themselves where possible in a marine aquarium as this is their specialist diet. Nothing wrong with that as it stands, but this is a marine aquarium not a wild reef, so will there be sufficient food available over time? The aquarium has a very restricted size; ongoing predation will have a greater effect and the fish could eat its food supply to exhaustion. The aquarist needs to know when particular fish with particular diets could be introduced.
Now things are getting somewhere! What is required to be taken into account is the size of the fish and its dietary needs which includes predatory tendencies.
On the wild reef fish are ruled by the day and night cycle. Some fish appear during the day and hide from danger at night, and others are the reverse. The aquarist needs to know what type of fish it is, though those for sale will normally be ‘day’ fish. These fish as said hide at night, as instinct tells them to do this to avoid predation. The instinct is so strong that a fish that cannot find a hideaway could be subject to excessive stress. It could also cause excessive stress to other fish particularly if it is a larger one, as it is likely to try and evict a fish from a crevice or cave. This could lead to fighting which is stressful. Ongoing stress could lead to disease. So the aquarist needs to know how to create a suitable habitat so that all the fish are able to find a suitable hideaway.
Stress could also be caused by naturally aggressive fish being mixed with more timid types. On the wild reef there is space to swim away to avoid aggression, but this is often not so in a space restricted aquarium. A reasonable community mix is needed dependant on aquarium type.
On the wild reef all food needs are available for the fish but not so in the aquarium, there could be some foods for some types of fish but usually not enough to sustain them. This means the aquarist has to provide the food, but fish on the wild reef eat different foods. If the food supply is incorrect the fish’s health could suffer. So the aquarist needs to know what to feed.
In the small gallonage of an aquarium pollution is a real enemy. Just to be helpful feeding could be a major contributor to pollution. The aquarist needs to know how much to feed and when, or pollution could rear its unwanted head. Low seawater quality is the opposite of what is required.
The wild reef is able to support very large numbers of fish, but not so the aquarium. Seawater quality is very important therefore the aquarist needs to know the number of fish that could safely be housed. As mentioned there are different types of marine aquarium and not all can support the same numbers of fish. Fish, particularly large ones, are usually the messiest life in the aquarium and put the most strain on the very important filtration systems. There are guidelines to assist with aquarium fish population for all types of aquarium.
It has been mentioned that a ‘natural’ aquarium is usually the aim of modern aquarists and this includes lighting. The method of creating the ‘dawn’ and ‘dusk’ cycles should be known, as well as the required lighting for different aquarium types.
Marine fish are interesting and beautiful. Some types become real pets with their own character traits. The aquarist needs to choose fish with care so that generally peace reigns in the aquarium. If the aquascaping is acceptable and the environment of high quality the fish should have a long and healthy life.
If you are interested in purchasing fish then we recommend either using your local fish shop or on online aquarium store like Live Aquaria or That Fish Place.