Choosing A Fish
What is the difference between 'freshwater' and 'saltwater' fish?
The difference is right in their name. Freshwater fish come from fresh water, whether it's lakes or rivers. Saltwater fish come from the ocean. A lot of freshwater fish are bred in captivity, whereas a lot of saltwater fish - almost all saltwater fish - are not, they're actually wild caught. The differences in equipment can be pretty dramatic. The differences in longevity and durability can also be pretty dramatic. Freshwater, because a lot of them have grown up their entire life in captivity, they don't have a lot of adaptation. Whereas saltwater fish have a tremendous amount of adaptation. So your equipment has to be top of the line and your patience has to be top of the line with them as well. Typically, I tell people expect more fish losses. If you did everything perfect and everything were equal, in a salt water-type system than fresh water just because of the nature of the fish itself before you get it.
Are 'saltwater' or 'marine' fish hard to take care of?
The difficulty again is the fact that they've grown up their entire lives in the ocean, be it a short period of time or a long period of time, and they have to adapt from going from the world's biggest ecosystem into an aquarium. It may be a huge aquarium to us, but its going to be smaller than their natural environment to them. Therefore the impetus of controlling that environment and making sure it's as perfect as possible, falls on the hobbyist and it's critical that this is taken care of. Freshwater fish, however are much more forgiving. You can make mistakes and get away with it. Saltwater fish, less so.
Are goldfish easy to take care of?
There are different types of goldfish now, but in the old days we had the comic goldfish, the carnival ones and one with long tails. All of these have the same look, just having different patterns.These are long skinny fish that live forever and can be taken care more easily. Today, a lot of cross breeds are developed such as the fancy goldfish with a bubbly head, bug eye and fan tails, but these fish have inherent defects which can be proven scientifically. These cross breeds have a weak and degraded immune system and because of this they are prone to a lot of diseases. Apart from this, there is also a change in their natural behavior.These cross breed types of goldfish are the ones that are difficult to take care of, as they require special attention.
What are the least expensive fish to take care of?
Probably Betas. They're on the real inexpensive scale anyway, and they're really easy to deal with. They don't require filtration, per se. They don't require any extra equipment. Basically, just water, a bowl to hold the water, food to feed the fish, and the fish. And that's pretty much it. There's still some maintenance involved, but it's minimal. It's going be your cheapest way to go.
What are the best kinds of fish for my new aquarium?
Whatever type of aquarium you're starting, you're going to have what they call "starter fish", a limited number to get the whole process going. What I tell people is inexpensive, and tough. For freshwater, that typically means some type of barb, like a tiger barb or a rosy barb. They're very tough, and they are typically inexpensive. Some tetras will work, usually the bigger bodied ones and not the little ones. In salt water, damsels are pound for pound the toughest fish you can get. They're also the cheapest fish you can get, and they're the go to fish to cycle a saltwater tank.
How many fish should I get to start an aquarium?
That's going to depend on the size of the aquarium. There's a myth out there that about an inch per fish per gallon is okay, and that's an urban legend. It doesn't really work that way and there's a lot of other things involved with it. If you take a typical 20 gallon fresh water setup, I tell people anywhere from three to five fish to start with, depending on the size of the fish. If you were to get three Tiger Barbs, that would be perfect for a 20 gallon tank. If you were to get smaller Tetras, even though the bigger body shape, it is a smaller fish, you could get up to five fish to cycle the aquarium.
How do I choose a healthy fish?
Well, the best way to choose a healthy fish is to make sure you're going to a reputable fish-aquarium store to begin with. And then there are some tell-tale signs. You want to look at their eyes, you want to make sure they're not cloudy. You want to look at their fins, you want to make sure their fins are not clamped to their body, but that they're all open and full - think like a flower. You want to make sure those fins don't have any ragged edges to them or any splits or tears. You want to look at the body of the fish and make sure the fish doesn't have any spots on it, any bruises, any bite marks, anything of that nature. And then, which seems really obvious to me, but maybe not to most, is look at how the fish is swimming. If it's swimming like a fish, that's a great sign. If it's sinking like a rock, that's not such a good sign.
Should I get a variety of 'bottom' and 'surface' feeder fish?
When you're picking the fish for the tank, you have to look at your aquarium in levels. There are fish that spend time at the bottom, like catfish. There are surface fish, like hatchet fish that spend their entire time at the top of the tank. And then most fish are midlevel fish. There's a lot of different considerations for feeding all of those different levels. But depending on the shape of your tank, you're going to put emphasis on certain levels of fish, and consider how the fish spend their life at that particular part of the tank. So if I'm buying an aquarium that's just a standard rectangle tank, I'm going to have some fish that are bottom feeders, a majority of fish that are mid-water fish feeders, and some that are kind of on the surface, to fill up that area as well.
How do I choose compatible fish?
When you're choosing a fish, compatibility is the number one concern you're going to have, after health. Compatibility is number one. Big fish eat little fish. That's a fact in captivity that you just can't escape. You're going to have to talk to someone who knows what the temperament of the fish is, whether it's a hunter, whether it's an herbivorous fish that's a plant-eater, or a carnivorous fish that's a meat-eater. Also, how big your tank is, what fish you already have in there, and how many fish of that particular type you're going to get. All of these things factor into it. As your tank gets older, it gets a little bit more difficult to get fish into the tank because fish are extremely territorial. Even guppies don't want to give up any space whatsoever. When you are picking a fish, you have to factor in all of the aforementioned and tell the professional aquarist what you're dealing with. Answer all of these questions and he'll then be able to help you pick the best fish for you.
Should I get a young or an adult fish?
When you're dealing with the age of fish, there's a couple of things you want to keep in mind. Not to sound morbid, but the older a fish is, the less amount of time you may have with it, to put it bluntly. Fish look different, sometimes, when they're babies and juveniles, especially in salt water, than they do when they're adult; dramatically different. Text On Screen: "Younger fish are typically less expensive and live longer.[Speaker reappears on screen". So, you may have to look at the pattern of the fish, the color of the fish, and see which one you like better. And, realize that you may pick a fish that looks a certain way when it's small, but a year later, it could transform into something else. So, for me, I like to pick younger fish. I think they do better in captivity, you get to bond better with them, and you get to watch them grow, and go through whatever color changes and body changes they're going to go through. And, kind of enjoy that as part of your process.
What is a 'livebearer'?
A 'livebearer' is a type of fish, typically Mollies, Swordtails, Pladdies, and Guppies, that literally have live babies. They don't lay eggs like most people imagine fish do. They literally hatch live fry, and they do it constantly. If you're considering purchasing a 'livebearer,' you will have to be comfortable with the fact that they're going to have babies. It's almost a certainty. If you're cool with that, it's a great fish to have. If you don't want to go through that, I would skip that fish and there are plenty to choose from in some other category.
