Aquarium reference
Fish and invertebrates, glass and stands, filtration and water chemistry.
Fish and invertebrates
Livebearers
MollyA livebearer that needs hard, alkaline water. In soft water it falls ill, and no amount of medicine GuppyGuppies forgive a beginner most mistakes, but not overfeeding and not cold water. A pair in 20 litrePlatyA peaceful livebearer that breeds without any help from its owner. A good first fish, provided the tSwordtailA livebearer with a sword on its tail. Its temper depends on how many females share the tank and on Endler's guppyA tiny livebearer from Venezuela that lives in a nano tank and breeds on its own. The hard part is n
Characins
Black skirt tetraA silver tetra with a black skirt and a calm temper. While the shoal is large it leaves its neighbouNeon tetraA neon looks its best only in a school and in soft, slightly acidic water. In a new tank it dies froTetrasA genus of small characins, represented in tanks by the rosy tetra, H. amandae, the lemon tetra and
Barbs and danios
Tiger barbA shoaling barb with four stripes and a reputation for nipping fins. What a shoal needs in order to ZebrafishA hardy shoaling fish that swims at the surface and rarely needs a heater. What to know before you bGloFishA fluorescent zebrafish carrying a jellyfish or coral gene. Care is the same as for a plain zebrafis
Cichlids
AngelfishAn angelfish grows larger than it looks in the shop and needs a tall tank. A pair in 100 litres willGreen terrorThe green terror lives in cool water and needs a tank from 250 litres. Why it does not go into a comBlood parrot cichlidThe blood parrot was created by people and does not exist in the wild. It is hardy and peaceful, butOscarAn oscar grows to 35 cm and lives up to 20 years, so it is worth buying only for a big tank. What itCichlasoma cichlidsThe trade sells dozens of fish from different genera under the name cichlasoma. Here is what they haRam cichlidA small cichlid from the llanos of the Orinoco that wants warm, acidic water and a mature tank. WhatDiscusA calm Amazonian cichlid with a reputation for being difficult. It forgives little: it needs stable SeverumThe severum looks like a discus but is far easier to keep. It grows to 20 cm and lives more than 15 Jewel cichlidA scarlet African cichlid with a hard temper. Care is simple, but tank mates are hard to pick: whileKribensisA dwarf cichlid from West Africa that most people start their first spawning with. Care is simple, bBlue dolphin cichlidA large and surprisingly peaceful Malawi cichlid. It grows to 25 cm, so the tank has to be 300 l and
Catfish
Bristlenose plecoA bristlenose pleco cleans the glass while young and needs driftwood for life. Tank size, temperaturCorydorasA corydoras cleans the bottom but does not replace siphoning. A school of five catfish needs sand, cSailfin plecoA sailfin pleco is sold as a 5 cm juvenile and grows to half a metre, living twenty years. What an aHoplo catfishThe hoplo catfish breathes air, builds a bubble nest and forgives a beginner almost any mistake withSynodontis catfishThe upside-down catfish fits in sixty litres, the featherfin squeaker needs three times that. Which
Labyrinth fish
BettaOne male in a small tank lives longer and looks brighter than he does in a community aquarium, as loThree spot gouramiA large labyrinth fish that forgives mistakes with water but turns into a bully with age. It lives fDwarf gouramiA peaceful labyrinth fish for a planted tank of 50 litres or more. It often arrives from the shop alParadise fishThe first aquarium fish of Europe and one of the most quarrelsome. It takes cool water but needs a t
Goldfish
GoldfishA round bowl kills a goldfish faster than any disease. It needs 100 litres or more, a powerful filteTelescope goldfishA short-bodied goldfish with bulging eyes that needs a cool tank of 100 l or more and careful decor.Veiltail goldfishA goldfish whose tail is longer than its body, and which needs a roomy coldwater tank plus careful hComet goldfishA fast long-bodied goldfish with a long tail, which needs open water and a lid over it. Here is the
Other
Ocellaris clownfishThe marine fish made famous by Nemo, with its anemone partnership and its change of sex. What an 80 LoachesSchooling bottom fish with a hierarchy and a habit of clicking. A clown loach outlives a dog, which PufferfishA puffer with a beak instead of teeth, which needs snails and a tank of its own. Why it is dangerousSiamese algae eaterIt eats black brush algae, but only in a group and only while it is hungry. And it grows noticeably LabeoA large bottom fish that grows into the owner of the tank. It lives for more than fifteen years, so RainbowfishSchooling fish from New Guinea whose colour depends on water and food. Shy, jumpy and always on the Kuhli loachA loach sold as a snake-like fish and then not seen for weeks. It needs sand, soft water, a tight li
Shrimp
Amano shrimpAmano shrimp grazes hair algae and green film, but dies from remedies with copper in them. Here are Cherry shrimpCherry shrimp forgives tap water and breeds without effort, but it lives about eighteen months and lBamboo shrimpA filter shrimp catches food with its fans and starves without current. Here is the flow, the suspen
Snails
Mystery snailA mystery snail will not cut your plants, but it fouls the water badly and likes to climb out. Here Ramshorn snailA ramshorn arrives with plants and breeds without a partner. Here is when it is useful, why it fillsNerite snailA nerite cleans the glass and will not multiply in fresh water. Here are hardness, feeding and the rAssassin snailHelena eats ramshorns but will not end a population spike. Here are feeding, hardness and tank mates
Crayfish
Equipment and chemistry
Glass and body
Толщина стекла аквариумаПочему банка 150 см требует заметно более толстое стекло, чем 60 см при той же высоте, и что именно Вес и объём аквариумаПаспортные 300 литров — это наружный объём. Воды внутри меньше, а весит она вместе со стеклом и грун
Stand
Filtration
Fertilizers and tests
Calculator
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