How to Identify Tropical Saltwater Aquarium Fish

Tropical tang fish.

The appearance of tropical fish can vary greatly from species to species. Details like fin characteristics, spotting, stripes and colors, and eye and mouth placement are drastically different even within fish families. Some fish have specific temperature and dietary needs that are valuable to know to promote strong positive growth. Your fish should be correctly identified to provide proper living conditions and maintain optimum health.

Instructions

Identify your Fish

1. 

   Tropical puffer fish with black spots.

   Identify the color pattern and any distinct shapes along the body of the fish. The scorpionfish is a wonderful exhibit of color and pattern. The body is covered in vertical stripes of chocolate brown, cream and honey brown tones. The angel fish is seen with speckles along the body, more noticeable with the Potter's angel, less with the lemon peel angel. Angel fish are often seen with accenting colors of yellow or orange in bright, nearly neon hues. The puffer fish is covered in spots that tend to grow vague across the belly. The backs and sides of the puffer are colored in a diverse mix of either brown or blacks, with an underside of cream or gray respectively.

2. 

   Clown fish with rounded fins.

   Locate the numerous fins on the tropical fish in question. Notice how, on a clown fish, the pectoral fin is set just below the horizontal midpoint of the body. The dorsal fin is also rounded, with a blackened edge. The damsel fish has a pectoral fin that is nearly transparent. The fin is narrow and long, as with the V-shaped tail fin.

3. 

   Two square-bodied butterfly fish.

   Evaluate the overall shape of the body. The parrot fish has an oval-shaped body that is slightly slender and elongated. In comparison, the clown fish is also an oval fish, yet is wider toward than head and more narrow at the tail. The butterfly fish, however, has a body that is nearly square in the midsection, rounding off little by little near the head.

4. 

   Pug dog with a mouth like a scorpionfish.

   Recognize the shape of the mouth. The butterfly fish has a protruding mouth that resembles the bill of a goose. The scorpionfish, however, has a wide, flat mouth that appears more like the mouth of a pug dog than a fish.

References

• Saltwater: Scorpionfish
• Saltwater: Puffer fish
• Saltwater: Clown fish
• Saltwater: Damsel fish
• Saltwater: Parrot fish

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Saltwater: Butterfly fish