LA
Pic
Not the best pic of this guy but not a spectacular fish either.
LA
Female eel checking out a 1.5-inch chromide.
LA
Some one-inchers in my hand. Better color but a bit dead.
LA
Called orange chromide evidently because of the orange spots (3 inches).
LA
Orange chromides -- named for the orange/red spots.
LA
Same two chromides first thing in the morning. They change colors throughout
the day.
LA
Same guy months later. Chromides take a while to feel comfortable in
your tank.
Chromides are the only species of the cichlid family
native to
Asia. Orange, red, and silver
chromides are all the same species, Etroplus maculates.
The red strain is by far the most colorful, and adds a lot of
color to the brackish community. The
orange or silver (the same strain, it may be labeled differently dependent
upon where and when you buy it) is colorful only at spawning time.
It is peaceful, and a nice addition to the tank.
The green chromide, Etroplus suratensis, is not often seen.
It is not terribly colorful , but it is an interesting fish, and a
challenge for those who wish to breed an odd cichlid.
LA
2.5 inch Therapon jarbua.
LA
Four more of the little rascals.
LA
Target fish living happily with rope fish.
The target fish (does anyone know where it got its
name?), Therapon jarbua, is another seldom seen fish.
(Note: Look at the
target pattern on its back. LA)
It is somewhat aggressive and eats just about anything.
(Another note: You can
take them out of a freshwater tank and drop them into pure saltwater
without fazing them. LA)
LA
Young tiger datnioides.
LA
Adult tiger fish
LA
Called a red datnioid. Is it? Only showed up in 2003.
Fish eater of course. Three inches. Simon Luffman IDs this guy
as a redfin or mangrove snapper, Lutjanus argentimaculatus.
LA
Pic
Datnioides micropeltes
Datnioides. For the fan of large piscivorous species, tiger
fishes (Datnioides species) are occasionally available.
These critters get fairly large, and are peaceful to other large
fishes, but can be nasty to each other and to any other fish that they can
swallow. These fish have quite
a gape, and can suck in much larger fish than you would think!
Goldfish well over half the length of a tiger fish don’t have a
chance.
LA Pic
Crocodile fish like to lurk. They eat worms as well as fish.
LA
Also called "crazy fish" because they take on weird positions in
their tank.
Crocodile Fish. Another predator of interest is the
crocodile fish,
Butis butis. I can find out
little about this fish, and having not kept one, I can say little, except
that the largest one I have seen was six inches (I am certain that this
was nowhere near mature), and that they love a diet of live fish.
LA
Pic
Young Indian glassfish.
Glassfish (genus Chanda) are commonly sold as
freshwater fish, though they are truly brackish water fish.
A full-grown, well-fed glassfish is a
real beauty, with smoky fins lightly edged in powder blue, and body
color a transparent amber. Unfortunately,
they are seldom seen in this condition.
Glassfish are not delicate, but few are kept in suitable water
conditions. They are picky
eaters. Live and frozen foods
are best. Flakes are never
eaten in enough quantity to sustain these fish, and they slowly waste
away. Finally, they are very
shy, and, in a community tank, are usually the last fish to reach the
food. Often, their tank mates
will intimidate them until
they refuse to eat, thus not getting enough as a result.
Unless you are willing to give these pretty little fish what they
need, pass them by (including the painted ones, whose paint job wears off
in two to three months, anyway).
LA
Painted glassfish come in any color you might want
Celebes
rainbows, Telmatherina ladigesi, are perfect inhabitants of the small
brackish community. A
schooling fish, the Celebes
rainbow averages 1.5 inches when full-grown.
Celebes
rainbows are peaceful, active, and colorful.
Males are light lemon-yellow with an iridescent steel blue stripe
running the length of the body, and electric blue eyes.
Dorsal and anal fins are yellow and edged in black, with the first
rays separated from the rest of the fin and arrayed like feathers.
Females are slightly less colorful, and the fins
aren’t feathered. Feed these
fish high-quality flake foods that contain carotenoids
or supplement their diet with brine shrimp (which are packed with
carotenoids), and watch these fish shine!
Celebes
rainbows are members of family Atherinidae, not to be confused with
various Australian and New Guinean rainbows, family Melanotaeniidae.
There is a misconception among some people that melanotaeniids are
brackish water fishes; however,
they are strictly freshwater fishes.
Go
to Brackish Water IV
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