The Beautiful and Interesting Angelfish

The freshwater angelfish is one of the most popular of all tropical aquarium fish. The best known and most kept species of freshwater angelfish has the scientific name "pterophyllum scalare," and this is the fish that will be discussed in the rest of this article. Pterophyllum is Greek for "winged leaf" and scalare means "like a flight of stairs." This name describes almost perfectly the angelfish's unique shape and beautiful fins. Indeed very unique in shape and form, the angelfish has a striking, compressed body shape with long, extending dorsal and bottom fins. The fish is also often taller than it is long. In its natural habitat, the angelfish's flat shape gives it good protection among roots and plants, where it will often cling to or lay flat against a vertical surface.

Freshwater angelfish are cichlids that originated in the Amazon region of South America, where their natural color is silvery with three brownish vertical stripes. They were first imported into Hamburg, Germany in 1911. A short while later they were brought into the United States where they were spawned in Philadelphia. After decades of selective breeding, today there are many varieties of the angelfish. Angelfish now come in beautiful colors and exotic patterns such as gold, silver, half black, all black, veiled, zebra lace, and black lace. There are other colors and patterns too, but these are the more common ones. Angelfish also tend to get more colorful as they grow, becoming even more striking and beautiful in appearance.

Another thing that makes the angelfish a fun fish to keep is that it can also grow to a good size. You can start out with a couple of small, one-inch angelfish, and within 6 months to a year they could be 3 inches long with beautiful long, flowing fins and tails. In fact, the maximum size for the domestic aquarium angelfish is up to six inches in length, with upper and lower fins that can measure up to 10 inches from top to bottom. The veiled varieties of angelfish will usually have the longest fins.

Angelfish are also one of the most interesting fishes to keep. They have their own personalities and are not shy fish. They will usually come right up to you as you come up to the tank. However, this does not mean they are very aggressive fish, and that makes them great for keeping in a community aquarium. In fact, due to its peaceful temperament and appearance, the angelfish is one of the few cichlids that are commonly kept in decorative tanks or public displays with smaller types of fish. The only times angelfish may get aggressive are when they are feeding or spawning. Even when being aggressive, angelfish only tend to be aggressive with each other. For example, if more than one angelfish is kept, they will often develop a pecking order where the strongest - usually the biggest - will dominate the other angelfish.

As a side note, it is very interesting when you get a couple of angelfish to pair off. They will spend a lot of time together, side by side. They may even try to breed. If they do try to breed, you may want to get a book on angelfish or do some research on the internet. Angelfish breeding is a very popular and interesting hobby in itself, but you will need to find out what you need to do to get the eggs to hatch and raise young ones, as it can be quite involved.

You can keep angelfish with many other kinds of tropical fish. Gouramis, swordtails, and larger tetras make very good tank mates for angelfish, as would almost any other kind of fish that is big enough not to fit in the angelfish's mouth. Thus, the only major rule to follow is do not keep angelfish with fish that could fit into their mouths, as angelfish may try to eat the very small fish. This means avoid putting fish like small guppies and neons with the angelfish, as these fish do not get large and could be eaten by a full-grown angelfish. Otherwise, if your angelfish and all of your other fish are healthy, normally the angelfish will not bother the other fish.

You do need to have very clean water to keep an angel. Efficient filtration and water changes are crucial. If water quality goes bad, angelfish are usually the first fish to show signs. The most ideal temperature range is between 76 and 82 degrees, although 75 to 86 is also tolerable. Soft, slightly acid water of pH 6.5 to 6.9 is most ideal for the angelfish, but as the fish is now domesticated it can tolerate a much wider range of pH 6.0 to 8.0. As with any fish, avoid sudden changes in ph and temperature.

Because angelfish are such tall fish, they do best in larger tanks. If you are planning to keep angelfish in a community aquarium, it should be at least a 20-gallon tank. The ideal is to have at least 10 gallons of water per adult angelfish. Driftwood, bogwoods, and floating, broad-leaved plants such as swords and java ferns are great decorations to use in an angelfish tank. They also make the angelfish feel safer and more at home. Angelfish can live from 5 to 8 years if cared for well.

Always remember not to overfeed your fish so that excess food does not get to the bottom or sucked up into the filter. You can feed your fish 2 or 3 times a day, but each time just feeding a small amount. Angelfish can survive on flake food alone, but they will thrive, grow larger, and be much more apt to breed on a greatly varied diet. Live foods such as adult brine shrimp, black worms, mosquito larvae, finely chopped earthworms and guppy fry are accepted with enthusiasm and should be included regularly for the best quality angelfish. If live food is not available, frozen and dry packages of blood worms (midge fly larvae), brine shrimp and others are available from your local pet store and are acceptable substitutions for the live food. Angelfish will also enjoy raw beef heart, just make sure the fat is all trimmed off.

Unique in shape, color, and personality, you will find the angelfish to be one of most interesting fish to keep, If you have any questions regarding angelfish and their care, just ask us and we will help you any way we can.

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