They are one of my favorites. Most importantly, this fish is an open-water swimmer–which is a difficult environment to create in the home reef tank. The greatest challenge is that you have to provide it with a constant supply of live copepods to eat. There is no argument that most damselfish are cute, small in size (which makes them an appropriately-sized fish for most tanks)–but I can’t help but think that what is truly driving the purchase is the price tag. There will be exceptions, I’m sure, but try to avoid these fish if possible. Every local fish store with saltwater fish has a tank full of damselfish. Whilst this name is often made up by resellers and has no scientific merit, it is the name often first associated to the animal by its locals, beginners and the casual aquarist. Rhyne reported on this based on data from importers in a research article titled: Three Stripe Damselfish (Dascyllus aruanus), Sure, they come with listings and advice that suggests…be careful…these fish are aggressive…but if we cut our teeth in the hobby with, I also missed another obvious sign. Royal Grammas are a cave-spawning saltwater fish that reproduce in harems. They are the gateway fish that help us transition from that African Cichlid tank to saltwater. Try to pick something else. Since they only grow to be about 3-4 inches in length, have a narrow body shape, and are not open-water swimmers, they are suitable for almost any size tank. It is generally recommended that you keep this majestic fish in a very large tank (180 gallons or more) in order to provide it with the swimming room required to stay healthy. Which likely also means they are easy to catch and ship, undoubtedly another reason this group of saltwater fish dominates the list of top 20 most popular aquarium fish. Including. Aquarium owners who want that ‘schooling look’ most commonly buy these colorful little fish to provide that.eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'saltwateraquariumblog_com-narrow-sky-2','ezslot_26',163,'0','0'])); These saltwater fishes are relatively small, growing to a size of 3 1/2 inches, and require a good amount of open space for swimming. PJ’s have awesome coloration, so cool it almost looks artificial. This category lists the common names of saltwater fish. If you love the look of the firefish and want an even cooler saltwater fish, check out the purple firefish. These fish are shy, picky eaters that are typically not best kept with the hustle and bustle of a mixed reef. The scientific name of the Tomato Clownfish is Amphiprion frenatus. Not all saltwater fish are edible. Most importantly, they are readily available at your local fish store. This fish is relatively easy to spawn in a reef tank (by saltwater fish standards) and they will pair up. Check out this video that shares some info about a few saltwater fish that should be avoided: Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. In captivity, the Green Chromis may live 8 – 15 years–although if you are purchasing a shoal, the lifespan is likely shorter for most of them. Sure, they come with listings and advice that suggests…be careful…these fish are aggressive…but if we cut our teeth in the hobby with freshwater cichlids…we know all about aggression. )eval(ez_write_tag([[336,280],'saltwateraquariumblog_com-portrait-1','ezslot_30',164,'0','0'])); I would expect that maybe some other fish like the pink skunk clownfish or neon goby might pop onto the list if you included aquacultured fishes. Otherwise, it seems that this data set is a fairly robust way of assessing the true demand in the hobby. Which ones would you add to your saltwater tank? What is totally missing here are the most popular aquacultured fish–and it might not reflect the purchasing habits of other countries (shout out to my friends in the UK, South Africa, and other locations!! Damselfish are so rarely a major part of the reefs that many of us create in our homes after we have been in the hobby for years and learned our lessons. They may be popular, they may be imported by the metric ton, but they are not a great fit for most tanks. The Flame Angelfish, Centropyge loricula, is one of the most popular dwarf angelfish species. The reasons I love them so much are because they are perfectly sized, beautifully colored, hardy,  tolerant of the conditions within a saltwater tank and spend their time out in the open, rather than in crevices, hiding. Some are edible but not that tasty, and others make up a large list of tasty, edible saltwater fish … I also missed another obvious sign. You could fill your tank with fish for the price of one Picasso triggerfish,  copperband butterflyfish, Dogface pufferfish or powder brown tang. There is no reason to buy a wild-caught clownfish. The Royal Gramma, Gramma loreto, is a great beginner fish for the new saltwater aquarium. Inspired by an article from CORAL Magazine, I compiled this list of the most popular saltwater fish. ), Marine betta fish: care, feeding, breeding guide, Common Clownfish (but pick the aquacultured variety). There are also fish like the yellow tang, which are extremely popular but have become harder to acquire due to fishing regulations. If you stack the deck by mixing a large and small fish, they are each more likely to accept their place without a lot of bloodshed (and fin shed). I’ve kept them from time to time and have always appreciated the color and personality they brought to the tank. http://www.theaquariumwiki.com/w/index.php?title=Category:Fish_-_Common_names_(Saltwater)&oldid=70061, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. Since these saltwater fish are so aggressive, you don’t want two similarly sized individuals trying to fight for dominance. I guess I’ve been a little slow on the uptake there. Tolerant of water conditions and bold/active inside the aquarium glass, They are a reasonable choice for a first-time aquarium owner or anyone who is looking for an alternative to the ubiquitous common clownfish. This category has the following 37 subcategories, out of 37 total. Not all fish are created equal. Hopefully, you don’t have a permanent abundance of parasites in your tank. Every tank should have a pair of common clownfish…that is…unless you already picked another species of clownfish. Rhyne reported on this based on data from importers in a research article titled: Revealing the Appetite of the Marine Aquarium Fish Trade: The Volume and Biodiversity of Fish Imported into the United States. This category lists the common names of saltwater fish. and belongs to a group of fishes called the fairy basslets. They are small, slow-swimming, and beautiful, which is why they are so frequently collected and purchased. Shop around for the aquacultured variety, because most of the stores I see have wild-caught fish because they are cheap and abundant. Copyright 2009-2020 SaltwaterAquariumBlog.com. Maroon clownfish are very cool looking–and I would even consider them to be extremely cute, as juveniles, which may influence your purchasing decision. It’s just a shame that the majority of these brilliantly colored fish from this list aren’t well-suited for the average community tank. Remember, just because it is popular doesn’t make it a good choice. You can keep them in groups, which is cool. They are beautiful fish with a reddish-orange color that will turn to a darker brown color in more mature females. As juveniles, they have 3 white stripes, just like the common clownfish–but A. frenatus clowns lose their second and third stripes as they get older.eval(ez_write_tag([[580,400],'saltwateraquariumblog_com-portrait-2','ezslot_31',131,'0','0'])); The iconic juvenile-to-adult has a single large white band just behind the eye, like in the images above. If you can meet their demanding nutritional needs, they are relatively long-lived fish. Two angels might be kept in the same aquarium provided it is a large aquarium, they are properly acclimated as juveniles, and they have very different colouring and body shape. They are inexpensive (by Dwarf angelfish standards), vibrantly colored, active swimmers, and don’t have very restrictive or specialized dietary needs. Please, please, please (does it sound like I’m begging you? 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