Before you choose which fish you want to put in your aquarium, you have to make the more important decision of whether you want a saltwater or freshwater system. Within these two categories you have to decide whether you want your tank to be a coldwater or tropical aquarium.
Saltwater aquariums:
The hobby of marine or saltwater fishkeeping is actually fairly new in the branch of the hobby. It can also be divided into coldwater and tropical groups. The more popular of these two groups is definitely the tropical fish because there is a very large variety of highly colored fish to choose from. The coldwater fish are plainer in appearance and are much fewer in numbers. The main difference between freshwater and saltwater aquariums is, you guessed it, marine fish need to have saltwater to live in. To give the marine fish the proper conditions, a synthetic saltwater mix must be added to your regular tap water in your tank. Before trying to take on the responsibility of a marine aquarium, it is a good idea to start out with a freshwater aquarium since they are easier to take care of
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Freshwater aquariums:
Most fish that are kept in aquariums are freshwater species. These fish can be divided into two categories, coldwater and tropical. The tropical fish, however, have two advantages over the coldwater fish. One, you can keep more of them in a given aquarium size and there is a wider choice of colors.
Selecting A Saltwater System |
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| Factor | Coldwater(Salt) | Tropical(Salt) |
| Tank size and type | Needs to have a somewhat large space-to-fish ratio; Tank must be all glass | Needs to have a somewhat large space-to-fish ratio; Tank must be all glass |
| Water | Collected seawater or synthetic mix | Synthetic mix only |
| Heating and Temperature | None required, ambient temperature | A heater and thermostat without exposed metal parts. Temperature around 75°F |
| Lighting | Fluorescent or tungsten | Fluorescent or tungsten |
| Filtration | Powerful | Standard |
| Choice of species | What you can find | Very High |
| Feeding | Manufactured or live | Manufactured or live |
| Care | May be liable to disease if from polluted sources | Reasonably hardy |
| Cost of fishes | Travel between seashore and aquarium | Quite high |
| Breeding | Very rare in aquarium, sexes difficult to distinguish | Very rare in aquarium, sexes difficult to distinguish |
Selecting A Freshwater System |
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| Factor | Coldwater(Fresh) | Tropical(Fresh) |
| Tank Size and type | Fairly large space-to-fish ratio; any type | Small space-to-fish ratio, any type |
| Water | Domestic supply | Domestic Supply |
| Heating and temperature | None required, ambient temperature | Any type, around 75°F |
| Lighting | Fluorescent or tungsten | Fluorescent or tungsten |
| Filtration | Powerful | Standard |
| Choice of species | Limited number of ornamentals | Hundreds of species |
| Feeding | Manufactured or live | Manufactured or live |
| Care | Most are hardy, a few require special care | Most are hardy, a few require special care |
| Cost of fishes | Inexpensive | Medium to expensive |
| Breeding | Egglayers-possible in aquarium, sexes sometimes recognizable | Egglayers and livebearers-possible in aquarium, sexes often recognizable |
Table statistics and some information gathered from the book You & Your Aquarium by Dick Mills.
If you a have any questions or comment about my site, or just about fish and plants in general, feel free to Email me. Also if there is a section or information that you would like to see me add to my site, let me know.
Email me at: mukhoops@gte.net
