The Angelfish is a triangular fish with long flowing fins. Their shape comes from the fact they like to hide in weeds and roots along the river bottom and dart out after food.
Angelfish aren't picky eaters when it comes to food. They will eat normal aquarium foods, but be careful not to overfeed them.
Angelfish are from the Amazon and other river basins in South America.
A parrotfish is a specialized type of fish that has a thick, heavy body with large scales. Their most noticeable feature is their "beak" which is a hardened area of their jaw, and contains teeth for eating their favorite types of food.
The Parrotfish will eat just about anything, from other fish, worms to algae. They aren't picky eaters so any fish food will keep them happy.
Some Parrotfish are found in nature, but may come from people mixing different types of parrotfish from Central and South America.
The Australian Rainbow Fish is a medium sized fish, growing to lengths of 3-4 inches. They are brightly colored, having a blue stripe running the length of their body and fins colored yellow with tips of orange and red. Their body is a silvery brown, which reflect light off in a silvery green color.
Australian Rainbow Fish will eat about anything, from other fish and worms to algae. They aren't picky eaters so any fish food will keep them happy.
Australian Rainbow Fish are native to Australia, and found mostly in New South Wales and Queensland.
The Bala Shark can grow to be a large fish, usually about a foot long. They like to swim together in groups. You can identify it by their long silvery body with black tipped fins
Bala Sharks aren't finicky eaters, though they do like to have an occasional snack of other fish.
Bala Sharks come from river basins in Malaysia and Indonesia, though they are rare in the wild.
The Roseline Shark, or Denison's Barb is a uniquely colored fish. The Roseline shark has a bright red stripe behind the eye, a black stripe that goes the length of the body and yellow tips on the tail. It is a medium sized fish, reaching sizes up to 6".
Roseline Shark aren't picky eaters so any fish food will keep them happy. They do prefer some live food from time to time.
Roseline Sharks are found in the Achenkovil and Chaliyar Rivers of South India.
The Bosemani Rainbow Fish is a medium sized fish, growing to 3 inches long. The males have a bluish purple head that fades in an orange-yellow tail
Bosemani Rainbow Fish will eat about anything, from other fish, worms to algae. They aren't picky eaters so any fish food will keep them happy.
Bosemani Rainbow Fish are native to the Ayamaru Lakes in the central Vogelkop Peninsula, Irian Jaya.
The Parkinson's Rainbowfish is a uniquely colored fish. The colors go from a silvery blue up front to a rusty orange color towards the rear fins and body. It is a medium sized fish, growing up to 5".
Parkinson's Rainbowfish are omnivorous, requiring both live and vegetable foods.
The Parkinson's Rainbow inhabits sandy streams and rivers in Papua New Guinea.
The Bushynose Plecostomus, also known as the Bristlenose Plecostomus can grow up to 6 inches long. Males of this species have a snout full of tentacles
Bushynose Plecostomus are omnivores (plant and meat eaters) but do prefer vegetable matter. They do like to eat algae off rocks and sides ofthe tanks.
Bushynose Plecostomus are native to the Amazon River Basin.
The Peppermint Plecostomus is a medium sized fish, measuring up to 7 inches long. They have a sucker mouth and feed off the bottom of the tank.
Peppermint Plecostomus are omnivores (plant and meat eaters) but do prefer vegetable matter. They enjoy eating algae off rocks and sides of tanks.
Peppermint Plecostomus are native to the Xingu River in Brazil.
The Gold Nugget Plecostomus can be a rather large fish, getting up to 14 inches long. They have a sucker mouth and feed off the bottom of the tank. They can live together with other fish in the tank, but not with other Gold Nugget Plecostomus.
Gold Nugget Plecostomus are omnivores (eat both meat and plants) but prefer vegetable matter. They do from time to time eat driftwood, which they also use for shelter.
Gold Nugget Plecostomus are originally from the Amazon River basin in South America.
TThe Clown Loach can be a rather large fish, getting up to 12 inches long, but it will take a while to grow to this size. They are social fish, and like to be around other clown loaches.
Clown Loach will eat anything, from snails and worms to algae. They aren't selective eaters but they do prefer vegetable matter.
Clown Loaches are native to rivers and streams in the islands Borneo and Sumatra in Indonesia.
The Zebra Loach is a small fish, measuring up to 3-4 inches long. They are social fish, and like to be around other zebra loaches. They should be kept in groups of 5 or larger.
Zebra Loach are carnivorous (meat eaters), so their diet consists of snails, worms and other protein sources.
Zebra Loaches are native to rivers and streams in Southern India.
The Congo Tetra is a bright, iridescent fish, with colors ranging from blue to red to yellow and back to blue running the full length of its body. They are a small fish of about 2-3 inches, you will find them hanging out in groups.
Congo Tetras will eat just about anything, so life in the aquarium suits them just fine.
Congo Tetras come from the Upper Congo basin of Central Africa.
The Farlowella Catfish, has many nicknames, including the Stick or Twig Catfish. It can grow rather large, getting up to 8 inches long. You'll see them sticking to the side of the glass mostly in the aquarium.
Farlowella Catfish are omnivorous, but prefer vegetable and plant matter.
Farlowella Catfish come from the Orinoco, Paraná and Amazon Rivers of South America.
The Sun Catfish is a hardy fish, with a dark spot on either side and "whiskers" around the mouth. As bottom feeders, you may find them hanging out at the bottom of the tank, where they hide out until dark.
Sun Catfish will eat just about anything, from other fish, worms to algae. They aren't fussy eaters so any fish food will keep them happy.
Sun Catfish can be found in slightly muddy waters of rivers in Southwest India.
The Pictus Catfish is a small (4-5 inch) fish with a silvery body with black spots. The Pictus Catfish tends to have long "whiskers". They also are good tank mates, only occasionally eating a small fish, and they are happy alone or combined with other Pictus catfish.
Pictus Catish are omnivores, eating both plants and animals so they are happy with your normal variety of fish food. They tend to eat at night and wait for food to drift to the bottom before feeding.
Pictus catfish can be found in the Amazon River basin of Peru and Columbia.
The Geophagus can be a rather large fish, getting up to 11 inches long, but many are smaller. They work well with other fish in the tank, as long as there are no aggressive species, they will swim around all day long.
Geophagus will only feed on vegetable matter and small crustaceans that are on the bottom of the tank.
Geophagus come from river basins in South America.
The Gold Barb is small fish, measuring 2 – 2 ½ inches in size overall. They like to swim in groups with wide open spaces in the tank. They also need places to hide from time to time.
Gold Barbs will feed on worms, flakes and other types of aquarium foods.
The Gold Barb can be found in the Red River Basin of Southeast China.
The Odessa Barb is small, only reaching 1 ½ inches in size overall. They like to swim in groups with wide open spaces in the tank
The Odessa Barb will feed on worms, flakes and other types of aquarium foods.
The Odessa Barb can only be found in Central Myanmar (Burma).
The Humphead Glassfish is a medium sized fish, measuring up to 4-5 inches long. They should be kept in groups of one male to at least 7 females.
Humphead Glassfish are very fussy eaters and carnivorous (meat eaters). They will need live food for a time while they adapt to tank life. Afterwards they will eat worms and other meats.
Humphead Glassfish are native to rivers and streams in Myanmar (Burma).
The Gold Gourami is a bright, yellow-orange hued fish with long ventral fins at the front of their body. A small fish of about 3-5 inches, they like to be either alone or in small groups.
Gold Gouramis in nature will eat plankton, worms and insect larvae. They will eat about anything, so they are very happy in an aquarium.
The Gold Gourami are native to Asia, from India to the Korean Peninsula. They prefer to live in marshes, swamps and wetlands, but can live in other water environments.
The Red Irian Rainbow Fish is a medium sized fish, growing to lengths of 3-4 inches. The males are brightly colored, having salmon red scales across their entire body.
Red Irian Rainbow Fish will eat just about anything, from other fish, worms to algae. They aren't picky eaters so any fish food will keep them happy.
Red Irian Rainbow Fish are native to Papua New Guinea.
Ran Anbar for donating the tank and the fish.
Rebecca Anbar for providing information on each fish.
The Anbar Family & Friends for generously donating the fish tank and fish. A very special thanks to Rebecca Anbar for collecting funds for this project!
Devin Kerr of DKerr Creative for designing and building the interactive fish aquarium.
