Species name: Centropyge Loricula
Common names: Flame Angelfish
Family: Pomacanthidae (Angelfishes)
Order: Perciformes (perch-likes)
Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)
Maximum Length: 5.9 in.
Minimum tank size: 25 gal.
Hardiness: Easy to Medium

Aggressiveness: Medium. Can be aggressive toward members of its own genus, as well as toward fish with similar shape or behavior. It should be the last fish to introduce into a peaceful community.

Reef Compatibility: May nip at LPS coral, zoanthid and tridacnid clam mantles.

Diet: Unlike most anglefish, the Flame Angel is not as dependent on sponge for nutrition. Half of its diet should be algae and vegetables. Should be feed with spirulina, marine algae, mysid shrimp and meaty food. Feed 3 times a day. The presence of live rock in the tank will allow self-feeding on demand. Without sufficient algae to eat, the Flame Angel will lose its color, weight and interest in feeding.

Additional information: In the wild, this awesome dwarf angelfish is found in the reef and clear lagoons of Hawaii, Society Islands, Australia, New Guinea and Philippines at depth of 50 meters. It is one of the most beautiful angelfish that can be acquired by a hobbyist. It has a striking red or orange body with vertical black bars in the mid section. Their markings don’t change with age so chose one that you like. Under stress the flame anglefish is highly susceptible to Brooklynella and Oodinium (Amyloodinium) infections. To reduce stress, the aquarium should contain live rock with lots of broken rubble with small caves only the angels can get in.

The ideal tank should have a good water current to play in, a ph of 8.1 – 8.4, temperature between 75°F and 80°F (25°C – 27°C), sg 1.020 – 1.025, dkh 8 – 12°,

Visit AQUARIUM LIFE for more information about fish and coral. Photo and video related to this article also available on Aquarium Life

Scientific name: Zanclus Cornutus
Common names: Moorish Idol
Maximum Length: 7 in (4 in in aquarium).
Minimum tank size: 100 gal.
Hardiness: Difficult (For Experts only)
Aggressiveness: Peaceful
Reef Compatibility: Some individual will nip at LPS and soft coral polyps.
Diet: Omnivore.


Needs a varied diet including shrimp, squid, clam, mysid shrimp, live brine shrimp, worms, spirulina, algae and vegetable.

Only member of the family Zanclidae, the Moorish Idol is a close relative of the Tangs or Surgeonfish and lives in school along the reef of the Indo-Pacific and Red Sea. It is one of the most beautiful fish but unfortunately one of the most difficult to keep in aquarium. Long term survivability in aquariums is rare (2 years is good).

Ideal aquarium condition should be as follows: 78-80º F with a pH between 8.1 and 8.4 and a sg of 1.022 and plenty of light. Nitrates, nitrites and ammonia need to be almost zero. It’s recommended they be kept in small groups of 3 to 5 in a large tank with enough room to swim and hiding areas.

The Moorish Idol is difficult to feed. Many specimens will simply refuse to eat in aquarium and this is one of the main reason why they are so difficult to keep. They are bottom feeders and graze on marine algae and sponges. Having plenty of live rock will provide grazing opportunities in between meals. They need a varied died of small live foods mysid shrimp, brine shrimp, worms and sponge. Diet should be supplement with small shrimp, squid, clam, spirulina, algae and vegetable. They should be fed before you take them home from the store to help them survive the stress of being moved and acclimated.

Visit AQUARIUM LIFE for more information about fish and coral. Photo and video related to this article also available on Aquarium Life

Once you have set up your tropical aquarium the next step is to ‘cycle’ it. This process produces beneficial bacteria that will process the waste ammonia from your fish and convert it into nitrites and then into relatively harmless nitrates. After adding fish to an uncycled tank the toxic ammonia and nitrite levels will rise to a dangerous high until there are sufficient numbers of bacteria to convert them into less toxic nitrates. In order to overcome this methods have been devised to encourage the growth of the bacteria. The traditional method is to add a few ‘hardy’ fish that will produce ammonia to encourage bacteria growth while the tank is ‘cycling’. This method is very stressful for the fish, many of which die or are damaged by the process. The toxic ammonia burns the gills and leads to permanent damage. At the end of the ‘cycling’ you are left with fish in poor condition which you may not want in your aquarium.

A better, more humane method to cycle the tank is to use a fishless cycling method. It uses household ammonia as a source, rather than live fish, and a bacteria culture obtained from a healthy tank or purchased from an aquarium supplier.

The Bacteria Starter Culture

You can obtain a starter bacteria culture by adding some gravel, filter medium or rock from a healthy, aged tropical fish tank. If you do not have a source there are commercial products available, for example StressZyme or Hagen’s Cycle. The culture will give a quick start to producing a colony of bacteria but you can also use this method without a starter culture. It will take a bit longer then to cycle your tank.

The Ammonia

Purchase some unscented, additive free 100% ammonia. Some aquarium supply shops are now selling ammonia for this purpose. If you know a chemist or science teacher they may be able to get you some pure ammonia from a laboratory supplier..

The Tank Temperature

The bacteria (Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter) thrive best at higher temperature than is usually used for a tropical tank so during the cycling increase the temperature to between 30 and 35 C (85-95F). When you add the fish you can turn it down again.

Testing Kit

A testing kit to check the ammonia and nitrite levels is essential to test the levels and to indicate when cycling is complete.

The Fishless Cycling Method

Extra aeration is recommended while cycling as bacteria need oxygen to grow. Increase the aeration through the tank and filter if possible. You could add an extra air stone or even use an extra pump if one is available. Add your bacteria culture, then add about a teaspoon of ammonia for a small tank. Increase this for a larger tank. Allow about an hour for the ammonia to circulate then test. The ammonia level should be between 5 mg/L (or 5ppm). Add some more ammonia if the level is too low. Leave the tank alone for a few days then test again.

At this stage the ammonia level should begin to drop and the nitrite level to rise. This means that the bacteria are doing their job of processing the ammonia. Add some more ammonia when it drops to zero to give the bacteria more to work on. The nitrite level should rise until it reaches a maximum then begin to drop as the nitrites are converted into relatively harmless nitrates. Three or four days after the maximum nitrite levels are seen the nitrite level should drop to zero. The cycling is now complete.

Change about 50-70% of the water, carefully so as not to disturb the filter or the gravel bed where the bacteria are colonised. Reset the temperature to 25°C, or the recommended temperature for your intended fish and allow the temperature to stabilise for a few hours. Retest for ammonia and nitrites and if the levels are zero you can now begin to add some fish.

It is possible after cycling the tank to add all the fish in one go but this will result in a spike in the ammonia and nitrite levels which is stressful for the fish and could cause them to become diseased. adding the fish slowly will allow the bacteria to grow to cope with the added levels of ammonia excreted by the fish. Even for a fully cycled tank it is advisable to gradually add the fish. aim to take about a month to fully stock the tank.

A fishless cycling method is more efficient and produces a fully cycled tank in a much shorter time than the traditional method of using hardy fish. It is also more humane and you will not be left with unwanted, often damaged fish, at the end.

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On my visit they had German Shepherd puppies, a black Labrador, a Maremma Sheepdog?, and a Border Collie on display. Along with some mixed Shepherd/Chows/something else, (sorry memory lapse.) Behind the counter they had a Jackson Chameleon or two and a Sulcata tortoise. Halfway through the shop, a display gondola with a few bunnies and a Guinea Pig and at the back, some freshwater fish.

Liked the selection of puppies, hated that I’m still unable to have one.

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Is your water hazy, cloudy, or looks rather gray. This is a problem confronting most aquarium hobbyist, which can be fixed with patience and knowledge of the aquarium water cycle. What most novices don’t comprehend is the co-existing bacteria life that exist in their tank along with their fish. Bacteria that is necessary to breakdown the ammonia produced by the aquarium inhabitants.

The bacteria build up in an aquarium is what actually produces the hazy, gray look of the water in the aquarium, and is most common within 3 to 4 weeks of setting up a tank, adding new fish, and or death of a inhabitant within the aquarium. Even excessive water changes can produce this outcome, as essentially you will be resetting the bacteria levels contained in the water.

To reduce the chance of this happening to you:

• Make sure your filtration is rated for your aquarium size.

• Add an under gravel air filter. (In most cases, this will greatly improve the quality of the water in the tank as it helps the bacteria colonize within the gravel)

• Check to make sure all your inhabitants are accounted for. One dead fish can through off the bacteria level.

• Introduce fish in to the aquarium over a period of time. A few every month will allow the water to adjust. Adding fish to quickly before sufficient bacteria buildup, can produce a toxic environment.

• Do partial water changes of about 25-30% every other week.

• If you have the sufficient lighting, purchase plants. These are natural filters that can also help keep your bacteria levels down. Caution: If you do not have the correct lighting to maintain the plant health, plants will also discolor the water as they wither.

If you have done the above and are still having the same problem, you may have to much inhabitants for your tank. You might consider getting a bigger aquarium or reducing the amount of inhabitants in the tank.

Relatively easy to keep, Percula Clown fish will eat a variety of live, frozen, and flake foods.

Peaceful, but may get aggressive to new tank mates as they get older.

Minimal Tank size recommendation is 20 gallons and their beautiful colors make them a
wonderful addition for any reef aquarium. Its worth mentioning tank-bred clown fish are very hardy and durable fish making them a perfect addition for novice hobbyist.

Some live stock available also: a white rabbit and a couple of Labrador Retrievers were the main event, with a Cocker Spaniel napping across from the counter. Opposite of the counter a Sulcata tortoise was on display. A few parakeets and a small selection of freshwater fish and plants could be found toward the back of the shop.

Like the look of the shop, but I can’t shake the feeling that something is missing when I leave it.

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Neon Tetra fish are arguably the most popular aquarium fish. Small, peaceful, and an excellent community fish. Neon’s will accept most flake foods, but should also be fed foods such as brine shrimp, daphnia, and/or freeze-dried bloodworms for variety.

Best kept in groups, as Neon’s are schooling fish and the numbers provide more security, less stress for them and a more spectacular view for you, as they swim (sparkling) through your aquarium.

Of course no larger carnivore fish should be kept with them as they may end up being the meal.

No dogs or cats here, but bunnies, guinea pig, and mice could be found here. As well as a nice selection of Jackson Chameleons, with a variety of lovebirds, cockatiels, parakeets, and finches displayed toward the back. Along the side of the shop were aquariums stocked with Freshwater and Saltwater fish.

Also, one of the few shops that had Crown Betta fish available (Yes, I’m still in to that. Even more so as the betta I bought at Pets Plus is content in sticking its head in its marble stones all day like an cartoon ostrich- and no its not dead.). I have to say, even though small, they had the best selection of betta’s I’ve seen thus far. (Although the water they’re contained in could be changed)

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As always, a good selection of birds and small animals. Today they had a pair of diamond silver doves available along with their always full stock of parakeets, cockatiels, parrots, conures, finches, and canaries. Kittens were also available, as were guinea pigs and bunnies.

Puppies available a Shih Tzu, Fox Terriers, and a pot-bellied pig.

Always worth a visit.

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