Blood Parrotfish

About the fish:

The Blood parrot (also known as bloody parrot and blood parrotfish; is a hybrid cichlid. The fish was first created in Taiwan in around 1986. Blood parrots should not be confused with other parrot cichlids or salt water Parrotfish. Blood parrots are bright orange in coloration, but various colors may be produced by dyeing the fish, which can shorten life expectancy. The fish are injected with a colored dye by the breeder. The fish have several anatomical deformities, including a beak-shaped mouth that cannot fully close, which they compensate for by crushing food with the throat muscles. fish can grow to a length of 8–10 inches (20–25 cms). Blood parrots are hardy and may be housed by enthusiasts singly, in schools, or with complementary species under a variety of conditions.

Angelfish

About the fish:

This is an Angel Fish. It belongs to the Cichlidae family. They live in the Amazon River, among the bulrushes. They grow thickly, and it is no easy task to get between their stems. But the Angel Fish swim freely in and out, for their bodies are completely flat. They come out to play in the clear water, but as soon as there is any sign of an enemy, back they dart into the rushes. Once there, they are as well protected as though they were behind the fence; their enemy can see them, but he can’t get through to them, so he has to give up and go away hungry. There are varieties of Angel Fishes namely Marble Angel, Silver Angel, Zebra Leopard Smokey, Gold Angelfish , Butterfly Angelfish, Black Velvet Angelfish etc whose pictures will be posted in my next post. The picture above is of a Koi Angel.

Pink Veiltail Oscar

Albino Oscar

Tiger Oscar

Red Oscar

Oscar

About the fish:

Astronotus ocellatus is a species of fish from the cichlid family known under a variety of common names including oscar, tiger oscar, velvet cichlid or marble cichlid. In South America, the species naturally resides

It has different varieties including long-fin, albino, golden, etc. The oscar cichlid is fast growing and can grow to a very large size when mature, and therefore should be housed in a large aquarium. The oscar can be messy to look after as they love to dig up plants and scoop up rocks. The oscar should be put with fish of similar size as they will eat any fish that can fit in their mouth. The oscar prefers to be with members of its own species, but this is not a necessity for its well being. The oscar is one of the more hardy cichlids, and can be put with other large cichlids, large sharks, and other large fish.

Red Melon Discus

About the fish:

These are all very healthy and hardy strains. Strong, vibrant colors Small Discus are rather colorless until they reach a size of at least 3" or 4. Discus are considered by many hobbyists to be the ultimate in freshwater fishes. Called the "King of the Aquarium," there is a mystique about Discus that goes beyond their good looks and fascinating behaviour.The Red Melon Discus is featured by yellow color at the face followed by the red color till its end.

Firemouth Cichlids

About the fish:

Firemouth cichlids (Thorichthys meeki) are native to Central America. They occur in rivers of the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico, south through Belize and into northern Guatemala. It has also been reported to live in underground cave systems. The common name, firemouth, is derived from the bright orange-red colouration on the underside of the jaw. Males in particular flare out their gills, exposing their red throats, in a threat display designed to ward off male rivals from their territory. Like most cichlids, brood care is highly developed; this species is an egg-layer.

Electric yellow cichlid

About the fish:

The electric yellow cichlid, Labidochromis caeruleus, is a freshwater fish, a cichlid. It is also known as lemon yellow lab, the blue streak hap, the electric yellow African, and is called the yellow prince in the Philippines. It is endemic to the central western coastal region of Lake Malawi, at the Lion’s Cove and Nkhata Bay areas, in East Africa. It has become a popular commercial fish for aquarium enthusiasts. Their bodies are strikingly bright yellow, having sometimes dark black streaks on their fins. While specimens kept by aquarists are generally bright yellow with black markings, specimens from different areas of Lake Malawi exhibit different coloring. In their natural habitat, electric yellow grow to about 7 cm in length, and have been known to reach 15 cm in captivity.

This species is a maternal mouth brooder, meaning the eggs are carried, hatch, and develop in the mother’s mouth (buccal cavity), for about three weeks. electric yellows should not be kept with freshwater community aquarium species such as Zebra Danios or Neon Tetras, they may nip the finnage of other species, and are not recommended for freshwater community aquariums because of the differences in the natural habitats between cichlids and other fish species.

Ram cichlids

About the fish:

Mikrogeophagus ramirezi is a species of freshwater fish endemic to the Orinoco River basin, in the savannahs of Venezuela and Colombia in South America. It is also called as Ram, Blue ram, German blue ram, Asian ram, Butterfly cichlid, Ramirez's dwarf cichlid, Dwarf butterfly cichlid and Ramirezi. The species is a member of the family Cichlidae and is included in subfamily Geophaginae.

The ram cichlid is a popular cichlid for the tropical freshwater, community aquarium although it is not necessarily the easiest cichlid to maintain in many situations. This is because the species is often kept with other fish that are more assertive, aggressive or overly active. The species is innately shy and is best kept with passive dither fish, such as neon or cardinal tetras(http://www.tetraz.blogspot.com).

Numerous strains of M. ramirezi have been developed in Asia for the fish keeping hobby. These include numerous xanthistic forms, known as gold rams, along with larger, high-bodied and long-finned varieties. Many of these varieties suffer from lower fertility, health problems or reduced brood care in comparison to wild-type specimens.