Think Twice Fish

[Rokuzachi]

Oh, what a familiar list of fish from my novice days

Sadly, I owned a good portion of that list in my first 6 months of the hobby and I was, of course, woefully unprepared for all of them. My Pacu in particular was a monster.

 

[abrahamavelar]

yup because i even found out that platys mollies and vuppies are bullies worst than the tiger barbs reputation!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i i gree with the top 20

 

[StuG]

Yup, totally agree on keeping the list concise.
As for naming it, how about "do you really want THAT fish?"

 

[LyndaB]

Aww, that name gives the impression that the fish has cooties or something..... sadly, many fish on the list not only don't have cooties but are highly desirable fish.

 

[absolutangel04]

I think this is a great thread and could be a good reference tool for people. I especially like the pictures that were in HN1's thread which really put things in perspective.

My only suggestion would be that we stick with the fish which are widely available to unknowing consumers at chain stores and most LFS's like Bala Sharks, Tinfoil Barbs, SAE's, etc...

If we start getting into things like Dwarf Gouramis, Mollies and Neon Tetras...this might be an never-ending list which would become cluttered and hard for the newbies to take in all the information.

In that format we might as well add everything from GBR's (which die off for unknown reasons), Guppys (which many novices might not understand how prolifically they breed), Oto's (which have a substantial die off rate when new), etc...

Again, I think the list is great...but just IMO it might be the most effective if formatted in a "Top 20" list or something similar. Technically every fish should be a "Think Twice Fish." JMHO

Yeah, the pictures he got are good. It would be nice to show a picture of some of these fish in a proper tank, with a person standing next to the tank so people can see just how big a tank some need.

I am not sure if I should remove the dg, or just leave it. I thought about replacing it with neons since it is my understanding that neon tetra disease can be pretty bad since any fish that eats part of the dead fish will die. And I have thought about just taking it off altogther.

Oh yeah, tinfoilbarbs and silver dollars.

Also, I don't think I can edit the title. I agree that every fish should deserve a second thought before adding them to our tank, but this isn't aimed at experienced fish keepers and I do not think all new fish keepers even know that such potentially monster sized fish are commonly available. I know I have heard multiple people they just assumed you get some fish and add water and everything would be fine. I also stayed away from a name with negative connotations because the listed fish are all really cool, so I don't want new people to hate them. Lol, I also didn't want to get angry responses from everybody who owns one of them saying I was insulting their fish.

 

[librarygirl]

I like the title

I also like Eco's suggestion of keeping it limited to the top 10 or 20 most commonly sold and misunderstood fish. Then at the end you could put something like "But every fish should be a 'Think Twice Fish;' research before you purchase" or something similar. Once this "guide" is done I think I'm going to add it to my signature.

 

[absolutangel04]

I like the title

I also like Eco's suggestion of keeping it limited to the top 10 or 20 most commonly sold and misunderstood fish. Then at the end you could put something like "But every fish should be a 'Think Twice Fish;' research before you purchase" or something similar. Once this "guide" is done I think I'm going to add it to my signature.

Thanks. Good idea to add something like that at the end. I will re-read the intro and conclusion and add that in there somewhere where it makes sense. I also agree about keeping it concise. If its too long, people won't read it. That why I added the commom names in bold. Its for lazy people.

 

[Talvari]

The list is fantastic and I can't tell you how often people buy them cause they look "cool" and then complain when they become too much too handle. Its like... well... I *Told* you they get big.

Two more to the list:

Iridescent sharks and Bichirs.

The sharks get entirely too large for most aquariums (2 to 4 feet anyone?!) and no one believes me when I tell them that this three inch fish is going to get that big.

Bichirs.. similar reason. They get big and they have a nasty reputation!

 

[absolutangel04]

The list is fantastic and I can't tell you how often people buy them cause they look "cool" and then complain when they become too much too handle. Its like... well... I *Told* you they get big.

Two more to the list:

Iridescent sharks and Bichirs.

The sharks get entirely too large for most aquariums (2 to 4 feet anyone?!) and no one believes me when I tell them that this three inch fish is going to get that big.

Bichirs.. similar reason. They get big and they have a nasty reputation!

Thank for for the suggestions. I am not familiar with what an iridescent shark is, so I will look it up. Also, I have considered bichirs, but I personally have never seen one, so I do not know how common they are. A bunch of people on here have them though. Again, I will look more into it. Thanks for the advice!

 

[absolutangel04]

I am now unable to edit my original post, so the list stays as it is.
I thought about removing dg and adding the tinfoil barb in its place, but thats ok. Enjoy.

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

Definatly add the moray and fire eel. Those things get huge. Also the silver dollar fish? Thats what its called rite? They grow crazy fast

 

[Davies97]

Bala sharks aka silver sharks are a type of catfish

 

[absolutangel04]

Bala sharks aka silver sharks are a type of catfish

No, they aren't. They are cynprinids aka carp/minnow family as stated in the original post.

 

[Rushboy]

I love my Bala's!

Nice list! I thought very carefully when getting my 2 Bala's, Rafiel and Michaelangelo. They are very peaceful, and do well with my other fish. I also got 2 baby Plecos. My other fish are 4 mollies and a pouch snail who snuck in. My Bala's are still small, but are very nice to my other fish, which aren't much smaller than them. Now, this doesn't always happen, and I am telling you that Bala's and Pleco's do get very big! I know how to deal with both. I am telling you guys something. Bala's rarely jump, mostly if they get startled. So thank you!

 

[maxwellag]

Nice list! I thought very carefully when getting my 2 Bala's, Rafiel and Michaelangelo. They are very peaceful, and do well with my other fish. I also got 2 baby Plecos. My other fish are 4 mollies and a pouch snail who snuck in. My Bala's are still small, but are very nice to my other fish, which aren't much smaller than them. Now, this doesn't always happen, and I am telling you that Bala's and Pleco's do get very big! I know how to deal with both. I am telling you guys something. Bala's rarely jump, mostly if they get startled. So thank you!

What size tank did you put those fish in?

 

[vanimal]

I dont know if this has mentioned yet but panagius catfish!!! (I.D. Shark, Paroon Shark) they get over 2 feet long and need a HUGE SIZED TANK!

 

[DragonFish71]

Let's not forget species that need salt in their tank (BW) but are sold in most stores as FW.

Especially the ones that are wild caught in BW then thrown into FW by the supplier, those that survive get sold.

dragon goby: Gobioides broussonnetii (wild caught)

bumblebee goby: Brachygobius doriae

monos: Monodactylus sebae and Monodactylus argenteus (the two most common in the trade)

figure 8 puffer: Tetraodon biocellatus

archer fish: Toxotes jaculatrix

scats: Scatophagus argus

 

[maxwellag]

Let's not forget species that need salt in their tank (BW) but are sold in most stores as FW.

Especially the ones that are wild caught in BW then thrown into FW by the supplier, those that survive get sold.

dragon goby: Gobioides broussonnetii (wild caught)

bumblebee goby: Brachygobius doriae

monos: Monodactylus sebae and Monodactylus argenteus (the two most common in the trade)

figure 8 puffer: Tetraodon biocellatus

archer fish: Toxotes jaculatrix

scats: Scatophagus argus

There are fully FW bumblebee gobies...there is two different kinds.

 

[DragonFish71]

There are fully FW bumblebee gobies...there is two different kinds.

yes, but they can be distinguished by either the latin name (if labeled correctly) and the fact that the FW ones usually have spots, black bands that don't connect or are poorly defined.

The point is RESEARCH

 

[maxwellag]

yes, but they can be distinguished by either the latin name (if labeled correctly) and the fact that the FW ones usually have spots, black bands that don't connect or are poorly defined.

The point is RESEARCH

Ok, but my point was that there is no need to put both on the list.