Angelfish is a popular freshwater aquarium fish. Because of its striking colors, it is one of the most beautiful fish. Angelfish mainly live in freshwater and live in schools. They usually swim vertically. They prefer food in the form of flakes but can also eat larvae and worms.
According to our research, angelfish can fast for quite a long time, up to two weeks. However, fish farmers should not be subjective and let their fish fast for too long because it will affect the fish’s development. If not properly cared for, angelfish can easily die.
Adult angelfish can reach 12 – 15 cm long and are considered fairly large fish.
There are many types of angelfish, including some popular and widely raised types such as black-striped angelfish, golden sand angelfish, black angelfish, white angelfish, and Albino angelfish.
The Origin and History of Angelfish
Family: Tilapia – Cichlidae
Distribution: South America
Length: 15 cm maximum 25 cm
Food: Worms, crustaceans, insects, plant matter, flake food.
Angelfish tanks
Angelfish are one of the most difficult fish to raise. Therefore, if you intend to raise angelfish, please refer to some of the information below on how to equip yourself with important knowledge in raising ornamental fish. Angelfish tanks should be relatively spacious so the fish can move easily, placed in quiet, cool places, and not directly affected by sunlight and rain. The fish tank must also be aerated regularly to ensure enough oxygen for the fish.
You need to change about ¼ of the tank’s water every week, and the water must be old water (water pumped up and left to settle for three days to destroy all the chlorine in it). Do not change new water, absolutely, because angelfish are very sensitive to the environment, and if you change new water, the fish may die.
The water tank’s temperature must always be between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius. At the same time, the water hardness (dH) is about 9 – 25, and the pH is about 6.0 – 8.0. They mainly eat small fish and shrimp. They are carnivorous fish, so you must be careful and attentive when raising them with other small, docile fish in the tank. In particular, angelfish rarely or never eat pelleted fish food.
Angelfish should not be kept with puffer fish because it will nibble the angelfish’s tail, making them lose their beauty.
Water temperature
Angelfish usually live in large schools in the wild. However, the most suitable number in an aquarium is 6 – 7 fish. The temperature is around 25°C. The total water hardness is 4 – 12 dGH, and the best aquarium is 40L.
Angelfish swim vertically, and their fins will not develop if the tank height is less than 40cm. The tank height should be at least 50cm. Tank should not be smaller than 100L. The average for six fish is 400L.
Angelfish are not omnivores. They eat very little and should only be fed once or twice a day. However, starving your fish is not recommended, as it will negatively affect their growth and health.
Angelfish have a long lifespan, up to 8-9 years. However, if not properly cared for, they will only live less than four years.
The growth rate of fish depends on their diet. However, most grow about 0.5-1cm per month until they are 6-8 months old. After that, the growth rate slows down. They can reach 12-15cm in length. Fish are fully grown at 12-18 months of age.
Common diseases in angelfish
- Exophthalmia: Fish with this condition have hemorrhages on their bodies, black spots, fin loss, and even tumors. Causes include not cleaning the tank regularly and infection by parasites. Cataracts cause eyes to explode.
- White spot disease is usually caused by parasites. Still, it can also be caused by lack of maintenance, high NH3 concentration, stressed fish that are poorly adapted to the environment, or not being quarantined.
- Fish hunger strike: Because of loss of appetite.
Sex
It is very difficult to distinguish the sex of angelfish. People only know that the difference between male and female angelfish is the distance between the ventral and anal fins. For females, this distance is a little wider. When the eggs are old, the female swims slowly with a big belly. At this time, the male fish follows the female fish to court. Thanks to their affection, we can catch the right pair of male and female fish and raise them separately for breeding.
Reproduction
Angelfish can breed naturally in an aquarium. The aquarium for angelfish to breed should not be too small, at least 50 ~ 60 liters of water. A clump of algae should be placed in the aquarium so that the tip of the algae is about 20 cm before reaching the surface of the aquarium.
We can replace the algae with a new, clean brick placed vertically at the bottom of the aquarium. Some people also use bowls or cups to make a nest for the fish. It is important to note that the object used to make the nest must be placed about 10 cm or more below the surface of the aquarium.
Angelfish lay eggs
When discovering the nest placed by the owner in the pond, the male and female fish immediately come close to each other and cling to each other for a while. First, the male fish sprinkles slime onto seaweed or bricks (or bowls, cups), then the female fish lays eggs on that slime.
Each litter, angelfish, can spread from a few hundred to a thousand eggs. The first litter the fish lays is small, but the number of eggs in each litter increases.
The parents guard the nest. They occasionally turn the eggs, and any that fall to the bottom of the tank are diligently picked up by the male and placed back in the nest. The eggs hatch about two days later. The newly hatched angelfish are very small and weak. They live attached to the nest and only leave after three or four days to look for food.
They lay many eggs, but the parents like to eat their young. Therefore, when the fry hatch, the parents must be taken out and raised separately, or the eggs must be moved to another tank.
At about three or four days old, the fry can eat food. They can eat corn, egg powder, or Biscotte (roasted rice powder mixed with dried egg yolk). From ten days old, the fry can eat mosquito larvae.
When the eggs have not yet hatched, and the fry appears, the aquarium must be supplied with oxygen regularly so that the eggs hatch evenly and the fry multiply. At about two months old, baby angelfish are considered adults.
Preferred habitat
The aquarium has driftwood, rocks, gravel, and aquatic plants.
