Fish Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ fish species — freshwater, saltwater, reef, and pelagic — with habitat, size, diet, behavior, and how to tell them apart.
Spined Loach
The Spined Loach is a small, striped bottom-dweller named for the tiny erectile spine beneath each eye, found in slow-moving European and Asian waters.
freshwater
Red Devil Cichlid
A bold, thick-lipped Nicaraguan cichlid known for its fiery orange-red or white coloration and famously feisty, combative temperament.
freshwater
Rummynose Tetra
A slender silvery tetra known for its bright red-orange snout and a bold black-and-white striped tail, prized for tight, synchronized shoaling.
freshwater
Scooter Dragonet
A small, mottled reef-associated dragonet that rests on sand near coral reefs and moves in short scooting hops rather than continuous swimming.
reef
Saddleback Clownfish
A dark, saddle-marked clownfish that shelters among the tentacles of large sea anemones on sandy reef slopes and lagoons across the Indo-Pacific.
reef
Sebae Clownfish
A dark brown clownfish with a bold yellow tail and two white body bars, native to reefs of the northern Indian Ocean and closely tied to the sebae sea anemone.
reef
Scissortail Rasbora
A slender silver rasbora named for its striking black-and-white tail markings that open and close in a scissor-like motion while swimming.
freshwater
Ram Cichlid
A small, dazzlingly colorful South American dwarf cichlid prized for its violet-blue iridescence and peaceful, pair-bonding nature.
freshwater
Red Phantom Tetra
A blackwater Orinoco characin with a rosy translucent body and bold black shoulder mark, known for its tall, flag-like dorsal fin in males.
freshwater
Rock Goby
A small, mottled goby common in rocky tide pools along European and North African coasts, easily spotted darting between rocks at low tide.
saltwater
Pacific Halibut
The Pacific halibut is a massive right-eyed flatfish of the cold North Pacific, closely related to the Atlantic halibut and among the largest bony fish in its range.
saltwater
Pacific Blue-eye
A tiny, schooling fish common in coastal streams and estuaries of eastern Australia, easily recognized by its reflective, luminous blue eyes.
brackish
Penguin Tetra
An Amazonian characin recognized by its bold black tail stripe and unusual head-up swimming posture resembling a penguin's stance.
freshwater
Peacock Cichlid
A brilliantly colored Lake Malawi cichlid whose males flash iridescent blues, oranges, and yellows to attract mates and rivals alike.
freshwater
Otocinclus
A tiny suckermouth catfish that spends most of its time grazing algae and biofilm from surfaces in slow-moving South American waters.
freshwater
Numbfish
A small electric ray capable of generating an electric shock to stun prey and deter predators, found buried in sandy shallows along warm coastlines.
cartilaginous
Mutton Snapper
A rosy-pink Western Atlantic reef snapper marked by blue eye-lines and a small black spot below the dorsal fin, with elegantly pointed fin tips.
reef
Northern Sea Robin
A bottom-dwelling western Atlantic fish with an armored head and huge wing-like pectoral fins, using leg-like fin rays to walk across the seafloor.
saltwater
Frilled Shark
An eel-like, primitive deep-sea shark often called a living fossil, with six frilly gill slits and rows of needle-like teeth for catching soft-bodied prey.
deepsea
Goonch Catfish
A massive, mottled bottom-dwelling catfish of South and Southeast Asian rivers, capable of growing to enormous size in deep river pools below rapids.
freshwater
Cubbyu
A small, deep-bodied drum with a tall dorsal fin and faint dark stripes, often seen hovering near reef ledges in the western Atlantic.
reef
Dusky Shark
A large, robust requiem shark found along continental coastlines worldwide, notable for its slow growth and long-distance migrations.
saltwater
Bronze Corydoras
A hardy, metallic-sheened armored catfish that forages along the substrate and is one of the most widely kept bottom-dwelling aquarium fish.
freshwater
Cookiecutter Shark
A small, cigar-shaped deep-sea shark known for gouging round cookie-shaped plugs of flesh from much larger animals, including whales and other sharks.
deepsea