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.
Platy
A small, compact livebearer native to Mexico and Central America, the platy is prized for its bright colors, peaceful nature, and ease of breeding in home aquariums.
freshwater
Molly
A hardy, adaptable livebearer native to Mexico and Central America, the common molly thrives in fresh, brackish, and even marine water and is one of the most popular beginner aquarium fish.
freshwater
Yucatan Molly
A large sailfin livebearer native to the coastal waters of the Yucatan Peninsula, known for the male's dramatically tall, sail-like dorsal fin used in courtship.
brackish
Black Molly
A solid-black, selectively bred color strain of the common molly, the black molly is one of the most recognizable and widely kept aquarium livebearers.
freshwater
Balloon Molly
A selectively bred molly variety with a distinctive rounded, ball-shaped body caused by a spinal curvature, developed and maintained through aquarium breeding.
freshwater
Sailfin Molly
Named for the male's spectacular, sail-like dorsal fin, this coastal livebearer from the southeastern United States and Mexico is a striking sight in brackish marshes and aquariums alike.
brackish
Shortfin Molly
A hardy, adaptable livebearer native to Mexico and Central America, prized in the aquarium trade for its tolerance of varied water chemistry.
freshwater
Amazon Molly
An entirely female species that reproduces through a rare cloning-like process, the Amazon molly is a biological curiosity native to rivers along the Texas-Mexico border.
freshwater
Molly Miller Blenny
A hardy little blenny that perches motionless on shallow rocks in tropical Atlantic tide pools, easily recognized by the fringed tentacles above its eyes.
saltwater
Gold Dust Molly
A selectively bred molly variety combining a golden-yellow base color with fine black speckling, developed in the aquarium trade from wild Poecilia stock.
freshwater
Variable Platyfish
A close relative of the common platy, the variable platyfish is native to northeastern Mexico and shows exceptional natural variation in color and pattern, giving rise to many popular aquarium strains.
freshwater
Southern Platyfish
The full common name for the widely kept platy, the southern platyfish is a small, hardy livebearer native to Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, prized for its color variety and easy breeding.
freshwater
Mola Mola
The heaviest bony fish in the world, an enormous, flattened, disc-shaped giant that appears to be missing a tail, often seen basking sideways at the ocean's surface.
pelagic
Warmouth
A stocky, big-mouthed sunfish with red eyes and dark cheek streaks, at home in weedy, sluggish waters and swamps of the eastern United States.
freshwater
Peacock Flounder
A tropical Atlantic flatfish famous for rapid color-changing camouflage and a pattern of small blue rings on a sandy brown body, with both eyes clustered on its upper left side.
reef
Ocean Sunfish
The ocean sunfish is the heaviest bony fish alive, a flattened giant with no true tail that drifts through temperate and tropical seas feeding on jellyfish.
pelagic
Raphael Catfish
A hardy South American armored catfish known for the bold cream stripes running along its dark body and its ability to produce audible clicking sounds when handled.
freshwater
Indo-Pacific Sailfish
The Indo-Pacific sailfish is a large, streamlined billfish famed for its towering, sail-like dorsal fin and status as one of the fastest fish in the ocean.
pelagic
Florida Gar
A heavily spotted gar endemic to the Florida peninsula, recognized by dark markings covering its head, body, and every fin.
freshwater
Sailfish
One of the fastest fish in the ocean, instantly recognizable by its towering, sail-like dorsal fin and elongated spear-like upper jaw used to slash through schools of prey.
pelagic
Buenos Aires Tetra
A hardy, cold-tolerant characin from the Parana-La Plata basin, prized in aquariums for its active schooling behavior and subtropical resilience.
freshwaterHardhead Catfish
A common western Atlantic sea catfish with a bony plate on its head, short barbels, and a mouthbrooding reproductive strategy shared with related sea catfish.
saltwater
Pipefish
A slender, elongated relative of the seahorse with a rigid, ring-plated body and tubular snout, commonly found camouflaged among seagrass and algae in coastal waters worldwide.
saltwater
Corydoras Catfish
A small, armored South American catfish genus known for its bottom-dwelling, social schooling habits and distinctive bony body plates instead of scales.
freshwater