Angelfishes care guide:Breeding, Diet, habitat and more

Are Angelfishes suitable for your aquarium? 

If you really want to have angelfish into your community of fishes, then you need to know few important aspects regarding these species. After all you'll get a no doubted clarity about angelfishes with better solutions into your mind that how to take care of these angels. 

In this article, every detailed info about angelfishes are mentioned which helps you find whether these species suits in your tank or not. 

Major important characteristics about these fishes are included in this article those are their appearance, habitat, tank mates, diet and breeding. You go through each and every specific info, because that gives  answers to your questions. 

So let's go in details.... 

Classification of Angelfish

The angelfishes are belongs to the Cichlidae family of genus pterophyllum. Pterophyllum genus is a collection of species with just 3 different varieties. All types of angelfishes are discovered in the Amazon and Orinoco river basins of the South America. 

The three varieties of species under genus pterophyllum are Ptyerophyllum scalare, pterophyllum altum and Ptyerophyllum leopoldi. The scalare fishes are most popular for aquariums and are sold from bred under captivity. The altum type of angelfishes are available less than scalare. The leopoldi are harder to be found in the market. 

The areas connected to the Amazon basin and Orinoco basin are famous for anglefish. Most of the aquarists bred these fishes under favourable environmental conditions which suits their livelihood. The scalare angelfishes are distributed from Peru, Columbia and Brazil regions along the Amazon basin. The other types of pterophyllum are very likely to be seen in Essequibo,Rupununi and Orinoco rivers. 

How do they look? 

All varieties of Angelfishes are appears to be similar in body structure. They seems to be flat on the either side with no rounded portion of mass and abdomen. They are round in shape with different colourations on their bodies. The triangular elongated dorsal and anal fins with pointed edges which protects from predators by helping in hiding on the layer of the river bed. 

The pelvic fins of these fishes are visible as thinner and longer with pointed tips. The adipose fins are adsent or appears to be connected with dorsal fin. The dorsal and anal fins are appears to be extended to the caudal fin because of the shape of angelfish. The pectoral fins can't be seen in many fishes, because they appears to be smaller and transparent which can be seen under clear visuals. 

The colour varieties of these fishes are very high in number as well as popular among aquarists. There are different angelfishes with various coloured patterns and designs. Silver, gold, pink, black and other fishes are with multiple colours on their body with strips and scales over their skin. Silver angelfish, zebra angelfish, golden angelfish are few names of the angelfishes that describe the colouration of their body. 

How long do they grow? 

The angelfishes can typically grow up to 10 inches long in the wild atmosphere , but the growth rate changes based on the environment they live in.In aquariums,the growth rate is moderate because of the lack in their survival measures. They grow about 6 - 8 inches in the  aquarium, so a tank of min 20 gallon is a good suggestion to bred. 

Life span

The life span of angelfishes ends at their 10 years of age under captivity with a favourable environmental condition. The range of their lifespan varies at different times and environments they live. 

Natural Habitat 

The pterophyllum species are originated from South American river basins of Amazon and Orinoco. The native tropical climate suits their livelihood the most. The slow moving rivers are the best places to find these fishes in wild region. The dimmer lightening areas are much preferred by these species. 

They survive in the warm water with temperature around 27°C - 32°C . The hardness of the water must be about 50 ppm - 156 ppm. The pH of the water need to be maintained from a very 6.8 - 7.8 pH range. Well performed filters with clean pipes and short radius are better for your aquarium to maintain the hardness at a constant value. 

Tank mates of Angelfish

The angelfishes are always found with a non-aggressive temperature, unlike the most of the other cichlids. The important thing that to be noted is not to place these fishes with other cichlids because they get aggressive to each other, especially during mating. 

The small fishes which fits into their mouth are treated as a snacks, so better avoid small fishes like the bettas, zebra Danios , tetras and other fish fries from being killed. The peaceful fishes like kuhli loach, clown loach, oscar fish and leaf fish are suitable tank mates for the angelfish. 

The common plecostomus species, barbs can also be placed along with angelfishes to make them comfortable. 

The gouramis, larger tetras, Rainbow fish, corydoras and medium catfishes can tolerate angelfishes. 

Angelfish Diet 

The angelfishes are inherited the omnivorous nature from their ancestors. They can be feeded with a balanced diet, it keeps them healthy and happier. The angelfishes find some Crustaceans and worms in their natural habitat. 

While under captivity, you have many options to grab a perfect diet for your angels. If you wanted to have live food for your angelfish, then you can go with blood worms and shrimps which gives them high energy to participate in their daily activities. If not, you may have dried and frozen versions of this worms which are available in your nearer stores. 

The pellets, tropical flake food, colour flakes are also works good for them. They eat these foods with more excitement. Feed them a quantity of food that they can consume in 2-3 minutes less than thrice a day is quite sufficient for their healthy life. 

Breeding in Angelfish

The angelfishes appears to aggressive when they above to mate with opposite sex partner. This kind of behaviour is quite natural in all other cichlids. The maturity in these fishes are comes into existence at their 6 or 12 th month of age.  They lay eggs with higher amount about 100 to 1,300 even more until they reach 3 years of age. After that point of time, the rate of production of eggs gradually decreases and stops at a certain time. 

The angel fishes finds a better and comfortable zones behind the plants and caves in the aquariums. The female chooses a flat layer to lay eggs like the glass surface, pipelines and other flat areas in the aquarium. The females layes eggs about 100 - 300 after every 7 - 10 days of period. The male starts fertilizing the eggs after immediate production of eggs. The parents take a good care of their eggs unless they get disturbed by other species. Once they come to know that they are harmed by the other species , they swallow their fry. 

The fry uses the remained yolk in the egg shell as a food when they start their organ development. Once the eggs turns into fry, then the fries are ready to have their first diet from the external source. Feed the fry with proper diet which provides them healthy nutrition for other few days of their growth. Keep the fry away in a seperate tank till they reach their maturity, because if you keep them with other species that may kill them. So take a good care of your fishes by creating a safe and suitable environment for the baby fishes. 

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