Species database
Every species, with the details that actually matter.
Tank size, care level, water parameters, temperament, reef-compatibility, and feeding — all in one place. Filter to find the right species for your tank.
47 species found
Achilles Tang
Family Acanthuridae
The Achilles tang is gorgeous and notoriously difficult — wild-caught only, prone to ich, and demands large swimming room with strong flow that mimics the surge zones it comes from. An expert fish, often listed at expert prices.
Min tank: 180 gal
Ocellaris Clownfish
Family Pomacentridae
The classic beginner saltwater fish — hardy, peaceful, and famously bonded to anemones (though anemones are advanced and not required).
Min tank: 20 gal
Psychedelic Wrasse
Family Labridae
Hawaiian-endemic wrasse with intricate red-and-white patterning — a high-value display fish. Like other Anampses, it benefits from a deep sand bed for sleeping and an established system with a healthy copepod population.
Min tank: 70 gal
Dusky blenny
Family Blenniidae
Plain-brown blenny that earns its keep eating filamentous algae and perching photogenically on rockwork. Peaceful, hardy, and well-suited to nano and mid-sized reefs. Make sure there's enough algae growth to feed it.
Min tank: 20 gal
Blacksaddle Toby
Family Tetraodontidae
A pocket-sized puffer with personality — recognizable, curious, and one of the few pufferfish small enough for a mid-sized reef. Will sample coral polyps and small inverts opportunistically; not a fully reef-safe choice.
Min tank: 30 gal
Copperband Butterflyfish
Family Chaetodontidae
Famous for eating aiptasia — and equally famous for being difficult to feed once the aiptasia is gone. Captive-bred specimens are dramatically more successful than wild-caught. Quarantine and ensure it's eating before purchase.
Min tank: 75 gal
Ternate Chromis
Family Pomacentridae
Schooling damselfish for the open water column — a peaceful counterpoint to the more aggressive blue-green chromis. Hardy and beginner-friendly, but the group will thin itself down to one or two over time.
Min tank: 30 gal
Azure Demoiselle
Family Pomacentridae
Vivid yellow-and-electric-blue damsel — much more peaceful than its reputation suggests, especially in a larger tank with established territory. Beautiful color contrast against rockwork; hardy under nearly any reef conditions.
Min tank: 30 gal
Exquisite Wrasse
Family Labridae
A fairy wrasse with stunning courtship coloration when males display. Active mid-water swimmer that adds constant motion. Like most fairy wrasses, it benefits from a tight-fitting lid — they're enthusiastic jumpers.
Min tank: 30 gal
Pixy Hawkfish
Family Cirrhitidae
Hawkfish with a perched, alert posture and reddish blotchy markings. Personality-driven and undemanding — but it considers small ornamental shrimp and tiny fish to be food. Compatible with most reef inhabitants over 2 inches.
Min tank: 30 gal
Pinkspot Shrimpgoby
Family Gobiidae
Shrimp goby with a built-in entertainment system: it forms a lifelong commensal pair with a pistol shrimp that digs and maintains a shared burrow. Get the goby and shrimp at the same time for best pairing odds.
Min tank: 20 gal
Goldring Surgeonfish
Family Acanthuridae
Kole tang — arguably the best algae-grazing tang for a mid-sized reef. Constantly working over rockwork picking off film algae and detritus. Hawaii-sourced specimens are sustainably collected and tend to ship better.
Min tank: 55 gal
Bluestripe Pipefish
Family Syngnathidae
Small, peaceful pipefish that picks at copepods and amphipods. Best in mature systems with established pod populations and no aggressive tankmates. Will not compete for prepared foods — feeds on what it can find.
Min tank: 30 gal
Midas Combtooth Blenny
Family Blenniidae
Unusual blenny — it swims in mid-water rather than perching, with a lyretail and shimmering gold body. Peaceful, beginner-friendly, and one of the few blennies that integrates well with active swimming tankmates.
Min tank: 20 gal
Neon Goby
Family Gobiidae
Tiny Caribbean cleaner goby that sets up cleaning stations and actually picks parasites off larger fish — the captive-bred equivalent of the wild-caught cleaner wrasse, without the ethical concerns. Excellent in pairs.
Min tank: 20 gal
Lamarck's Angelfish
Family Pomacanthidae
One of the few truly reef-safe angelfish. Picks at zooplankton rather than nipping corals, and the male's elegant tail makes it a centerpiece. Best in larger systems where it has room to cruise the open water column.
Min tank: 75 gal
Lemon Coralgoby
Family Gobiidae
Small yellow goby that lives directly inside the branches of Acropora corals — secretes a defensive mucus that other fish learn to avoid. Reef-safe and peaceful; pairs do well in established SPS-friendly systems.
Min tank: 20 gal
Royal Gramma
Family Grammatidae
Stunning purple-to-yellow gradient. Hardy, peaceful, and one of the most beautiful fish you can keep at this care level.
Min tank: 30 gal
Blackcap Basslet
Family Grammatidae
The blackcap basslet is the deeper-water cousin of the royal gramma — purple body with a sharp black cap. Hangs upside-down under overhangs and in caves. Hardy, peaceful, and a great alternative if royal grammas feel overdone.
Min tank: 30 gal
Rainbow Wrasse
Family Labridae
Rainbow wrasse with iridescent flanks and a deeply-forked tail. Active sand-sleeper — needs a deep sand bed for nightly burrowing. Will sample small ornamental shrimp; safer with mature corals than with delicate inverts.
Min tank: 30 gal
Schooling Bannerfish
Family Chaetodontidae
The schooling bannerfish — a Moorish-idol lookalike that's dramatically easier to keep. Best in groups of 3–5 in a larger tank. Not reliably reef-safe (will sample LPS and zoanthids), so think of this as a fish-only-with-live-rock species.
Min tank: 75 gal
Northern Seahorse
Family Syngnathidae
Captive-bred lined seahorses are one of the few seahorses suited to home aquariums. They need a species-specific tank with hitching posts, slow flow, and 3–4 small meals daily. Not compatible with active fish that would outcompete them at feeding.
Min tank: 30 gal
Queen Angelfish
Family Pomacanthidae
Caribbean queen angel — large, brilliantly colored, and a centerpiece for big systems only. Will pick at LPS and sponges; treat as fish-only-with-live-rock. Juveniles and adults look like different species, both stunning.
Min tank: 220 gal
Old Glory
Family Gobiidae
Old glory goby — orange and yellow horizontal striping make it one of the most colorful small gobies you can keep. Active grazer that picks at film algae and detritus on rockwork. Hardy and peaceful in any reef.
Min tank: 20 gal
Bluestreak Cleaner Wrasse
Family Labridae
The bluestreak cleaner wrasse looks irresistible and we don't recommend it. They specialize on parasites in the wild; in captivity most starve within months. Captive-bred neon gobies (Elacatinus oceanops) do the same job and thrive.
Min tank: 30 gal
Leopard Wrasse
Family Labridae
Leopard wrasse — stunning spotted pattern, but obligate copepod feeder. Only buy from suppliers who confirm the specimen is eating, and only put it in a mature system with a thriving pod population (or refugium feed).
Min tank: 30 gal
Linespot Fangblenny
Family Blenniidae
Striped fang blenny — venomous to predators, peaceful to everything else. Mimics and is mimicked by several other species. A hardy mid-water swimmer that adds personality without aggression. Good first-fang-blenny pick.
Min tank: 20 gal
Bluespine Unicornfish
Family Acanthuridae
Bluespine unicornfish — a giant tang that reaches over two feet in adulthood. Reef-safe and personable, but needs a tank of 240 gallons or more long-term. Not a fish you grow out of an 80-gallon and "rehome."
Min tank: 240 gal
Decorated Dartfish
Family Microdesmidae
Purple firefish — the showier cousin of the standard firefish, with deep purple, magenta, and yellow accents. Same care: peaceful, mid-water hovering, jumpy. A tight-fitting lid is non-negotiable.
Min tank: 20 gal
Firefish Goby
Family Microdesmidae
Slender, white-and-orange with a tall first dorsal fin. Hovers in open water and dives to its burrow at the slightest scare.
Min tank: 20 gal
Redtooth Triggerfish
Family Balistidae
The redtooth triggerfish is a comparatively peaceful trigger that swims in the open water column rather than picking apart rockwork. Reef-safe with caution — it tolerates corals but will sample small ornamental inverts.
Min tank: 100 gal
Longnose Hawkfish
Family Cirrhitidae
Striking red-and-white grid pattern on a long-snouted hawkfish that perches in branching coral. Reef-compatible with corals but will pick off small ornamental shrimp. Hardy and easy to feed once established.
Min tank: 30 gal
Emperor Angelfish
Family Pomacanthidae
The emperor angel is one of the most recognizable reef fish. Juveniles are dramatic blue-and-white spirals; adults transform into yellow-and-blue striped powerhouses. Needs a very large tank long-term and will sample LPS and sponges.
Min tank: 220 gal
Bartlett's Anthias
Family Anthiadidae
Peaceful anthias in vivid yellow and lavender — schools naturally in the wild. Like all anthias, it needs 3–4 small meaty feedings a day and a stable group of 5+. The most beginner-friendly anthias once feeding is established.
Min tank: 70 gal
Four-lined Wrasse
Family Labridae
Four-line wrasse — small, hardy, and effective at controlling pest flatworms and bristleworms. Mildly aggressive to similar small fish, so add it last to the stocking order. A favorite of nano-reefers.
Min tank: 30 gal
Orange Dottyback
Family Pseudochromidae
Electric-orange dottyback — small, vibrant, and useful for controlling bristleworm and pyramid snail populations. Aggressive for its size: don't pair with similar small peaceful fish. Add last to the tank.
Min tank: 30 gal
Lagoon Triggerfish
Family Balistidae
The Picasso triggerfish — bold geometric markings and even bolder personality. Will rearrange rockwork, eat anything it can fit in its mouth, and learn to recognize you. Fish-only territory; not reef-safe.
Min tank: 100 gal
Red-striped Shrimpgoby
Family Gobiidae
Yasha goby — partners with a pistol shrimp in a shared burrow, just like the Pinkspot. The yasha is smaller and more nano-friendly, and the red-striped white body is striking. Always buy the goby-shrimp pair together.
Min tank: 20 gal
Orange-dashed Goby
Family Gobiidae
Diamond goby — large, peaceful sand-sifter that constantly filters sand through its gills, exposing detritus for cleanup. Needs an established sand bed with sufficient microfauna or will slowly starve. Mature systems only.
Min tank: 20 gal
Gilded Triggerfish
Family Balistidae
The most reef-safe triggerfish — feeds on zooplankton in the wild and won't molest most corals or inverts. Adult males develop a striking blue throat patch. Pairs do well in larger systems.
Min tank: 100 gal
Yellow Tang
Family Acanthuridae
An iconic, brilliantly yellow surgeonfish. Active, grazing, and a centerpiece of medium-to-large reef tanks.
Min tank: 75 gal
Brown Tang
Family Acanthuridae
Brown tang — understated coloring belies a hardy, active grazer. Reaches the same adult size as a yellow tang and benefits from the same conditions: plenty of swimming room and constant access to algae or nori.
Min tank: 180 gal
Percula Clownfish
Family Pomacentridae
The percula clownfish (Amphiprion percula) is one of the most iconic reef fish in the hobby — small, hardy, and famously photogenic against host anemones. Tank-bred specimens are widely available and adapt well to standard reef tanks.
Min tank: 30 gal
Flame Angelfish
Family Pomacanthidae
The flame angel (Centropyge loriculus) is a small Indo-Pacific dwarf angelfish prized for its vivid red-orange body with vertical black bars. Reef compatibility is generally good but individual specimens can occasionally nip at large-polyp stony corals and clams.
Min tank: 70 gal
red velvet fairy wrasse
Family Labridae
Red velvet fairy wrasse — deep ruby coloration with iridescent scales. Peaceful, beautifully behaved, and jumper-prone (lid required). Pairs and harems work in larger reef tanks with established territories.
Min tank: 30 gal
Mandarinfish
Family Callionymidae
Synchiropus splendidus, the mandarinfish or mandarin dragonet, is a small, brightly colored member of the dragonet family, which is popular in the saltwater aquarium trade.
Min tank: 50 gal
Purple Tang
Family Acanthuridae
Purple tang — vivid violet body with a bright yellow tail. One of the most striking tangs in the hobby. Like other Zebrasomas, semi-aggressive toward similar-shaped tangs; add early or last in the stocking order.
Min tank: 130 gal