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Animal-World > Freshwater Fish > Angelfish | Discus | Hybrids > Angelfish - Common

Angelfish - Common

Angelfish | Discus | Hybrids Index

Angelfish

Family: Cichlidae 'Silver' Angelfish

Albino Angelfish Pterophyllum scalare Photo � Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

Latest Reader Comment - See More

I recently aquired a pair of gold angels. They are thriving in the my amazonian aquarium and only have share it with a trio of bronze corys. I hope to add more ang... (more) Rory Mackenzie 2008-10-03

Timid, temperamental, and delicate, the Angelfish is familiar to every freshwater aquarist.

The Angelfish is a graceful disk shaped cichlid. Though it was named for the marine angelfish, it bears little resemblance to these fish or even to any other fish in the Cichlid family. They are found in nature with black bars on a silver colored body. Some mutations are also found in nature where these fish are without bars, are solid black, and have lace forms. These mutant forms have become fixed forms by captive inbreeding. Today there are many color and finage varieties including the Silver Angelfish, Zebra Angelfish, Marbled Angelfish, Veiltail Angelfish, Blushing Angelfish, and even with much effort, a Gold Angelfish.

The Angelfish is considered a community fish, but it is a cichlid and may not be as sociable with smaller fish. They will school peacefully when they are young, but tend to pair off and become more territorial when they are older. Being a bit timid, they can be frightened by shadows and fast movements. They will feel most at home and comfortable in a warmer aquarium that has hardy plants placed around the inside perimeter, has some rocks and roots, and has an open area in the center for swimming.

Angelfish: Species or Hybrid?

The Angelfish species are a most attractive and graceful group of fish.
Currently there are three recognized species in the Pterophyllum genera:
The common Angelfish Pterophyllum scalare, the Altum or Orinoco Angelfish Pterophyllum altum,
and Pterophyllum leopoldi.

   The common Angelfish sold today is generally considered to be a hybrid of Pterophyllum scalare, however, this may not be the case. Mutant forms of Angelfish found in the wild have become fixed forms by captive inbreeding. Besides the three described species of Angelfish there are thought to be several undescribed species.
   Questions have arisen as to what species the common Angelfish sold today actually is. There is not a definitive answer. All the angelfish species are similar in appearance. In the early days there was much confusion identify imported species and little recording of cross breedings.
   The common Angelfish has historically been referred to as Pterophyllum scalare because this angelfish proved to be the hardiest and easist to breed in captivity. Of the other two described species, the Pterophyllum leopoldi is rarely imported. The Wild Angelfish Pterophyllum altum is rare and only wild caught specimens can be obtained. For years it was considered impossible to breed, however more recently it has been successfully bred by some hobbyists but is still not commercially developed.

For more Information on keeping freshwater fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Freshwater Aquarium

Dream Aquarium

Build your own aquarium The Coolest and Funnest Screensaver in the World.

Geographic Distribution Pterophyllum scalare


Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Actinopterygii Order: Perciformes Family: Cichlidae
Data provided by FishBase.org

Distribution:
The Angelfish was described by Schultze in 1823. They inhabit slow moving waters of rivers in South American: the central Amazon River basin and tributaries to Peru, Brazil, and eastern Ecuador. Though the Angelfish sold today is often referred to as being Pterophyllum scalare, wild specimens vary widely from the long established captive bred varieties.

Status:
This species is not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:
The Angelfish are found in nature with black bars on a silver colored body. The laterally compressed body has a distinctive diamond shape and pointed snout. They have oversized extended dorsal and anal fins, these and the tail fin are long and flowing. In mature fish the tail fin can develop streamers on the outside corners. The pectoral fins are very long and delicate.
Some mutations also found in nature are where these fish are without bars, in solid blacks, and in lace forms. Today there are many popular varieties available, including:

"Marble" Angelfish

"Gold Veiltail" Angelfish

"Koi" Angelfish
Photos © Animal-World:

Silver: This variety has a silver body with 4 vertical black stripes.
Zebra: This is a Silver variety with extra vertical black stripes.
Black Lace or Zebra Lace: This variety has very attractive lacing in the fins.
Halfblack Silver: This variety has a black rear portion.
Ghost: This is a Silver variety with just a stripe through the eye and tail.
Lace: This variety is without complete stripes. Ghosts generally have more iridescence than non-ghosts.
Smokey: This variety has a dark brown/gray back half, and dark dorsal and anal fins.
Chocolate: This is a Smokey variety with more of the dark pattern and sometimes only the head is silver.
Halfblack Silver: This variety has a black rear portion.
Gold: This variety is quite attractive, some will develop an intense orange crown.
Gold Marble: This is a Gold variety with black marbling.
Marble : This variety has more black pattern than Gold Marble does.
Silver Gold Marble: This variety is Silver with some Gold Marble.
Gold Pearlscale: This variety has a scale mutation. The scale have a wrinkled, wavy look that reflect light to create a sparkling effect.
Koi: This is a Gold variety with some marbling, and a variable amount of orange.
Sunset Blushing Veil Angelfish: On this variety the upper half of the fish exhibits orange, sometimes the body is a pinkish or tangerine, and juveniles have clear gill plates.
Leopard: The young have spots over most of their body. Most of these spots grow closer in the adult.
Blue Blushing: The body of this variety is actually grey with a bluish tint under the right light spectrum. An iridescent pigment develops as they age, appears blue under most lighting.
Black Hybrid: This variety is very very and may look brassy when young.
Lace: This variety is without complete stripes. Ghosts generally have more iridescence than non-ghosts.
Albino: This variety lacks pigments The eye pupils are pink as in all albino animals
Silver: This variety has

Size - Weight:
The Angelfish reaches a length of about 6 inches (15 cm) in length.

Care and feeding:
Since they are omnivorous, the Angelfish will generally eat all kinds of live, fresh, and flake foods. To keep a good balance give them a high quality flake food or pellet everyday. Feed brine shrimp (either live or frozen) or blood worms as a treat. You can even feed them lettuce or spinach. Feed mosquito larvae sparingly as they will tend to overeat it, which could kill them.
A minimum 40 gallon aquarium, though a larger tank would be suggested if keeping several. They need good water movement along with very strong and efficient filtration. Provide hardy plants placed around the inside perimeter along with some rocks and roots, but keep an open area in the center for swimming. They prefer subdued lighting. These fish do not burrow and will not damage plants as much as other cichlids. Do water changes of 15 to 20% a week depending on bio load. They are subject to diseases that ail all freshwater fish.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom:
These fish will swim in all areas of the aquarium.

Acceptable Water Conditions:
   Hardness: 2-10° dGH
   Ph: 6.0 to 7.5
   Temp: 75-82° F (24-28° C)

PIcture of Freshwater Angelfish, Silver Angelfish

Social Behaviors:
Though they are considered a community fish, Angelfish will get territorial as they get older. Being in the cichlid family, smaller fish do not do well with them. They will pair off, developing a strong nuclear family, and defend a territory in which to breed. A nice thing about Angelfish is that they don't burrow or disturb plants!

Sexual Differences:
There are no distinguishable differences except in breeding season, then the papilla on the male is pointed and on the female is blunt. The males sometimes make a loud grating sound with their jaws when mating.

Buy
Angelfish

From LiveAquaria.com

Breeding/Reproduction:
Angelfish are egg layers.The female lays up to 1000 eggs on leaves. If the parents don't eat the eggs, the larvae and fry are carefully guarded. See the general description of how to breed Cichlids in Breeding Freshwater Fish.

Availability:
Angelfish are readily available online and in fish stores in many different color and finage varieties.

Author: Clarice Brough, CFS

Latest Comments
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I recently aquired a pair of gold angels. They are thriving in the my amazonian aquarium and only have share it with a trio of bronze corys. I hope to add more angels in the future and possibly obtain a breeding pair. They are great for tanks with other slow moving peaceful fish but will consume any small shoaling fish such as neons and other small tetras. Rory Mackenzie 2008-10-03
Hi! I just got a few marble angelfish today and they are as everyone thinks, angels. I also got a few dalmation-spotted mollys and they got along great with my angelfish! Even though one of the dalmation spotted mollys showed aggressiveness they just do that over food sometimes when they are just announced to each other. Megan Russell 2008-08-24
I just got an angel fish yesterday. He is absolutely beautiful! He is quite peaceful but is a bit scittish. Do not keep them with neon tetras! In the wild neons are their natural prey. They are fine with cardinal tetras though. Kurt van Wyk 2008-08-22
Hey just thought I would say that I have read up on my theory and every book seems to agree that females have more rounded bodies and shorter bottom twig things (don't know the correct term hehe) that aren't much longer than their bodies. While the males (like the one in the top pic) have really long "bottom twig things" and long top and bottom fins which point more upwards than the females. It would be better if I could show you what I was going on about, as I bought 3 females and they cause no bother, not even to the 4 1cm baby bristle noses, or my little frog that wonders about. They all eat next to each other :D Jenny 2008-07-25
We've had Angel fish for a long time, my brother tried breeding them and never could, my dad tried after my brother and it went worse for him. So I decided to put them in my all plant aquarium... to my surprise they had eggs, on my big leafed plant, I was actually surprised or shocked I guess when I found out that they hatched. Its been 3 or more days since then with several still alive. One angel is a marble the other is a gold. Is that considered rare or normal. I'm guessing normal. Anyways, knock on wood, they survive!! I would like to know how long it takes for the babies to mature enough so we can take the parents out. OR if we should even take them out. Plus I just found out my female peacock was pregnant so it was quite a great week! Ramsey Jasper 2008-06-22
Some of the coolest comments:
I am surprised by the responsiveness of my juvenile angelfishes. When I walk past my aquarium they all, but one in particular more, swims back and forth in front of me hoping to be fed, I assume. It steals my heart. The hardest part is trying not to overstuff them, as they are voracious eaters. In my opinion they are not the least bit shy and are not easily startled like other feisty fish. They are gentle fish most of the time and they coexist well with the rest of their tank mates. Be wary of barbs that may attack them and nip their beautiful fins, like my tiger barb which nearly decimated the fins of my marble angel; as a matter of fact he no longer has a tail!- Mirella Aldaba, 22 Mirella Aldaba 2006-09-18