I'm setting up a 75 gallon and am still thinking of stocking options, but lately while looking at different fish care I've noticed how many fish are very difficult to breed, which I assume means majority of the fish purchased would be wild caught. The thought of fish being taken from their natural environment and put into a small glass box bums me out a lot. Anyway what kind of fish do you guys know that are almost definitely captive bred? I've had a bunch of tanks with little dudes and schoolers, this time I'd like to try out some bigger guys. Any suggestions?
Captive Bred Freshwater Fish
- Thread starter zoose
- Start date
Anything albino is almost guaranteed to be captive bred. When you say bigger, what size are you looking for? And what temperament? Aggressive or community? Cold water or tropical temps?
Nearly all Clown Loaches are wild caught, but Oscars are nearly all captive bred. Wild Oscars are skittish and not much of a pet compared with what you normally think of as an Oscar.
Actually most clown loaches nowadays are captive raised from farms in Thailand. They used to be mostly wild caught, but the farms have figured out how to spawn them using hormone therapy and now they are mostly farm raised. There is even a farm in Florida producing them (Bioaquatix). Nearly all oscars are captive raised.
Most cichlids you see in stores are captive raised.
Clown loaches grow slower than Oscars. If you want to keep the two together start out with larger clown loaches and provide them caves to hide in in case the Oscars get aggressive.
Andy
Most cichlids you see in stores are captive raised.
Clown loaches grow slower than Oscars. If you want to keep the two together start out with larger clown loaches and provide them caves to hide in in case the Oscars get aggressive.
Andy
Zoose, a single oscar in a 75g is pretty much all you'd want in there, so keep that in mind.
I keep an O and a green severum in my 75g. I've had them a little over a year now. Definitely will be pushing the limits there.
I keep an O and a green severum in my 75g. I've had them a little over a year now. Definitely will be pushing the limits there.
Almost all clown loaches are still wild caught when small...this doesn't mean you shouldn't keep fish that grow to 10-12 inches slowly over time (10+ years). It means you need to plan ahead for long lived BIG fish, too big for a 75g forever. Many fish are farmed in Asian ponds, I'm not sure that's any better...most cichlids & livebearers are bred in either someone's home or again, Asian farms, so are many tetras. Sidthimunki loaches (dwarf chain loaches) are exclusively bred by hormones in Asia, they've been "red listed" for almost 30 years. Loss of habitat is threating many species much more so than "over capturing".
Not really true. I have spoken with a number of fish importers and wholesalers who are getting them from farms in Thailand (where they are not native). And they are also available from at least one Florida farm. Even India is now starting to farm raise them. This is a pretty recent development (within the last 2-3 years).
Most cichlids in the U.S. actually come from the Florida farms. So do many catfish, Tetras, and Livebearers too. Asian farms produce a lot of fish also but not as many cichlids other than Parrot cichlids, Flowerhorns and angels. Cyprinids and anabantoids are the most common asian imports in the U.S.
Most cichlids in the U.S. actually come from the Florida farms. So do many catfish, Tetras, and Livebearers too. Asian farms produce a lot of fish also but not as many cichlids other than Parrot cichlids, Flowerhorns and angels. Cyprinids and anabantoids are the most common asian imports in the U.S.
