Ok Im a little confused about the angelfish size thing

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bball4life

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Nov 27, 2004
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Whenever I look online to buy angelfish it will either say quarter size, half dollar size, or silver dollar size. How big are these, like in inches? And are quarter size angel big enough to breed?
 

mooman

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Mar 8, 2005
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it's exactly how it sounds. imagine an angelfish whose body and most of it's fins are about the size of a quarter. I think inches arn't used because of the odd shape of the fish. I'm not sure how big they have to be to breed, but definately bigger than a quarter or half dollar. Since they are impossible to sex untill older (even then nearly imposible), the two ways to breed them are to buy a group of small angels and wait for them to pair off when they're old enough, or buy a proven breeding pair (hard to find).
 

SnakeIce

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actually that usually refers to the size of the body. a quarter is about 7/8 inch across and a half dollar is 9/8 inches across so just a quarter inch difference. Baby angels tend to be delicate up untill about those sizes.

You may get your first spawns out of your angels when their bodys are 2.5 inches but that spawn will be small and they might not get it right the first time and not raise the batch.
 

bball4life

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Nov 27, 2004
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So your saying even when they are 2.5 inches they probably wont spawn. Oh yeah I might be getting 6 sand dollar size anglefish how big are these and are they ready to spawn?
 
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SnakeIce

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My uncirtainty about the ability of the angels to rear young even if they are capable of reproduceing is due to the genetic degradation of parenting behaviors. Even with good instincts, it is a behavior that is developed. a first time mother of any species isn't as well prepared and might not go as smoothly. Quality angels will care for their young even if it takes them a failed batch to get the process started.

A sand dollar size description would make me think these are adult angels, and I would have no clue as to how old they are. They could be old angels that might spawn or not, you could do better with growing out a group of juvenile angels.
 
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FishSeller

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Uhhh...I would ask exactly what a sand dollar sized fish is...Sand dollars are living animals that grow. I've found them as small as a dime and as big as a breakfast plate (sorry about more general size references...ha ha). Snake is right, though, angelfish size usually refers to the body size. I would look at your cost differences between the half dollar and silver dollar sized angels. If you think the price is neglegable between the two, go with the larger fish. I would ask that they pack the fish extra light. I think you'll find it easier to pay more for shipping and have fish arrive alive than to skimp on shipping and go through the hassle of a D.O.A claim.

I know this if off-topic, but other size references used in the fish trade as follows:
golf ball
bigger than a golf ball
baseball sized
'bout the same size as the top of a Coke can
tea saucer
 

bball4life

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SnakeIce

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Angelsplus.com, best garuntee I've seen on live fish anywhere. I drool over their wild cross angels.
 
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