You might be wanting to learn more about angelfish if you’ve taken an interest in them lately. If you have friends who have beautiful home aquariums, then you’ll likely have seen angelfish at some point.
These fish are common sights in home fish tanks because of how stunning they look. They’re very colorful, and the way that they swim through the water is quite elegant.
If you’d like to add some angelfish to your fish tank, then you’ll be happy to hear that they’re easy to care for overall. However, there is still a lot that you need to know to ensure that it’s a good idea to add them to your tank.
Are angelfish schooling fish? Will you need to purchase several angelfish to be able to care for them properly in your tank?
Continue reading to get all of the pertinent information about angelfish. This will allow you to buy angelfish for your tank with confidence.
Angelfish Aren’t Schooling Fish
Angelfish aren’t schooling fish, but this doesn’t mean that they aren’t social fish. When you find angelfish in the wild, you’ll see that they like to stay in groups in the same area.
The angelfish that you find being sold at pet stores in North America are cichlids. They’ve been named angelfish because of their beauty and the way that their fins resemble wings.
The types of angelfish that you’re talking about keeping in your aquarium are freshwater angelfish. They’re very hardy and easy to care for.
You don’t have to keep them in large groups, but they do like being in groups. There is some information about this situation that you’ll want to know before deciding on the number of angelfish you’d like to purchase, though.
Some angelfish enthusiasts say that the perfect number of angelfish for a tank will be six. However, there are many people who keep just two angelfish in one tank and have a very positive experience.
Male Angelfish Fight
Since angelfish are a semi-aggressive species of fish, it might not be surprising to hear that the males fight each other. If you choose to keep two males in the same tank, then there is a good chance that they will fight.
In the wild, these fish are always competing for resources. They do the same thing while in captivity, and the territorial nature of the angelfish will come out.
This can be especially problematic if you’re keeping two male angelfish in a small tank. The two will likely fight and injure each other.
You can see why this would be a big problem. However, it isn’t typical for angelfish to kill each other during these spats.
It isn’t out of the question, though. If you keep two male angelfish in a small enough tank, then one could wind up killing the other.
You can avoid problems such as this in a few different ways. One option is to avoid putting two males in the same tank.
Another idea is to keep the male angelfish in a tank that is very large. This should reduce the number of incidents where the two angelfish will fight.
When there is more than enough space, the two fish will be able to avoid each other. It can also help quite a bit to have aquatic plants in the tank that the fish can use as hiding spots.
Keeping Even Pairs Will Be a Good Idea
Angelfish form pairs for mating purposes. The way that they form pairs will be somewhat interesting, too.
You’ll see a male and a female angelfish chasing each other and wagging their fins. When a male and female truly form a pair, they will lock lips and shake each other.
The fish aren’t fighting, but it might look as if they are to the untrained eye. When you see the lip lock, that’s a sign that the two have formed a pair and will try to make babies soon.
It’s likely going to be easier to breed these fish if you separate the pairs into breeding tanks when it’s time for them to lay eggs. This makes it so that the male will fertilize the eggs, and the parent fish will have a simpler time defending the eggs as well.
That being said, you should also know that it’s better to keep even pairs of angelfish in the tank. For example, keeping two males and one female in one tank would be a recipe for disaster.
The two males would be in constant competition to impress the female. It’d cause the males to fight a lot, and this simply wouldn’t be wise.
If there are enough males and females for all of the fish to pair off, then that will be much better. Keep this in mind when choosing the number of angelfish to buy for your aquarium.
Angelfish Can Be Kept in Community Tanks
You don’t have to keep angelfish in tanks with just other angelfish. There are some enthusiasts that say that this is the best way to care for these cichlids, but you can certainly keep the fish in community tanks as well.
However, you can’t put angelfish in tanks with just any other fish. As you might suspect, there will be some fish that the angels will bully and try to eat.
Angelfish will try to eat any fish that are too small in the tank. You shouldn’t place small fish in the tank with the angels if you want them to survive.
It’s also not wise to put big fish that will aggressively bully the angelfish in the tank. You need to seek out tankmates that are compatible with the angelfish.
There are a ton of different options that you can consider if you wish to keep angelfish in a community tank. Guppies are well-known pet fish that will work well alongside the angelfish.
You could also choose to put corydoras catfish in the tank since they can get along well enough with the angelfish. Other good options include neon tetras, keyhole cichlids, molly fish, swordtails, platy fish, and dwarf gouramis.
Now that you see that there are so many fish that can be kept in community fish tanks alongside angelfish, you’ll see that you can make a beautiful tank with diverse fish in it. You just need to ensure that the fish are cared for properly and that you did the research to ensure that all of the fish are compatible with one another.
Remember the Water Parameter Requirements
When you’re choosing fish that can go in the tank with the angelfish, it’s imperative to keep the water parameters in mind. Many fish will be compatible with angelfish, but some might have slightly different water parameter preferences.
Angelfish prefer to be kept in water that has a temperature that is between 76 degrees Fahrenheit and 84 degrees Fahrenheit. The pH balance of the water should be between 6.8 and 7.8.
You’ll need to place fish in the tank that will also be able to stay healthy and thrive when the water is kept like this. Most of the common fish that are popular in freshwater tanks should do pretty well with these parameters.
It’s simply wise to look things up beforehand. You don’t want to add a fish to the tank before you know what is required to keep the fish in good health.
Keep the Angelfish in Large Fish Tanks
You remember from earlier that keeping two male angelfish in a small tank is not a wise idea. This is also going to apply when you’re putting the angels in with other fish.
If you wind up cramming a small fish tank full of various types of fish, then the territorial nature of the angelfish will start to come out. You’ll likely have more issues with the angelfish trying to fight and aggressively chase the other fish than usual.
This can all be avoided by simply buying a tank that is more than large enough for the number of fish that you wish to keep. Instead of buying a tank that is just large enough, it’d be smarter to buy a tank that has more than enough room.
Of course, you need to have enough space in your home to accommodate the fish tank. If you’re not working with much room, then you’ll need to be conservative about how much fish you’re putting in the aquarium.
Sometimes it might be more practical to have two separate smaller tanks instead of one very large tank. It might depend on how your home is set up and what you think would be more convenient.
Final Thoughts
Angelfish are not considered to be schooling fish, but they do like to live in groups in areas where they are close to each other. You don’t need to keep tons of angelfish in one tank for these fish to be happy.
It’s possible to simply buy a pair of angelfish for your fish tank. You could also keep six of them in the same tank assuming that you have a big enough aquarium.
You should be able to add angelfish to a community fish tank if you’re putting them in with fish that are compatible with them. Since these fish are mildly aggressive, you do need to be careful about which fish you put in the tank alongside them.
Doing research ahead of time will allow you to get the best results. You’ll have a good time keeping angelfish in your fish tank if you choose to get some, and keeping them healthy shouldn’t be too hard either.
Jeff has always enjoyed having pets, but as a child, he was drawn to his family’s fish tank. Being able to maintain a small ecosystem and observe the behaviors and interactions in the underwater world peaked his interest early on and has kept him hooked until this day. On Avid Aquarist, Jeff shares everything he’s learned about helping aquatic life survive and thrive in a home aquarium.