Our cold water system is full of fish suitable for unheated tanks, ranging from very small species to larger ones and common fish to those which are rarely seen.
Many of these species (especially White Cloud Minnows and various Danio species), make excellent alternatives to fancy goldfish, being smaller in body size and therefore less messy and more compatible with each other.
Some highlights of the rarer species include:
Tchang's Loach - Leptobotia tchangi (very rarely seen Chinese species).
Taiwan Horsemouth - Candidia Barbata (rarely seen cyprinid).
Rainbow shiner - Notropis chrosomus (colouring up very nicely).
Golden-Spot Goby - Stiphodon ornatus.
Butterfly Hillstream Loach - Beaufortia kweichowensis (Chinese species).
We received some chunky Bamboo Shrimp in yesterday's delivery. They should hopefully be on sale for the weekend.
Our newly refurbished discus sump with Vietnamese discus, which are currently very active after enjoying a hearty frozen feed.
Reds, blues, yellows and pigeon bloods available.
These will hopefully be on sale within the next week.
We currently have the rare Taiwan Horsemouth 'Candidia barbata' in store at a good size. This is a true coldwater species, preferring temperatures around 15-20C. This stream dwelling species can attain 15cm in length, so a large, well oxygenated aquarium is required with no small fish, as they will be predated upon.
We currently have a nice batch of Sentani Rainbowfish 'Chilatherina sentaniensis' available, with some very vivid males. Rainbows make a good choice of larger sized, peaceful fish for larger community tanks.
Costa's Tetra 'Moenkhausia costae' (also known as black-line tetra) is a rarer species of South American Characin which we currently have in stock. Best kept as a shoal with other fast moving, shorter finned fish and only reaches 6cm in length.
The African Broadband Darter Tetra 'Neolebias unifasciatus' is a rarely seen species of African Characin from Nigeria. This peaceful, shoaling, tropical species only reaches 5.5cm, making it perfect for moderately sized aquariums.
In this video, you can see two species of 'oddball' fish that we currently have in store.
The long silvery species is Rocket Gar 'Ctenolucius hujeta' and is native to northern South America. This mainly surface dwelling species is not a true gar, but is in the characin (tetra) family and can reach around 30cm in length. Best kept in small groups in a large aquarium with no small fish as these will be predated, but otherwise fairly peaceful. Avoid aggressive species, such as cichlids, snakeheads etc.
The other species is the African Butterfly Fish 'Pantodon bucholzi'. Another surface dweller found in Central/Western Africa, this species can reach 15cm in length and is a prodigious jumper, meaning a tight fitting lid is essential. Avoid keeping with nippy species as the elongated pelvic fins will be targeted. These fish can be fed on small crickets and locusts on the water surface and are fascinating to observe.
We currently have a good range of high end male fighters in stock, including this lovely plakat elephant ear. Fighters are good choices for a single centre-piece fish in calm and peaceful community aquariums.
If you know, you know. 1 pair only.
The current cost of electricity means that temperate aquariums are becoming increasingly desirable. In this video you can see a rarer temperate species, 'Danio kyathit', the Spotted Orange-Finned Danio. The maximum size of this fish is only 4.5cm, making them an excellent choice for modest sized aquariums with other peaceful shoaling species.
While we love an oddball species/catfish here at Wilton, its important not to forget those 'bread and butter' species that grace many aquarists aquariums. Black Phantom Tetra 'Hyphessobrycon megalopterus' and Blue Emperor Tetra 'Inpaichthys kerri' are small, peaceful shoaling fish that make excellent community choices. These fish have a max. size of 4/5cm and can be mixed with the many other peaceful community tetras, barbs and rasboras that are available in the hobby.