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So as some of you know, i am pretty new to fish and don't know much about them. Antny has tried to teach me but it sorta didn't work...So would someone care to teach me the basics?

Wow Blonde,

That is a truely broad question.

Any way that you could be a little more specific?

Like do you want to know about the kinds of fish?
Or maybe tank and accessories?

To just answer your overall question would require someone to write a very long post.

Hope to hear from you,

Ingo

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Proud Member of the New Jersey Aquatic Gardeners Club

Well...I was just thinking of the basics of fish...like the groups.

Different types of fish? Have you looked at any of the site FAQs? [link=This]http://www.fishprofiles.net/faq/fish-popular.asp" style="COLOR: #808080[/link] is a good one that should give you a general overview of many types of common fish. There are vast numbers and types of freshwater fish, and the different groups can all vary quite a bit. If you have any questions on specific types, feel free to ask and someone will be able to help you. Otherwise, I suggest reading through some of the forums and looking at the profiles. Some of them are jam-packed with information.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

well!

You can get livebearers (Mollies, Platies, Guppies) which give give birth to live young and so are very appealing,( you become a grandmother very quickly!)they are brightly coloured and can fit in to a 20 but you have to becareful you don't over stock because of the babies.

Cichlids are beautiful fish with really interesting Territorial behaviours and breeding habits, normally they are quite big and need a fair size tank (40+). You can get dwarf Cichlids like Rams (?) who could go into a 30G.

Gouramis and Bettas are air breathing fish who are also territorial, as a rule you can't mix the different types in a tank.

Goldfish belong in ponds. the inch per gallon rule only applies to tiny fish and do you know about cycling?

ermm that is all I can think of for now. there are probably thousands. have you seena picture of a fish you like?

GFG



_______________________________________
Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself.
Harvey S. Firestone

That is one huge question it would take a good book to answer that question.

Go to the local Library and visit as many Aquariums/Pet shops as you can. Some companies have free infomation booklets I know Sera have some excellent booklets. There are also plenty of inexpensive booklets around have a look at these to.


Have a look in [link=My Profile]http://
www.fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/profile.asp?userid=6741" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link] for my tank info

[link=Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tanks]http://photobucket.com/albums/b209/keithgh/Betta%20desktop%20tank/" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link]

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Also look at this it is the first It is the first topic in Getting Started.

[link=look here]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/Getting%20Started/40843.html?200501112339" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link]

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Found this...

a word of caution, if you choose mollys or swordtails as your first fish, make sure the tank is set up with salt...i had many swordtails and mollys that died for lack of salt...no one at any of the pet stores i had been to were able to tell me why they had passed other than my tank ph was prolly off or that they were diseased...ph and amonia was always perfect, i thought i had horrible luck with fish.

then, the local pet store i go to now got some new help, and he informed me that mollies do best in brackish. now i feel awful, i lost 7 mollies and swordtails over a 7 month period due to low salinity.

honestly, a good start up for fish is a school of barbs and corys. i have come to that conclusion after talking to people here, reading the FAQ's, doing my own side research, and now through personal experience.

also, just make sure you buy a gravel vacuum and do partial water changes(20% once a week works well, you can suck up any left over food in the gravel when you do it as well) and your fish will stay happy.

barbs are not fussy eaters, and are ravenous compared to mollies and swordtails, they also have larger mouths, and will eat vegtable flakes readily. i have noticed my school of 5 barbs is less messy and eats better than my two mollys did.

however, i will say,in defence of the livebearers,that live young is quite an experience. i raised a few batches of fry feeding them crushed up food and keeping them in a small tank till they were bigger and giving them to friends or putting them back in the main tank(the one i kept died later...i was a fish killer through the most dangerous weapon of them all...ignorance)...there is nothing like seeing your mother molly give birth to a squirming little fry, or watching the little guys zipping around your tank.