Buy Archer Fish
for Sale
Click
herenow
to buy Archer
Fish.
This
video was shot through the glass
of an aquarium, and you can see the
side of this Archer Fish.
This
video was taken looking down through
the surface of the water. Click
here
for more about buying Archers from us.
Here
is a relaxed Archer Fish that has
a very pretty pattern of dark and light
areas on its body.
Here
is an energetic Archer Fish. This
video was taken looking down through
the surface of the water.
Click on the images above.
Scientific
Name: Toxotes jaculator
The commonest Archer
Fish in the aquarium hobby has been called Toxotes
jaculator, but apparently this name is currently
incorrect, and the correct scientific name is Toxotes
jaculatrix. Click
here for a list of all the valid species of
Archer Fish in the Toxotes genus.
There are now six
valid species of Archer Fish. We usually have the
fish we know as Toxotes jaculator. The fish shown
below is probably a different species of Archer
Fish.
This
picture shows an old Archer about
5" long that may not be the common Archer
Fish, Toxotes jaculator, but a similar
species. This Archer was living in a
large aquarium with other large Archer
Fish, when this picture was taken.
Here
is a large Archer Fish about 5 to
6 inches long. Click
here or on the picture to see a
larger picture of this fish.
The scientific name of the
5" Old Archer Fish on your
website is toxotes chatareus,
or Papua New Guinea Archer.
It can be kept with most
rainbowfish, especially
boesmani rainbowfish. The
rainbowfish can tolerate
5 grams of aquarium salt,
but marine salt is much
better.
Kathryn L.
Reply.
Hello Kathryn. Thank you
for your email comments. When you say "5
grams of aquarium salt", do you mean 5 grams per
liter? In our facility we find that
aquarium salt works better for us than marine salts.
Possibly because the marine salts increase the pH
of our water, but the aquarium salt does not increase
the pH. Click
here for
more information about our opinion.
Their
Magic Trick
Archer Fish are brackish water
fish that can adapt to living in either freshwater
or saltwater, but they live best in water with about
1 Tablespoon of aquarium salt in each five gallons
of aquarium water. In their
natural habitat Archer Fish are often seen swimming
just under the water's surface, shooting drops of
water from their mouths to knock insects down onto
the water's surface, where they can be eaten.
Archer
Fish will often perform this magic trick in an aquarium,
if insects are above the water. Click
here for more information about how they do
it.
Behavior
Archer
Fish are hardy, energetic, and not too aggressive,
but like most fish they will swallow fish that fit
into their mouths.
Click
hereto read about several groups of compatible
fish.
Appropriate
Home
Eventually a large
aquarium with at least 50 gallons of water, an
exterior power filter with a BIO-Wheel, a maximum
of 1/4 inch of
gravel, an
aquarium heater adjusted to keep the water between
78 and 82 degrees F., and at least 1 Tablespoon
of
aquarium salt per each 5 gallons of aquarium
water. Click
here for more about warm water aquariums.
Recommended Diet
Feed Archers freeze dried blood worms,
freeze dried shrimp and krill, which are available
in most stores that sell pet fish, plus some Live
Black Worms,
Ghost Shrimp, and small fish such as guppies.
The best food for Archers is insects, such as crickets,
floating on the water's surface. Click
here for more about Black Worms. Click
here for more about feeding fish.
Gallery of Archer Fish Pictures
Size
and Lifespan
Archer Fish will live about 6
to 10 years and grow to 5", sometimes with exceptionally
good care they grow a little bigger and live longer.
The advertisement, shown below, links to
this advertiser's web site.