It’s
almost enough to make you want a tropical aquarium of your own. Almost. Not
quite. Clearly they’re far better off where Mother Nature put them, than in a
big glass brick in my living room.
I’m
talking about the stunningly beautiful colorful fish of the world. These are
usually tropical by nature, and are found around those big, complex and teeming
reefs in the warm waters of Asia and Australia. Lots of us don’t often spend a
lot of time thinking about these wee creatures. It’s too easy to get distracted
by the big animals of the world. But these guys definitely deserve a moment of
their own. Here are a few.
Mandarinfish
This is a stunning fish of orange, blue and yellow, with a
pair of bright, red ruby eyes. His colors splash and swoop all over his body in
a most startlingly beautiful pattern. He ranges from Japan down to Australia
and feed at depths of up to 18m.
Juvenile Emperor Angel Fish
This fish is almost hypnotic with his blue and white rings
going round and round. You can’t take your eyes off of him. In adulthood, his
rings will become yellow and blue, but he won’t completely change color until
he’s about four years old.
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Mantis Shrimp
This is an unusual creature. He’s lovely to look at, with
his multi-colored, segmented body bright blue eye stems. Different individuals
have come in a variety of colours, from browns to much more vivacious hues. In
spite of the name, they aren’t shrimp. In fact larger species are said to
sometimes break right through aquariums simply by smacking it.
Siamese Fighting Fish
These are beautiful fish with startlingly gorgeous
coloration. They’ve been known to have various colors from reds to blues,
oranges and almost violets. Some have simply beautiful gradient combinations of
any of these colors, and with their long, flowing fins, they look so peaceful
and almost angelic. But don’t let their appearance fool you. The name is more
telling. Their biggest claim to fame is their inborn talent for beating each
other silly. They’re so aggressive that some say you can’t keep two males
together, as they will beat each other, quite literally, to death. And once the
female lays her eggs, the male must chase her away, as she may turn around and
eat those eggs!
Click here for a picture of the Siamese Fighting Fish
Flame Angel
Now, here’s a fish with a telling and creative name. With
his shockingly bright orange coloration, he looks like he swallowed a burning
hunk of coal.
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Regal Tang
When you first see this fish, you almost can’t believe it
could be real. It’s of a gorgeous, deep royal blue, with a bright, yellow tail.
It can grow to be up to a foot in length!
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So, the
next time you’re feeling a little down, just sit back, close your eyes for a
moment, and contemplate the fact that we’re living in a world capable of
creating such awesome beauty.
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