This month's Quick Catch: The Panda Garra / Rainbow Garra (Garra flavatra) — one of Mike's all-time favorites, a striking black, yellow, and red algae-eating community fish that eats even black beard algae.
This month's Quick Catch: The Fahaka Puffer (Tetraodon lineatus) — Mike's favorite XL fish, a highly intelligent wild-caught puffer that can live 20+ years, grow 18 inches, and requires a 150-gallon minimum and a species-only tank.
Mike makes a passionate case for why you should NEVER buy a Common Pleco (Hypostomus plecostomus) — sharing real-life stories from his pet store about the invasive species problem and the reality of how large these fish truly get.
This month's Quick Catch: The Cardinal Tetra (Paracheirodon axelrodi) — a staple of Mike's tanks since childhood, with its iconic full-body red stripe, peaceful schooling behavior, and mesmerizing presence in planted aquariums.
This month's Quick Catch: The Zebra Pleco (Hypancistrus zebra, L046) — one of the most coveted fish in the hobby with its stunning black-and-white pattern, critically endangered status, and fascinating breeding challenges.
This month's Quick Catch: The Vampire / Viper Shrimp (Atya gabonensis) — a peaceful West African filter feeder that changes colors, grows up to 6 inches, and makes a stunning and compatible addition to community freshwater tanks.
This month's Quick Catch: The Sunshine / Goldie Pleco (Scobinancistrus aureatus, L014) — one of Mike's all-time favorite plecos, known for its stunning black-and-gold transformation from juvenile to adult, peaceful temperament, and 15-year lifespan.
This month's Quick Catch: The African Butterfly Fish (Pantodon buchholzi) — the Arowana's distant cousin that glides through the air, snatches crickets mid-leap, and makes a fascinating surface-dwelling predator for the right tank.
This month's Quick Catch: The Electric Blue Acara (Andinoacara pulcher) — a man-made hybrid of the Blue Acara with stunning electric blue coloring, peaceful temperament, and impressive longevity of up to 20 years.
This month's Quick Catch: The Red Neon Blue Eye Rainbowfish (Pseudomugil limitatus) — one of Mike's all-time favorite nano fish, with its stunning neon red/orange body, blue-ringed eyes, and suitability for shrimp tanks.
