Freshwater Aquarium Fish Temperature Chart

I have looked on the web for a temperature chart and have found nothing.
I found lots of compatibility charts.

So I decided to make one of my own.

If you look you will see, low, high, and optimal.
I choose the optimal by splitting the difference between the low and the high for each species.
Not sure if the optimal is correct, but it does help to bring a quick eye to what fish are temperature
compatible with another fish.

The chart is in excel so I have a screen shot of it here.

Looking to the fishlore community for help and ideas.
Like to keep the chart as simple and easy to read as possible.
Obviously I will never be able to list every known fish out there, because there are over 140 different species of Cory alone. So I am attempting to get the most popular.

Please remember this is still a work in progress.

Thanks Everyone.....

 

A few things

I'd suggest color coding more than 1 temp for an optimal temperature. It is unrealistic to believe that a fish can only be at a single temperature optimally. In the wild most fish have ranges of temperatures that their body of water deviate to.

Second, there are lots and lots of different species of gourami that live all over Asia. Therefore they do not all share the same temperature range.

I'm not sure where you are getting your information from but a good place to start for catfish isplanet catfish and other species of fish is fishbase.se. neither of these sources are perfect but it's at least a start

 

A few things

I'd suggest color coding more than 1 temp for an optimal temperature. It is unrealistic to believe that a fish can only be at a single temperature optimally. In the wild most fish have ranges of temperatures that their body of water deviate to.

Second, there are lots and lots of different species of gourami that live all over Asia. Therefore they do not all share the same temperature range.

I'm not sure where you are getting your information from but a good place to start for catfish isplanet catfish and other species of fish is fishbase.se. neither of these sources are perfect but it's at least a start

I hear ya,
For Gourami I researched these, Pearl, Honey, Dwarf, Gold, and each had the same temp range. But I know there are more, just took this as is for now.

For as research, I do this on tons of different places on the web, and as you suggested none are perfect, and are just places to start.
I have even been to those you suggested. Just bing, google, etc and they all come up.

As far as the optimal range, I know what you are saying, but this is for the quick eye look. I do have high and low ranges. I do understand that in the wild all fish experience different temperature ranges, but that is not so true living inside a glass cage. After all this is what we are talking about.

Of course anyone using any type of chart found anywhere will do so at their own risk, and using their own better judgement, asking others, is always the best way to go.

Charts are used only as a reference guide, and should never be taken as an absolute.

Thank you so much for your input, I do appreciate it.........

 

I love this idea! When looking at options for stocking a tank, something like this would be very helpful! You could probably break it up with separate sections for fish that have a lot of different variances within their own group (gourami as above, corys etc).

One suggestion, a pretty minor one, would be to have the highest temp in red (hot), the lowest in blue (cold) and optimal in green (for go??) You could even add in another colour for optimal breeding temp, if it's different than the regular optimal temp, but that might complicate things

A similar chart showing suitable tank sizes for the most common fish would be great too - not that I'm suggesting you do it - you've got plenty on your plate by the looks of it

Love it! Good luck!!!

 

I love this idea! When looking at options for stocking a tank, something like this would be very helpful! You could probably break it up with separate sections for fish that have a lot of different variances within their own group (gourami as above, corys etc).

One suggestion, a pretty minor one, would be to have the highest temp in red (hot), the lowest in blue (cold) and optimal in green (for go??) You could even add in another colour for optimal breeding temp, if it's different than the regular optimal temp, but that might complicate things

A similar chart showing suitable tank sizes for the most common fish would be great too - not that I'm suggesting you do it - you've got plenty on your plate by the looks of it

Love it! Good luck!!!

Your absolutely correct, I love all you ideas, the color codes you suggest will be better. Also arranging the fish as in upper, mid, lower, and maybe even center piece fish would be a great idea.

I can even add on group sizes as some need 6 or more etc.
This would help for others stocking plans.

Please give me some time, and I will post another file showing the start of your suggestions.
I have other things I need to do for a few hours.... like eat...lol....
Thank you so much for the good suggestions.....

 

I like the idea of grouping them (or just indicating) what section of the tank they swim in, but that's not quite what I meant. Just that for groups that have wide temperature variances within them (like Corydoras) you could do a sub-section for them, and list some of the most common ones (ie Panda, Bronze, SterbaI etc) and their temp requirements, since there is quite a range within the group.
Also something to keep in mind: just because the temp requirements of some species are the same, doesn't necessarily mean they would make great tank mates Just thinking of how at the LFS they have the little stickers on each tank that say 'aggressive' or 'fast swimmers' or 'community' - that kind of thing. If fishkeepers with more experience are looking at the completed list for stocking ideas, they would probably know what fish are suitable tankmates. For beginners, they may not. And then you have a tank full of fish that are heated comfortably but killing each other. lol

 

If you wanted to simplify it more you could just divide the fish into four categories. Cold water, sub tropic, tropic and hot water.

 

I hear ya,
For Gourami I researched these, Pearl, Honey, Dwarf, Gold, and each had the same temp range. But I know there are more, just took this as is for now.

For as research, I do this on tons of different places on the web, and as you suggested none are perfect, and are just places to start.
I have even been to those you suggested. Just bing, google, etc and they all come up.

As far as the optimal range, I know what you are saying, but this is for the quick eye look. I do have high and low ranges. I do understand that in the wild all fish experience different temperature ranges, but that is not so true living inside a glass cage. After all this is what we are talking about.

Of course anyone using any type of chart found anywhere will do so at their own risk, and using their own better judgement, asking others, is always the best way to go.

Charts are used only as a reference guide, and should never be taken as an absolute.

Thank you so much for your input, I do appreciate it.........

I would question the sources you are using if they are telling you a honey and a pearl have the same temperature requirements considering pearls come from the southern Malayan peninsula where waters can get quite warm while honeys are further north in India and Bangladesh not to mention the different types of waterways they are found in. Your honey and thick lips should have a much lower temp range while your pearls and moonlights should be much warmer. Not to say they won't have some overlap.

Research is important but it's only as good as the sources you are using. Simply googling a fish's temperature will surely return some terrible opinions on their ranges. Most of the information out there comes from a poor source that gets repeated over and over again. Using scientifically sourced references like fishbase is the appropriate way to go but even then they can be out dated

Figuring out a fish's optimal range can take more than looking in the middle of an upper and lower bound. One should take into consideration their environment in the wild. While some gymnogeophagus can have lower bounds in the low 60s or high 50s and upper bounds in the high 70s, the fact they spend only a few months a year in the lower extremes would warrant their "optimal range" to not be in the middle of those figures. Also some fish species require a winterization period each year for optimal health. This can't be reflected in a single cell of color.

 

I think the idea here is to have a quick reference sheet as a starting point only. I would imagine that most folks would look at this to get an idea of some general options for stocking, and then do their own research to see what works best for their own tank - just like they would using the 10 gallon stocking list etc on this forum.
It could be ideal for someone who has an existing tank set at a specific temperature, and is looking for some options of fish that might be compatible - rather than roaming the fish stores and finding fish you like, then finding out they have a totally different temperature requirement than what your tank is set up for. (Not that I mind roaming the fish stores at all)
This chart will require a lot of research to get accurate numbers... and will be a ton of work. If Countryrain has the time and energy to do this, I say go for it!

 

I have been working on this and it is getting there, so far this is what I have. If there are any of you that want to help with this, I am giving the idea freely.

I am like Tron: I am all about the "Users" instead of the "Master Control Program". lol

Just let me know how we can communicate privately and I can send a copy of this excel spread sheet to anyone that wants to work on it.

Thanks to Everyone for your help, I am enjoying working on this idea.

Upper spread sheet view:


Lower View:

 

I have been working on this form time to time, when I have a chance. Many of you may consider doing something like this boring or to complicated, but it is neither. I enjoy doing this, for the most part I am learning two things, more about excel spread sheets, and much much more fun learning about our favorite hobby of fish keeping.

I wished I could upload the excel spreadsheet here, but I can't. Because I am reworking the spreadsheet where all a person has to do is click on the name of the fish and it will open up a list of websites for research. Anyway I will figure something out in the near future on how to make the spreadsheet available off a different website. Maybe one my own websites.

 

Getting closer to uploading this to one of my websites. I did figure out that in excel there is a feature that allows me to re-save the spreadsheet in a web page. This will make it a lot easier for me to upload to my website and publish a link. Almost all the features of excel are carried over to the web page with the exception of just one feature. That is the freeze frame of the title where the temperature numbers are located. In the excel spreadsheet itself this allows for scrolling down and still have the temp numbers lined up over the top of the colored squares of the fish being studied. But this feature will not work in the webpage, maybe just a minor problem, all other features seem to work just fine on the webpage.

 

I think this is a good idea. There are few bits I disagree with (72f is maximum for peppered cories imo). It will take a veey long time just to cover the most common fish though. There are hundreds.

 

I think this is a good idea. There are few bits I disagree with (72f is maximum for peppered cories imo). It will take a veey long time just to cover the most common fish though. There are hundreds.

Thanks B.D.
I tell ya, doing research form one website to another about the same fish/species temperature requirements can get a bit confusing. I don't know who produces the info for these different websites, but whoever they are I wish they could agree on temp ranges. There can be some pretty good differences depending on which website a person visits for research.
Example, you believe the Pepper max to be 72f, but this website says 78f.
This is quite a difference.... oh boy, oh boy.....lol

 

I need some help with more fish suggestions to add to my temp chart, especially Cichlids. Does anyone have any suggestions for me.


Thanks Everyone....

 

Some more ideas for you
KuhlI loaches 74-82f
Bristlenose pleco 66-77f
Rubberlip pleco 66-75f
Dojo loaches 56-74f
German blue ram 80-86f
Platies 67-76f
Guppies 71-79f
Endlers 74-82f
Rainbow shark 68-77f

I can think of some more later

 

I have been working on this and it is getting there, so far this is what I have. If there are any of you that want to help with this, I am giving the idea freely.


Upper spread sheet view:
View attachment 469499
Lower View:
View attachment 469500

So brilliant - I have bookmarked to easily find this brilliant reference sheet.
Thankyou countryrain

 

Some more ideas for you
KuhlI loaches 74-82f
Bristlenose pleco 66-77f
Rubberlip pleco 66-75f
Dojo loaches 56-74f
German blue ram 80-86f
Platies 67-76f
Guppies 71-79f
Endlers 74-82f
Rainbow shark 68-77f

I can think of some more later

Thanks BD I will add these, after I have had a cup of tea, and do the wife's honey do list, and they become "Honey Done." lol.......

So brilliant - I have bookmarked to easily find this brilliant reference sheet.
Thankyou countryrain

Thank you so much for the appreciation. It is still a work in progress, and needed a little help to add more fish species. So please check back over time it will be updated with more and more info.

 

Geez that's a lot of info. I'd make sure to have a references/citation page just so people can look for even more info on a specific species if they want, but that's just me

 

One great thing about a spreadsheet is that you can sort by different columns. I know it's possible to do sortable tables on the Web (using JavaScript or whatever) so that when you click on a column heading it will sort the whole table by that column. A lot of tables on Wikipedia list articles work like that. Maybe someone more web-savvy than I am can help you figure out how to make the table sortable.

 

Geez that's a lot of info. I'd make sure to have a references/citation page just so people can look for even more info on a specific species if they want, but that's just me

Thanks for the post,
All you have to do is click on the name of the species and the internet will come up with a search engine for research.

One great thing about a spreadsheet is that you can sort by different columns. I know it's possible to do sortable tables on the Web (using JavaScript or whatever) so that when you click on a column heading it will sort the whole table by that column. A lot of tables on Wikipedia list articles work like that. Maybe someone more web-savvy than I am can help you figure out how to make the table sortable.

Yep it would take someone with a lot more know how then I do about spreadsheets, JavaScript, etc. I mean I can do somethings with the spreadsheet, but I don't know how to do those things.
Thanks for you reply.......

Here is the latest update, if you have excel on your computer/machine then download the spreadsheet. This way you got all the features of the spreadsheet.

Charts are just for reference always do your own research and ask others who have more experience.

 

Yep it would take someone with a lot more know how then I do about spreadsheets, JavaScript, etc. I mean I can do somethings with the spreadsheet, but I don't know how to do those things.
Thanks for you reply.......

You should at least add a filter function to your downloadable EXCEL spreadsheet then one could do things like sorting different parameters on the go. As an example if you wanted to find which Gourami you can put in your 20gal tank with 74F water, it would be simple with your current list, however when you have 50 or more different Gouramis listed it would be difficult without the filtering option. I did a similar spreadsheet a while back trying to decide which plants to put in a Bowfront tank I was setting up. I got tired of going back and forth trying to match up which plants would meet my projected parameters for water, ferts, etc. So I just built a spreadsheet with about a hundred plants I was considering and then filtered out the ones that wouldn't work. It is a lot of work, so enjoy your project.
P.S. I like how you embedded the Bing links....

 

Wow this is so useful! Thank you for taking the time to make this and help out other aquarists!

 

You should at least add a filter function to your downloadable EXCEL spreadsheet then one could do things like sorting different parameters on the go. As an example if you wanted to find which Gourami you can put in your 20gal tank with 74F water, it would be simple with your current list, however when you have 50 or more different Gouramis listed it would be difficult without the filtering option. I did a similar spreadsheet a while back trying to decide which plants to put in a Bowfront tank I was setting up. I got tired of going back and forth trying to match up which plants would meet my projected parameters for water, ferts, etc. So I just built a spreadsheet with about a hundred plants I was considering and then filtered out the ones that wouldn't work. It is a lot of work, so enjoy your project.
P.S. I like how you embedded the Bing links....

LOL.... Like I said, I don't know how to do those things, not that I can't learn but at this time I don't know.

Feel free to download the spreadsheet, and work on it and I will give you contact info to send it back to me. Then I can upload the updated spreadsheet to the website. I am always open to help form others.

Thank You for your suggestions......

Wow this is so useful! Thank you for taking the time to make this and help out other aquarists!

Your very welcome and thank you so much for you appreciation, it makes my efforts all the worth while...............

Oh and by the way everyone that is excel savvy, I have the spreadsheet protected, but there is no password. I wanted others that know how to add their own stuff, twists, ect to the spreadsheet to be able to do so. In my humble opinion this spreadsheet is like open source.......

 

I do like the format, and the idea of putting a lot of fish in one chart so that temperature tolerances can be easily compared is actually quite good. While I commend you for the effort, there are a number of errors already, which are understandable because of the way you are sourcing the information. Rule #1, don't use Wikipedia for anything fish related! Get some old books, like 60s and 70s; the temperature data in those is far more accurate than 90% of what you will find on the internet. Most of what is on the internet actually originates from one source, repeated and copied ad infinitum. I think I have figured out the erroneous source that the internet has copied, which has the wrong range for Neon Tetras, among others. Unfortunately, it is a very well known and trusted series of atlases that started in the early 80s, but they are mostly useful for identifying species, not necessarily for other data.

You have the usual high range on Neon Tetras, which is understandable considering what most sources on the internet will give you. Correct minimum is 68 F. (20C), the maximum for good health is 76 (24c), and optimum for breeding is 73-74 (23C). I have this data from at least four extremely dependable books from the 1960s, one of which was a breeding book by a German aquarist who had very meticulous data and actually experimented to find the optimum breeding range. Even those sources don't match perfectly, but they do agree on the max. Yes, I know a lot of people keep them warmer; they also complain about how delicate and short-lived they tend to be. (Sorry, I've been fighting this battle for 20 years on different forums.)

Big error, you have Scalare Angelfish with a higher range than Discus. I find it odd that while many ranges and maximums are way too high, you have Discus listed as too low. To my understanding, all species of Discus will tolerate up to 88 F., with optimum around 82-84. Low should not be less than 78. Angels, OTOH, max out around 82, and are fine down to 74-75, with optimal around 77-78.

Your max for Jack Dempsey is also too high by about 6 degrees, and optimum should be a few degrees lower. Rocio live in cenotes, which are fed by undergound rivers. This tends to keep the water relatively cool, and temperature fairly consistent year round.

Re-think your sources, maybe get off of the internet and find a wider range of material (particularly pre-internet books). Even if this is just a general recommendation for beginners, it should be at least relatively accurate. Otherwise the usefulness of the format is lost because of inaccuracies.

 

I do like the format, and the idea of putting a lot of fish in one chart so that temperature tolerances can be easily compared is actually quite good. While I commend you for the effort, there are a number of errors already, which are understandable because of the way you are sourcing the information. Rule #1, don't use Wikipedia for anything fish related! Get some old books, like 60s and 70s; the temperature data in those is far more accurate than 90% of what you will find on the internet. Most of what is on the internet actually originates from one source, repeated and copied ad infinitum. I think I have figured out the erroneous source that the internet has copied, which has the wrong range for Neon Tetras, among others. Unfortunately, it is a very well known and trusted series of atlases that started in the early 80s, but they are mostly useful for identifying species, not necessarily for other data.

You have the usual high range on Neon Tetras, which is understandable considering what most sources on the internet will give you. Correct minimum is 68 F. (20C), the maximum for good health is 76 (24c), and optimum for breeding is 73-74 (23C). I have this data from at least four extremely dependable books from the 1960s, one of which was a breeding book by a German aquarist who had very meticulous data and actually experimented to find the optimum breeding range. Even those sources don't match perfectly, but they do agree on the max. Yes, I know a lot of people keep them warmer; they also complain about how delicate and short-lived they tend to be. (Sorry, I've been fighting this battle for 20 years on different forums.)

Big error, you have Scalare Angelfish with a higher range than Discus. I find it odd that while many ranges and maximums are way too high, you have Discus listed as too low. To my understanding, all species of Discus will tolerate up to 88 F., with optimum around 82-84. Low should not be less than 78. Angels, OTOH, max out around 82, and are fine down to 74-75, with optimal around 77-78.

Your max for Jack Dempsey is also too high by about 6 degrees, and optimum should be a few degrees lower. Rocio live in cenotes, which are fed by undergound rivers. This tends to keep the water relatively cool, and temperature fairly consistent year round.

Re-think your sources, maybe get off of the internet and find a wider range of material (particularly pre-internet books). Even if this is just a general recommendation for beginners, it should be at least relatively accurate. Otherwise the usefulness of the format is lost because of inaccuracies.

With all due respects, please understand, your not the first to say something like this.

Temperature ranges, very from one person to the next, and one internet source to the next.

When I started this, I researched a temperature chart over the internet, and found none.

So I decided on an attempt to create one. The more I researched the more, and more, it became clear there is no consensus on the same temperature range for any one given species of fish. While some sources are close, others are completely different.

I don't have a clue as to why this is has to be so difficult to figure out, why so called experts can't get their stories straight as to fish species temperature ranges.

I do appreciate what your saying, and you are probably right due to your experience and knowledge.

The thing is, I don't have all those old books to use, and neither do 98% of all the rest of use out here. All we have is the internet, unless we want to build a huge book library, in our homes all dedicated to fish keeping. Unless you can point to one good book and say get this one, it will tell you everything you need to know about fish keeping and their proper temperature ranges. If you do please let me know.

Bottom line, as I have said before, charts or only a starting point and reference. It it up to the individual to do their own research. That is why I have internet links for each species listed on the chart. Just click on the name of that species.

The spreadsheet is open source, I have no claim on this, so please feel free to download, make corrections, then send it to me and I will upload to my website.
Like I said before, I can use all the help.

Thank you so much for your help an I am sorry if I offended you in anyway.

 

LOL.... Like I said, I don't know how to do those things, not that I can't learn but at this time I don't know.

I thought you meant that you didn't know how to do it on the Web site, so my bad.
Filtering a Excel spreadsheet is reasonably easy you just highlight the top row header cells then go to the "DATA" tab and click on the "Filter" icon and little arrows will appear on the rows that you highlighted. Then you can click on these arrows to do searching and filtering. Yes you will have to play with it a little, keep in mind that you must highlight all of the top cells in your spreadsheet header row or your information will get mixed up. Also, always play with a copy of the spreadsheet so that you have the master to go back to.
I suggest that you just make available a pdf of your spreadsheet available online and then link a Excel spreadsheet for those who want it just like you do now. I would be very care about allowing editing back and forth as you are exposing yourself to getting a computer virus.
I took a few minutes and did some quick changes to your spreadsheet to make a file like yours work for filtering and I will email it to you.
Cheers, MrT

 

I thought you meant that you didn't know how to do it on the Web site, so my bad.
Filtering a Excel spreadsheet is reasonably easy you just highlight the top row header cells then go to the "DATA" tab and click on the "Filter" icon and little arrows will appear on the rows that you highlighted. Then you can click on these arrows to do searching and filtering. Yes you will have to play with it a little, keep in mind that you must highlight all of the top cells in your spreadsheet header row or your information will get mixed up. Also, always play with a copy of the spreadsheet so that you have the master to go back to.
I suggest that you just make available a pdf of your spreadsheet available online and then link a Excel spreadsheet for those who want it just like you do now. I would be very care about allowing editing back and forth as you are exposing yourself to getting a computer virus.
I took a few minutes and did some quick changes to your spreadsheet to make a file like yours work for filtering and I will email it to you.
Cheers, MrT

Thanks very much for your help with excel.

 

Just updated the Temperature Chart tonight. Added some more cichlids for the most part. MrT helped me with the sorting feature in excel, but still haven't quite got the hang of it. So thanks goes out to MrT.

 

Am I being blind I can't see download link for the spreadsheet?

 

I have looked on the web for a temperature chart and have found nothing.
I found lots of compatibility charts.

So I decided to make one of my own.

If you look you will see, low, high, and optimal.
I choose the optimal by splitting the difference between the low and the high for each species.
Not sure if the optimal is correct, but it does help to bring a quick eye to what fish are temperature
compatible with another fish.

The chart is in excel so I have a screen shot of it here.

Looking to the fishlore community for help and ideas.
Like to keep the chart as simple and easy to read as possible.
Obviously I will never be able to list every known fish out there, because there are over 140 different species of Cory alone. So I am attempting to get the most popular.

Please remember this is still a work in progress.

Thanks Everyone.....View attachment 469314

That's brilliant! I've been wanting to do something like that to see if the fish I want would go in the same temp ranges. I couodnt figure out how to do that until I saw your chart! Great job!