Dr. Joanne Norton
Freshwater And Marine Aquarium magazine

Angelfish Genetics
Photos and Text by Dr. Joanne Norton
FAMA: July 1982, Vol. 5, #7

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Culling is a necessary evil of raising any fish.  Even the most successful of breeders will have to
cull fish with deformities.  This is best done as early as possible.  It is a waste of tank space and resources to raise fish that will be culled later on.  Most fish that need to be culled have deformities that were due to poor environmental conditions while the fish was developing.  Conditions that lead to problems are usually related to either a high ammonia level or dirty conditions leading to an increased bacterial content of the water and coating the bottom of the tank.  To ensure the least waste of resources and the best chance of normal development for the rest of the fry, those with deformities should be removed as soon as possible.  The smaller the fish, the more difficult it is to detect deformities requiring culling.  Large fish with defects ...

The purpose of developing a conformation standard for angelfish is to give a general guideline to hobbyists and breeders who may be wondering what is generally considered a natural or desirable
trait. Some traits, although somewhat attractive to a few, may be an indication of a weakness. For
instance, a very thin caudal peduncle on a superveil angelfish will cause the caudal to droop excessively. There are those who find this attractive, however, this excessive droop is an indication of a generally weak fish that may deteriorate rapidly or produce even more inferior offspring. Therefore, it is in the best interest of angelfish and the hobby to discourage the breeding of such fish. The same can be said for a dwarf angelfish. Although, many find the idea of a dwarf angelfish very interesting, it is likely to end up being a weak strain with many problems, or simply the result of stunting a normal angelfish.

These standards will be concerned only with visible physical traits. Non-visible qualities, such as fecundity, aggression, parental care and appetite are important, but indiscernible without extensive exposure to the fish, therefore they are not covered here.

Bodies should be round as possible or slightly higher ...

When referring to the size of an angelfish, it is the body size that is being taken into account. The fins are ignored when estimating a size measurement. ...

The following chart will help to identify the approximate body size of angelfish through their growth stages:



Fish age ...