June Featured Fish: Glofish

What is a Glofish?

Glofish are fluorescent fish that glow under blacklights or blue lights. When they glow, they display bright, vibrant colors. Their colors can also become more vibrant under bright white lighting.

These colors are naturally-occuring and are the result of the fish’s genetics. Some of the colors you’ll find include:

• Red
• Green
• Orange
• Blue
• Purple
• Pink

Some people assume that these fish get their fluorescent coloring from having dye or chemicals injected into their bodies, but that is absolutely not the case. It is a genetic trait. Their ability to glow is called bioluminescence, which is a trait found in several different animal species. Glofish do not require any special color-enhancing foods in order to maintain their fluorescent coloring.

What species are Glofish?

Glofish is actually a trademark name for fish that have been bred to have these bright, bioluminescent colors; it is not a species. Several different species of fish can be classified as Glofish, including tetras, danios, barbs, and even bettas. In fact, zebra danios were the first fish to be bred into Glofish.

How to care for Glofish

Glofish do not require any different care requirements despite their unique appearance. You should check care requirements for the specific species of the Glofish you have or are planning to bring home.

One thing that all Glofish have in common is that they are tropical, freshwater fish. Most Glofish are also schooling fish that are happiest in groups with others of their own species. They tend to do well in mixed community tanks as well, with the exception of betta Glofish, which should be given plenty of space on their own.

One thing to keep in mind is that although you can mix different colors of the same species of Glofish together, you should not make a grouping of different species of Glofish in the same tank. These fish need to school with their own species.

Can you aquascape with Glofish?

Glofish can make it difficult to grow live plants in the aquarium. That’s because the blue lights and blacklights that are often used to display Glofish are not good as grow lights. You absolutely can aquascape with Glofish, you’ll just have to make decisions about how you want to display your tank and what kind of lights will work best for your goals.

We sell Glofish and aquarium accessories at The Tye-Dyed Iguana in Fairview Heights. Come in to check out how these fish look and ask our team about any questions you have about them.