Examples of fish with names that start with A are abundant.
They include the African glass catfish, the African peacock cichlid, the Asian bumblebee catfish, armored catfish, and more!
If you are looking for fish names that start with A, this article is the right place to start.
Check out our top 5 picks and our exhaustive list below.
Our Top 5 Fish Names Beginning with Letter A
Apollo Shark (Luciosoma trinema)
One fascinating thing about this fish is how the name confuses amateur hobbyists. This peaceful fish is a freshwater fish and not a shark.
It belongs to the Cyprinidae family and is well-known for its impressive appearance. It is an omnivore, and it is seldom bred in captivity.
Although they are omnivores, they have a penchant for meat. You can spice their feed with krill, shrimp, and blood worms.
It can grow to an impressive 10 inches in size. To keep this fish, you need a tank size of at least 125 gallons.
This large tank will guarantee enough room for swimming and exploring the tank.
African Tiger Fish (Hydrocynus vittatus)
African tigerfish are among the most popular aquarium fish in the hobby. This freshwater fish is endemic throughout some parts of Africa.
You can find this fish in African coastal rivers like the Pongola river in South Africa.
You can also find these freshwater fish species in other parts of Africa like the Ouémé River, Senegal River, Nile, Omo River, Congo River, Lufira, and the Lualaba River.
They usually live near the bottom of the freshwater bodies they inhabit. They stay on the surface during the day and move to the base of the water during the night.
This fish, like many other tigerfish species, flourishes in well-oxygenated water.
It has an extended body. It also has red and forked caudal fins, almost like the Asian Redtailed catfish’s caudal fins.
This predator’s sharp and conical teeth are its instruments to grab and chop its prey. The males appear larger and more robust than the females.
These species grow to a maximum of 41 inches. So you need a big tank if you want to keep them.
Asian Arowana (Scleropages formosus)
This is a popular aquarium fish native to blackwater rivers, swamps, and wetlands in Southeast Asia.
It is also known as dragonfish, perhaps because it looks like a traditional Chinese dragon.
They grow impressively large to almost a length of 35 inches. The juveniles feed on insects and insect larvae while the adults feed on other small fish.
Its large 2cm scales resemble the traditional Chinese dragons, making them culturally significant in areas where the culture is predominantly Chinese. For them, these freshwater fish are considered good luck charms.
Albino Tiger Barb (Puntius tetrazona)
This ornamental fish is part of the Cyprinidae family, a family of fishes endemic to South America. It is related to Carps and true Minnows.
Albino tiger barbs are almost like Golden tiger barbs, but only lighter. It is a small fish that only grow to about 2.5 inches long.
The males are streamlined and have lusher and more impressive colors than the females. The females are usually robust and with duller colors.
They have a body shape like a spear. Their body is generally broad, and their triangular snouts complete their spear-like faces.
These barbs have pale cream-colored skin and white bands.
These are active schooling fish, so keeping about 5-6 of them in the tank would be best.
You want to choose tank mates that do not have flowy fins like the Betta fish.
Atlantic Sturgeon (Acipenser sturio)
This beautiful saltwater species is the largest of the three sturgeons in New York.
This fish is an anadromous fish species. You can find them in rivers and coastal waters from Canada to Florida and New York estuaries.
They spawn in freshwaters where they hatch and return to the sea.
Their young ones also live in rivers but head out to the sea as they approach adulthood.
They grow slowly, but they have a very extended lifespan. They can live for as long as 6o years.
Unlike other fish in the hobby, keeping the Atlantic sturgeon requires a lot. It will take more effort to get them to spawn since their living and spawning environments have different requirements.
It may be among the list of fish with names that start with A, but it is not among the most popular aquarium fish.
List of Fish Beginning with A
We have chosen our best five picks.
Below are other fish that will interest you. You can even pick your best five from the freshwater and saltwater fish list below.
Check them out!
Freshwater Fish Beginning with A
- Aba Aba (Gymnarchus niloticus)
- Ablabes Barb (Barbus ablabes)
- Abrau Sprat (Clupeonella abrau)
- Adolfo’s Cory (Corydoras adolfoi)
- Adonis Characin (Lepidarchus adonis signifer)
- Adonis Pleco (Acanthicus adonis)
- Adonis Tetra (Lepidarchus adonis)
- African Brass Tetra (Brycinus humilis)
- African Broad-Band Darter (Nannocharax parvus)
- African Butterfly Cichlid (Anomalochromis thomasi)
- African Glass Catfish (Pareutropius buffei)
- African Knifefish (Xenomystus nigri)
- African Lungfish (Protopterus annectens)
- African Moon Tetra (Bathyaethiops caudomaculatus)
- African Peacock Cichlid (Aulonocara nyassae)
- African Pike-Characoid (Hepsetus odoe)
- African Red-Eyed Characin (Arnoldichthys spilopterous)
- African Tiger Fish (Hydrocynus vittatus)
- African Whiptail Catfish (Phactura ansorgii)
- African Wood Catfish (Chrysichthys ornatus)
- Agassiz’s Dwarf Cichlid (Apistogramma agassizii)
- Aholehole (Kuhlia sandvicensis)
- Airbreathing Catfish (Clarias batrachus)
- Airsac Catfish (Heteropneustes fossilis)
- Akure Aphyosemion (Fundulopanchax gardneri)
- Alabama Hog Sucker (Hypentelium etowanum)
- Alaska Blackfish (Dallia pectoralis)
- Albert’s Synodontis (Synodontis alberti)
- Albino Driftwood Cat (Auchenipterus nuchalis)
- Albino Fetivum (Mesonauta festiva)
- Albino Tiger Barb (Puntius tetrazona)
- Algae Eater, False Siamese (Epalzeorhynchos sp)
- Algae Eater, Lemon (Gyrinocheilus aymonieri)
- Algae Eater, Siamese (Crossocheilus siamensis)
- Alligator Gar (Atractosteus spatula)
- Altum Angel (Pterophyllum altum)
- American Flagfish (Jordanella floridae)
- Amur Catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco)
- Amur Pike (Esox reichertti)
- Angelicus (Synodontis angelicus)
- Angler Catfish (Chaca bankanensis)
- Anostomus (Anostomus anostomus)
- Ansorge’s Neolebias (Neolebias ansorgii)
- Apollo Shark (Luciosoma trinema)
- Arapaima (Arapaima gigas)
- Arched Corydoras (Corydoras arcuatus)
- Archer Eelpout (Lycodes sagittarius)
- Archerfish (Banded)(Toxotes jaculatrix)
- Archerfish (Common)(Toxotes chatareus)
- Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus)
- Armor Bill Tetra (Phago loricatus)
- Armored Catfish (Callichthys callichthys)
- Armoured Bichir (Polypterus delhezi)
- Arowana (Osteoglossum bicirrhosum)
- Arulius Barb (Puntius arulius)
- Asian Arowana (Scleropages formosus)
- Asian Bumblebee Catfish (Leiocassis siamensis)
- Asian Carps (Cyprinus carpio)
- Asian Redtailed Catfish (Hemibagrus wyckioides)
- Asiatic Glassfish (Parambassis ranga)
- Asiatic Knifefish (Notopterus notopterus)
- Auratus (Melanochromis auratus)
- Aurora Cichlid (Pseudotropheus aurora)
- Australian Bass (Macquaria novemaculeata)
- Australian Grayling (Prototroctes maraena)
- Australian Herring (Arripis georgianus)
- Australian Lungfish (Neoceratodus forsteri)
- Australian Pearl Arowana (Scleropages jardini)
- Australian Rainbowfish (Melanotaenia fluviatilis)
- Australian Spotted Arowana (Scleropages leichardti)
- Australian Swamp Eel (Ophisternon gutturale)
- Axelrod’s Rainbowfish (Chilatherina axelrodi)
- Azureus Cichlid (Copadichromis azureus)
Saltwater Fish Beginning with A
- Abbott’s Moray Eel (Gymnothorax eurostus)
- Abrolhos Jawfish (Opistognathus alleni)
- Albacore (Thunnus alalunga)
- Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus)
- Alfonsino (Beryx decadactylus)
- Alligatorfish (Aspidophoroides monopterygius)
- Amberjack (Seriola dumerili)
- American Sole (Achirus lineatus)
- Anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus)
- Anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris)
- Angelfish (Pomacanthus paru)
- Angler (Lophius piscatorius)
- Anglerfish (Melanocetus johnsonii)
- Antarctic Cod (Dissostichus mawsoni)
- Antarctic Icefish (Notothenioidei)
- Antenna Codlet (Bregmaceros atlanticus)
- Armored Searobin (Peristedion gracile)
- Armorhead (Zanclistius elevatus)
- Arrowtooth Eel (Histiobranchus bathybius)
- Atka Mackerel (Pleurogrammus monopterygius)
- Atlantic Bonito (Sarda sarda)
- Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua)
- Atlantic Herring (Clupea harengus)
- Atlantic Mudskipper (Periophthalmus barbarus)
- Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar)
- Atlantic Saury (Scomberesox saurus)
- Atlantic Sharpnose Shark (Rhizoprioltodon terraenovae)
- Atlantic Silverside (Menidia menidia)
- Atlantic Sturgeon (Acipenser sturio)
- Australasian Salmon (Arripis trutta)
- Australian Prowfish (Pataecus fronto)
- Ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis)
Final Thoughts
For some of these fish, their common names feature in their scientific names. Their common names do not appear in their scientific names at all for other fish.
If you want to get a specific species, it would be best to know the scientific name and the common name. This article, however, is a great place to start.
At Aquarium Labs, she's dedicated to assisting more people discover pleasure in fishkeeping and teaching them how to develop into expert pet parents.
