I Need Help Identifiying A Halfbeak.

[Mikaila31]

hello i am trying to identify the fish in my avatar. sorry i had to post it there because it's to big to post on the forum. anywhy i bought this fish under the name Celebes halfbeak. I had called the store before i went there, and they said they had a adult celebes halfbeak and some juviniles. When i got there this was the only fish left , i was planing on getting more when they got another shippment. but now i don't think it is a celebes, it's very dark and dosen't have any real color to it. but it does have a short beak and a little bump on the end of it's bottom jaw. So if someone could tell me if this is a celebes halfbeak or not it would really help

 

[nmonks]

Hello,

Identifying halfbeaks is not easy. There are at least four species traded regularly, and the actual number is probably quite a bit higher. Basically any species of smaller halfbeak gets sold as a "wrestling halfbeak" and the larger halfbeaks as a "Celebes halfbeak".

The fish in your avatar are definitely "large" halfbeaks of the genus Nomorhamphus. They are all pretty similar in terms of requirements, breeding, and so on. I've got some stuff up on my web pages that might interest you, here and here.

The two common species of Nomorhamphus are Nomorhamphus liemi liemi and Nomorhamphus ebrardtii. Both are sold as Celebes halfbeaks, though only the first species "officially" has that name. Nomorhamphus ebrardtii is sometimes called the red or orange fin halfbeak because it has red on its fins instead of red and blue. Note that colour is very variable, sometimes with mood. Breeding males usually have the strongest colours, but I've got breeding males with no colour at all, so it isn't a sure fire thing.

If you look over my pages, you'll see pictures of my halfbeaks and they might help you decide which species you have. Male Nomorhamphus ebrardtii have long straight beaks without a downward curl, while Nomorhamphus liemi liemi have short, curly beaks a bit like goatee-beards. Females of both species tend to have short, stubby beaks.

Halfbeaks are great fish, and since I've been keeping them I have found them to be lively, easy to tame, and fun to breed.

Cheers,

Neale