what do you call fish this size???

[Magnum Man]

so I bought some lacortei, last week, and they came in, at 1/3 to 1/4 of mature size... at this size, most fish would be tough to sex, and with wild caught fish, there really isn't a guarantee, of the correct species... these look nearly identical to my same size palmeri, and in fact l, there is one or two that are showing signs of being completely different fish...

so what is the proper term for a fish that size... fry??? seem a little big for fry??? I typically call them juvenal, or adolescent...

you would think they shouldn't sell wild caught fish, so small they can't be positively identified as a specific species??? thoughts???

 

[FishGPT]

According to the body size ratio (1/3-1/4 adult size) and gender without obvious characteristics, 'judicial' is currently the most accurate term. If growth differentiation is later discovered, it can be upgraded to 'adolescent'.

 

[CassCats]

I'd call them juveniles, as they'd be out of the fry stage, especially if they're more fish shaped than stick with eyes shaped

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I call them smallish fishies. But I'm no scientist.

 

[gwand]

piscis parvus or piciculus

 

[TwoTankAmin]

I do not know what the proper term might be. But my policy for when I was willing to ship fish born in my tanks and which was applied to plecos was they must be at least over 1.5 inches and/or at least six months old. The problem with shipping fish at a too small of a size is when there is a delay, they may starve to death.

Of course for fish which may only grow to and inch of two that small size will be different from that of fish fish grow larger.

If you have never been involved with buying fish whole sale or as imports you may not know how they are priced at that stage. For most of the schoolers such as tetras, rasboras etc. they can be purchase in box lots for pennies. If one is paying 35 cents for a fish and selling it for $3-$5 and a buyer who as ordered 19 has them arrive 100% DOA it is still very economical for the seller to send 10 more, especially since most sellers do not cover the shipping for the replacement. So to replace those 10 fish will cost the buyer a small fortune when you add shipping of $25 or more . That makes your 10 free replacements cost$2.50. You will accept a refund most times.

So all the seller loses is what it cost them to send the original 10 plus the cost of sending them and refunding for them. Since you likely ordered what cost enough to make shipping worth it, the seller still makes out just fine despite their cost to of a refund or replacement.

I have a saying that goers like this: One live healthy fish has to be worth at least 3 DOAS.

Also, the way one usually can be assured of getting both sexes of many species is by buying a group of fish when they are the hardest to sex because of their being very young. They only need to be big enough to ship or to bring directly home from a store.

 

[Magnum Man]

when buying Tilapia, they sell them mostly as fingerlings... but even then, they can vary by twice on the size... I've heard trout, catfish, & other commercial raised fish, as fingerlings, but haven't come across that term, on aquarium fish...

 

[GaryE]

The usual terms go larvae - fry - juveniles, young adults, adults. That's what's usually used, but there are no set lines between them all. Usually, once they look like what they'll be, they're juvies here.

If your supplier has good sources, he/she'll have no problem identifying the species on those fish. That info is in where they come from - where they were caught.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Maybe you are looking in the wrong places?

Effect of the size of breeders stock in the fingerlings production of Cichlasoma festae under semi controlled conditions in Ecuador.​

https://www.cabidigitallibrary.org/doi/full/10.5555/20203262934

Go here and see many papers using the term "fingerling."
https://scholar.google.com/scholar?...ngs&hl=en&as_sdt=0,33&as_ylo=2010&as_yhi=2025

Note my search refers the the fish we keep in our tanks as "ornalmental" Terminology is important when searching on Goggle Scholar.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

I've heard game fish called fingerlings too. Never heard it used for aquarium fish, probably because most of them never reach finger size, even when they're full grown. It makes more sense of a trout or pike that will top out at two or three feet than an aquarium fish that will never get bigger than 3-4".

 

[fishorama]

I call fish bigger than fry, including wigglers, juveniles. They're not adults yet but not bite size for them anymore either. For some of my fish the juvenile stage can last for a couple years (sewellia); some just a few months. Depending on the species eventual adult size it might be 1/4-1/2 inch or more & look like less colorful, often female-ish adults.

I agree, fingerlings are a gamefish measurement. I think it means "sellable size"...but often so does "juvenile" for aquarium fish. I prefer to buy younger, smaller fish so I can watch them grow into adults. With adults there's no telling how old they might be (except for some males that get hump heads as they age, not my kind of fish usually, lol). I expect my fish to live 5-10++ years barring something awful happening. Short lived fish are not usually worth the effort for me.

 

[GaryE]

Fingerlings is a term used just for game fish. You have to assume the fish you have will approach a foot or more to consider a finger as a measurement. As well, in this hobby, "fingerlings" would usually be sold as adult fish. It's buyer beware for those who don't like to read in the aquarium world. If the fish you buy could be called a 'fingerling', you'd best have a huge tank ready and running.

These terms are informal. The festae article is paywalled, so I assume it's just the title you're offering. I've only heard 'fingerlings' used in the hobby by people whose first language wasn't English.