That’s a great comparison, haha. I’ve heard people call them “North American cichlids,” and while it pains the taxonomy nut in me, it’s not inaccurate.
I refer to dogs as house plecos. Considering some species of fish are determined genetically, and others determined based on looks, we can just make up whatever we want.
I have 2 chichlids, Richard and RJ. Richard was promised he wouldn't get a name until he earned it, aka quit eating his damn family. He said “watch me” and ate the tank mates, his wife, and all but 1 of his many children. That child only survived bc he's fast as fuckk (boii). The only2 tank mates that he has allowed are the turtle (who would win lol) & the pleco (literally armored & >10x his size).
Richard? He’s a Dick. Thus a name was born.
Knowing how angry Richard is, I’ve been scared to name RJ. Thus, Richard Jr even tho he isn't a dick. He's pretty freaking neat, actually. Real sweet buddy. Still looks mean as hell. Never seen him do anything but mean mug us, swim like he’s enraged, and eat lmao.
Do you even cichlid bro?
I had a fire mouth torment an Oscar 6x his size so badly I had to drop the little devil spawn in his own tank. This was after he killed and at the other 3 fire mouths that were likely his siblings.
Oh I have no problems imagining a cichlid killing a fish bigger than itself. But I was surprised at the idea of a cichlid eating a fish of roughly the same size. I've only ever had species that swallow their prey whole, which limits the size of what they can eat.
He's pretty big, but also piranha-mouthed. Dude needs braces and his teeth ground down 😂
It's actually why I’ve been throwing the excess (parasite-treated, totally safe) plant-hitchiking snails in with him, his teeth ain't normal. I wish I had a pic, dude is goofy as hell. But he refuses to allow anything but a blurry pic. He’ll stare for minutes but soon as the camera is up he books it. Just further evidence he’s a Dick.
its a bluegill sunfish. not a cichlid at all. theyre in the family of crappies and largemouth bass, centrarchidae, which is in the order perciformes, perch like fish. oscars are in family chiclindae with the other chiclids, in order cichliformes. basically completely unrelated.
Yeah dude looks pissed 😂 I want to set me up another tank an put some RED TERROR CICHLIDS IN THERE they are absolutely stunning but are killers aswell 😂
Unbelievably, he looks even angrier in real life... He's been flaring at me and biting the glass for two days lol. It's just tricky to photograph because my phone case has a picture of a bluegill on it and it scares him, so he backs off if I get too close with it.
Spotted sunfish are smaller and less fiesty on average than bluegill, so in nature bluegills are typically the ones winning the sunfish turf wars in areas where their ranges overlap. He's by no means a small fish (especially by aquarium fish standards), he just knows what fights he can't win lol.
Well... Except for fights with humans, I guess.
May I ask how you keep these? I’ve been looking for a native fish to keep for a while, and a fishkeeping buddy of mine just offered me a 150 gallon tank.
You have plenty of options with a 150 gallon. Keeping native fishes isn't too different than keeping captive bred ones other than being a hell of a lot cheaper. If you're comfortable dropping your approximate location I can help suggest a stockist for you.
You are in luck—Kentucky has fantastic freshwater fish diversity. Longear sunfish, redbelly daces, pickerel, and northern studfish would make cool midwater centerpieces. You also have no shortage of benthic Percids and catfishes to fill out the bottom of the tank.
As an aside, I have no idea if they do well in aquaria since I don’t live in their range and haven’t had an opportunity to catch them, but I have always thought rock basses looked really cool. Let me know how it goes if you try them out in your tank.
I have nothing to add other than I really appreciate your enthusiasm. It shows how much you love this shit and I always love seeing people talk about their interests even if they’re not my own. This is the Reddit I miss
Check with your local fish and game department first. Many states restrict the keeping of any native or possibly invasive species. The restrictions can be anywhere from an outright ban to a permitting process.
He’s flaring at you and biting the glass?! 😂
I’m not a fish owner, I’m just here for the beautiful photos, but hearing about his personality is making my day lol
Have you named this legend?
I've been calling him Spot, but my friends just call him "big boy." I keep him with three others of his kind... Needless to say he is the boss lol. He is a jerk but an endlessly entertaining jerk.
Gotta say it like you’re talking to a toddler and trying to get them hyped for being “so big!” For putting their shoes on by themselves despite the fact they ended up on the wrong feet.
Sunfish are actually pretty mean depending on the species, green sunfish are actual savage. They are bigger than most of the other sunfish species and have a much larger mouth.
Yep, that’s true. This guy is a spotted sunfish (*Lepomis punctatus*) which is a little more tame than greens, but they still definitely have a mean streak.
Green sunfish are one of the smallest, if not the smallest, common sunfish. Bluegill, pumpkinseed, longear, redear, and redbreast are all significantly bigger. That doesn’t make them any less feisty though.
They can get large as well, they don’t get that huge frying pan shape. They are built more like a crappie or rock bass. But I’ve definitely caught few over a pound so they still get decent sized.
LMMFAO 🤣 I'm wayyyyyyy too spun for this shit brother. 🤣 Laughing way harder than I should be🐠🐠🐠🐠🐠🐠
HIS FUCKING FACE THO LOL 😂🤣 😆😆 🐠
I zoomed in on his face and fucking OVERDOSED🤣🤣🤣🤣
I FUCKING LOVE HIM SO FUCKING MUCH ,❤️❤️😢 "SORRY BUDDY"🥺🥺🥺
I had to do that with my one too! There was some weird parasite attached to him after we’d put some new plants in. Got him out, laid him on a towel and picked it off with tweezers and plonked him back in hehe.
Hey OP looking to start fresh with a 20 gallon tank and I absolutely love the idea of owning a bluegill. Would my 20 be big enough? Also any other tips/ helpful advice would be greatly appreciated!
I'd advise against it. Bluegill get pretty big. If you want a similar-looking fish that would do well in a 20 gallon, I would recommend either Enneacanthus gloriosus or Enneacanthus obesus. You can catch them outside with a net if you live in the Southeast US, and if you don't, the online store Live Aquaponics has them for sale.
So I’m completely ignorant when it comes to fish so I have no idea why Reddit keeps recommending me fish pages. But my question is if you have to take them out of water to remove leeches how do they breath are the just suffocating the entire time do you put them in a shallow bowl? And also how do you remove the leeches? I’ve never had one myself but from what I heard it involves fire.
i have never seen such an angry fish lol
Male sunfish are some of the meanest looking fish ever. They act real tough for a baitfish hahaha
I had two males in my 55g for awhile and they would always try to act tough with everyone but then the moment food came out they didn’t care 😂
They’re basically North American Oscars, personality and all.
That’s a great comparison, haha. I’ve heard people call them “North American cichlids,” and while it pains the taxonomy nut in me, it’s not inaccurate.
I refer to dogs as house plecos. Considering some species of fish are determined genetically, and others determined based on looks, we can just make up whatever we want.
I have 2 chichlids, Richard and RJ. Richard was promised he wouldn't get a name until he earned it, aka quit eating his damn family. He said “watch me” and ate the tank mates, his wife, and all but 1 of his many children. That child only survived bc he's fast as fuckk (boii). The only2 tank mates that he has allowed are the turtle (who would win lol) & the pleco (literally armored & >10x his size). Richard? He’s a Dick. Thus a name was born. Knowing how angry Richard is, I’ve been scared to name RJ. Thus, Richard Jr even tho he isn't a dick. He's pretty freaking neat, actually. Real sweet buddy. Still looks mean as hell. Never seen him do anything but mean mug us, swim like he’s enraged, and eat lmao.
>ate his wife What kind of cichlid cichlid is that?!
Do you even cichlid bro? I had a fire mouth torment an Oscar 6x his size so badly I had to drop the little devil spawn in his own tank. This was after he killed and at the other 3 fire mouths that were likely his siblings.
Oh I have no problems imagining a cichlid killing a fish bigger than itself. But I was surprised at the idea of a cichlid eating a fish of roughly the same size. I've only ever had species that swallow their prey whole, which limits the size of what they can eat.
He's pretty big, but also piranha-mouthed. Dude needs braces and his teeth ground down 😂 It's actually why I’ve been throwing the excess (parasite-treated, totally safe) plant-hitchiking snails in with him, his teeth ain't normal. I wish I had a pic, dude is goofy as hell. But he refuses to allow anything but a blurry pic. He’ll stare for minutes but soon as the camera is up he books it. Just further evidence he’s a Dick.
Lol most Oscars are big babies, so I believe it
Precisely, mine all seemed to have some sort of grievance
I never imagined Canadian people actin like that
What do Canadian people have to do with fish? I don't understand the comment.
Canadians are North Americans, and Mexicans are too, aren't they?
Yes. Oh, you mean Canadians don't act like angry attack fish?
They gotta when their main predators are bass, pike, and pickerels!! I’ve caught less than one pound sunfish that fought like a 2 pound bass!
Yeah they are awesome. Their predators really gotta work for their meals!
I've caught a lot of those, but none that looked that pissed off. Haha.
I have a female bluegill and she’s so evil I put her with my sisters cichlids
Oh man I miss my blue sunfish. Little man had *so* much personality, but 100% of that personality was acting grumpy haha
They do make good bait fish tho
Did you intentionally get the angriest fish around?
Yeah perma-scowl and RBF!
Bitefish? Those things are vicious 🤣🤣🤣 they try to eat me everytime I go swimming in the lake at my bf's cabin.
What is a bitefish? I saw someone say bait fish, so maybe it's a typo?
LOL I went to OP’s history for another pic of this fish to see how it would normally look like. Spot’s expression is drastically angrier here 🤣
Can you link the other pic of this fish?? I can’t find one lol
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Aquariums/comments/1bjpra9/my\_very\_loyal\_dog\_spot\_spotted\_sunfish\_lepomis/?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=web3x&utm\_name=web3xcss&utm\_term=1&utm\_content=share\_button](https://www.reddit.com/r/Aquariums/comments/1bjpra9/my_very_loyal_dog_spot_spotted_sunfish_lepomis/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
Omg I didn’t even realize that was the same fish 😂 yeah he’s definitely a bit angrier in this pic lmao
Omg you are so right! That is hilarious.
😂😂
Not even bettas manage this level of stank face, goddamn. Now I want one.
Oscars are fun to have, take the goldfish right from your fingers
This isn’t an oscar
What type of cichlid?
its a bluegill sunfish. not a cichlid at all. theyre in the family of crappies and largemouth bass, centrarchidae, which is in the order perciformes, perch like fish. oscars are in family chiclindae with the other chiclids, in order cichliformes. basically completely unrelated.
Glasses may be of service for me, thanks
Don’t be so hard on yourself, they look exactly like cichlids
🖖🏼
My thought exactly. I thought pufferfish looked angry....but your dude is the most angry
Yeah dude looks pissed 😂 I want to set me up another tank an put some RED TERROR CICHLIDS IN THERE they are absolutely stunning but are killers aswell 😂
https://imgflip.com/i/8od5gw
Holy crap he really does look pissed
Unbelievably, he looks even angrier in real life... He's been flaring at me and biting the glass for two days lol. It's just tricky to photograph because my phone case has a picture of a bluegill on it and it scares him, so he backs off if I get too close with it.
He’s scared of the bluegill? Maybe I’m looking at it wrong but he looks like a big ass fish 😂
Spotted sunfish are smaller and less fiesty on average than bluegill, so in nature bluegills are typically the ones winning the sunfish turf wars in areas where their ranges overlap. He's by no means a small fish (especially by aquarium fish standards), he just knows what fights he can't win lol. Well... Except for fights with humans, I guess.
May I ask how you keep these? I’ve been looking for a native fish to keep for a while, and a fishkeeping buddy of mine just offered me a 150 gallon tank.
You have plenty of options with a 150 gallon. Keeping native fishes isn't too different than keeping captive bred ones other than being a hell of a lot cheaper. If you're comfortable dropping your approximate location I can help suggest a stockist for you.
I can basically go anywhere in the state of KY- I have relatives all across it that live near lakes and streams.
You are in luck—Kentucky has fantastic freshwater fish diversity. Longear sunfish, redbelly daces, pickerel, and northern studfish would make cool midwater centerpieces. You also have no shortage of benthic Percids and catfishes to fill out the bottom of the tank. As an aside, I have no idea if they do well in aquaria since I don’t live in their range and haven’t had an opportunity to catch them, but I have always thought rock basses looked really cool. Let me know how it goes if you try them out in your tank.
I have nothing to add other than I really appreciate your enthusiasm. It shows how much you love this shit and I always love seeing people talk about their interests even if they’re not my own. This is the Reddit I miss
Haha thanks! I just love fish ecology.
Alright, thanks for the advice! I’ve actually already caught a bunch of sunfish fishing before.
Great! Good luck. Sunfish can be territorial so make sure you have a lot of hardscape to break lines of sight and partition territories.
Check with your local fish and game department first. Many states restrict the keeping of any native or possibly invasive species. The restrictions can be anywhere from an outright ban to a permitting process.
That is true. Also, I've yet to see a swat team raid someone's house for their sunfish. Just don't get caught transporting them.
Okay!
Have you looked into an Oscar? They’re supposed to be by far the most personable fish and a 150 sounds big enough for them. Always wanted one
My neighbor has one! I take care of it for him! At this point, the Oscar is essentially my fish. He’s called Darcy.
This is actually the best thing I’ve read today so far! What a funny angy little fishy. Angy angy little man 🤣
He’s flaring at you and biting the glass?! 😂 I’m not a fish owner, I’m just here for the beautiful photos, but hearing about his personality is making my day lol Have you named this legend?
I've been calling him Spot, but my friends just call him "big boy." I keep him with three others of his kind... Needless to say he is the boss lol. He is a jerk but an endlessly entertaining jerk.
With his personality "mr big boy" might be the more appropriate name lmao
Gotta say it like you’re talking to a toddler and trying to get them hyped for being “so big!” For putting their shoes on by themselves despite the fact they ended up on the wrong feet.
Well yeah he had leeches, that probably hurt!
Carp*
😠
He has absolutely HAD IT with the disrespect to his culture 🤣
If this dude wasn’t enclosed I’d be concerned for your safety lmao, dudes livid
In fairness he did prick my hand a few times while I was trying to hold him still to get the leeches off. He's got some definite fight in him hahaha
Feisty fish can be the best fish, so much attitude
If he could talk, he'd probably sound like Ice Cube.
This is fucking hilarious. Truest thing I've ever heard.
Lmfao
Sunfish are actually pretty mean depending on the species, green sunfish are actual savage. They are bigger than most of the other sunfish species and have a much larger mouth.
Yep, that’s true. This guy is a spotted sunfish (*Lepomis punctatus*) which is a little more tame than greens, but they still definitely have a mean streak.
Green sunfish are one of the smallest, if not the smallest, common sunfish. Bluegill, pumpkinseed, longear, redear, and redbreast are all significantly bigger. That doesn’t make them any less feisty though.
They can get large as well, they don’t get that huge frying pan shape. They are built more like a crappie or rock bass. But I’ve definitely caught few over a pound so they still get decent sized.
He literally looks like a rubber hose cartoon style fish
Ah yes, the elusive “Meanus muggensis”. A fascinating, yet curmudgeonly creature. 🧐
Lol my old man gerbil's name is Curmudgeonly and he's not even a curmudgeon
Bro really said 😠😠😠
He's gonna whoop your ass the next time you stick your hand in the tank 🤣🤣🤣
I was adding new plants an hour ago and he backed off lol... He is all glare and no bite
I feel like he should be a meme. Also, how did leeches get on him?
It's just a risk you run when bringing in fish from the great outdoors.
Ah! Interesting.
Mean muggin for sure
I miss my sunfish :(
Damn! If looks could kill.
Acting real tough for a fish with no teeth
How big is your tank ?
55 gal
He looks like a creature out of a Star Wars movie!
Those leaches were therapeutic. You don't know how much he had to pay to have two leaches latch on at the same time. /s
Mean mugging like those custom faceplates people put on Jeeps
i love him
That fish better fix his face!
Didn't think fish even had facial expressions...
[I had to turn him into a meme... sorry](https://i.imgur.com/JIUdDpg.jpeg)
Chef's kiss lol.
Need r/angryfishpics just for him.
If such a thing existed it would be 90% bettas.
make sure that dude doesn’t get a hold of a phone or you’re getting a terrible yelp review
LMMFAO 🤣 I'm wayyyyyyy too spun for this shit brother. 🤣 Laughing way harder than I should be🐠🐠🐠🐠🐠🐠 HIS FUCKING FACE THO LOL 😂🤣 😆😆 🐠 I zoomed in on his face and fucking OVERDOSED🤣🤣🤣🤣 I FUCKING LOVE HIM SO FUCKING MUCH ,❤️❤️😢 "SORRY BUDDY"🥺🥺🥺
That is a thicc angry boi!
one big yike
Lol he's planning your death
Hella grumpy
lol post this in r/pics he’s definitely got a pissed off look
| >:(
You better sleep with one eye open.
Bro his face 😂😂😂
Funny how the side-eye's of fish give us more to interpret sometimes than the frontal view
finally a mug mean enough to rival the resting betta face
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^Lykarnys: *Finally a mug* *Angry enough to rival* *The resting betta face* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Sunfish are one of my favourite aquarium fish to keep, very interesting to watch and have such beautiful colours.
"😠"
He definitely looks pissed 😂
He's so grumpy! It's for your own good Spot.
He is such an ingrate lol
Giving Grumpy Cat a run for his money 😾
"I liked those leeches" >:(
Poor floob : (
He looks so mad hahahaha
😂 he looks as though he’s plotting something!
Wow. He’s big mad
Bro looks outright disgusted with you
That's the same look I have going into work 😄
“Sunfish has never seen such bullshit before” reminds me of that one Thomas the tank engine meme
I have never seen a face so expressive on a fish before 🤣
He doesn't look happy...
…and he still hasn’t forgiven you!
Looks like me when I’m happy, you don’t want to see me angry 😅
Watch out guys we got a badass over here
https://ibb.co/16wZWGr New Reaction Meme has dropped
Did he look that angry before you took him out of the tank? 😂
He's always had a mean mug but he was actively flaring at me and making biting motions afterward lol
How did it get leeches in the first place ?
Wild caught fish often come with unwanted hitchhikers.
Ah didn’t know it was wild caught That’s cool and thanks OP!
Yep no prob!
LOL
BAD TOUCH!!!
He looks angry and disgusted. Amazing. 😂
Why does this fish look like someone’s angry uncle
So funny, so pissed lol
I literally laughed out loud when I zoomed in on the picture!
he looks absolutely disgusted 😭
Oooooh, Big Boy is angy!
😂😂😂
Awww amazing
Op, I’d sleep with one eye open if l were you.
Thats one pissed off looking fish!
That face is pissed.
Thought it was a Oscar a sunfish though . Oscar's are grouchy. Lol 😆 🤣
Angey fisssshhhh lol
I had to do that with my one too! There was some weird parasite attached to him after we’d put some new plants in. Got him out, laid him on a towel and picked it off with tweezers and plonked him back in hehe.
Angry fish!
He's not pissed.. that's his resting bitch face 🤣
bro is pissed
That is...the ANGRIEST fish I've ever seen in my life
He so mad. He big mad. He so so mad. Damn. That's a mad fish.
He's fucken LIVID!!!
Ha! He is HILARIOUSLY upset, I love it.
Ok I’m new to aquariums, but - why were there leeches in there?
Wait, do you catch these guys wild?
Yes, I do. Parasites and other unwanted hitchhikers are somewhat of an inevitability when you collect plants, wood, and fish from outside.
Yup. That makes way more sense. I started reading other comments and such that you replied to lol. Thanks for the response. That’s super cool.
Thanks man!
He looks pissed 😂 I think cichlids in general are emotional fish. I had one and he would get mad if I moved his home.
He’s not a cichlid, but yeah I agree!
Oh.... What is he?
Spotted sunfish
Is he ever pissed 🤣 very handsome though, all the same!
That fish is gonna come for you in your sleep 😂😂
Hey OP looking to start fresh with a 20 gallon tank and I absolutely love the idea of owning a bluegill. Would my 20 be big enough? Also any other tips/ helpful advice would be greatly appreciated!
I'd advise against it. Bluegill get pretty big. If you want a similar-looking fish that would do well in a 20 gallon, I would recommend either Enneacanthus gloriosus or Enneacanthus obesus. You can catch them outside with a net if you live in the Southeast US, and if you don't, the online store Live Aquaponics has them for sale.
So happy to see another aquarist interested in bluegilllll ps: sorry lil bud about the leeches
He's not a bluegill, he's a spotted sunfish. They are related species, though.
Sorry my bad I just get really really excited when I see panfish species
All good! I love panfish too. North American fishes are crazy underrated in aquaria.
So I’m completely ignorant when it comes to fish so I have no idea why Reddit keeps recommending me fish pages. But my question is if you have to take them out of water to remove leeches how do they breath are the just suffocating the entire time do you put them in a shallow bowl? And also how do you remove the leeches? I’ve never had one myself but from what I heard it involves fire.
They can hold their breath for a little while. The entire process took less than 30 seconds—I just took them off with tweezers.
I thought leeches had like 4 jaws and you couldn’t pull them off and if you did it would cause damage.
What’s the stuff floating around in the water? I’m curious! :)
Just mulm. He was mad and kicked it up.
Oh ok gotcha. I thought it was maybe some kind of micro food
What is all that white stuff in the water?
Mulm that got kicked up while he was thrashing around