An animal’s life span depends on various factors like their heart efficiency, physical size, metabolism and length of reproductive viability. However, it is generally believed that fish do not survive for too long. The lifespan of a fish also depends on the external environmental factors like cleanliness. Specifying fish, it is also important to consider whether the environment is suitable for the fish or not.
Different types of fish have different estimated life spans. For example, a tropical fish normally lives from three to five years approx while a goldfish can live up to forty years approx.
Average Lifespan of Different Fish
There are numerous types of fish. So, the average lifespan of a fish depends on its type. Let’s have a look at varying approximate measures of lifespan of different kinds of fish in the for of a table:
| Name of Fish | Average Lifespan (in years) |
|---|---|
| Betta | Two to Five |
| Black Widow Tetra | Five |
| Black Skirt Tetra | Five |
| Bolivian Ram | Four |
| Diamond Tetra | Five |
| Guppy | Three to Five |
| Killifish | Two to Three |
| Honey Gourami | Four to Eight |
| Leopard Danio | Three to Five |
| Moonlight Gourami | Four |
| Neon Rainbow | Three to Four |
| Pearl Danio | Five |
| Oscar | Ten to Eighteen |
| Pleco | Seven to Fifteen |
| Pictus Catfish | Eight |
| Rasbora | Five to Ten |
| Red-tailed Catfish | Fifteen |
From the above table it can be seen that the average lifespan of the majority of the fish is around five to eight years approximately. But this obviously does not define the exact time period that a fish lives as the lifespan of every living thing largely depends on the external factor or the environment also. For example, many fish do not get an appropriate or compatible environment that affects their health negatively. Moreover, some fish naturally have inherited health issues so they do not survive longer.
How to Possibly Increase the Lifespan of a Pet Fish?
The lifetime of a fish is defined as the approximate number of years but while talking about the pet fish, it also depends on external factors and the care we provide to the fish to a great extent. The following are some recommendations to keep the pet fish healthy so that it lives long:
Monitor Water Chemistry
It is very important to monitor the water chemistry in which you put the fish, the factors to monitor are probably pH level and the temperature of water. Increase and decrease in the temperature of the water affects the oxygen level of water and this ultimately affects the breathing patterns of the fish. Most of the types of fish require twenty three to twenty seven degree Celsius temperature to live in comfort but the required temperature varies with varying types of fish.
Practice Disease Prevention
The patterns of daily activities of the fish must be monitored in order to make sure the fish is not in danger of being attacked by a disease. It is important to change fish water to keep them healthy and it is also recommended to monitor which fish is eating properly and which is not because most of the time, the fish that are ill cannot eat properly and this ultimately makes them more sick and they probably die after sometime.
Follow the Schedule
Fish eat, sleep and swim on their respective scheduled time in water but in case of pet fish that are supposed to be fed by humans or lets say their owners, they need proper attention for the schedule to be followed. Like other living things, fish also need to perform activities on a scheduled time in order to stay healthy. Sometimes, the fish become lazy or ill just because of the carelessness of their owners when they do not provide them food on time or do not change their water after a certain period of time. So, it is highly recommended for the fish owners to take care of the fish as per a maintained schedule.
The Bottom-Line
Since there are numerous types and kinds of fish, the average lifespan of a fish varies from two to fifteen years depending upon the type of fish. A tropical fish, for instance, normally lives from three to five years approx but a goldfish can live up to forty years. There are also many other factors that affect the lifespan of the fish like pollution, water condition, temperature of water and inherited diseases.
