Archerfish

1 Species Overview

Also known as the ‘Spray Gun Fish,’ the archerfish is a classic brackish-water species commonly found in aquarium shops at affordable prices. Its distinctive bulging eyes allow it to see not only surface objects but also aerial targets above the waterline.

Distribution: Alkaline rivers along the coasts of East Africa through Australia.

Scientific name: Toxotes jaculator

English name: Archerfish

Kingdom: Animalia

Aliases: Spray gun fish, Shooter fish, Bug-catcher fish, Spitting fish

Order: Perciformes

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Class: Osteichthyes (bony fishes)

Phylum: Chordata

Common name: Archerfish

Family: Toxotidae (archerfishes)

Pinyin: she shui yu

Subclass: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)

2 Appearance & Physical Traits

As the name implies, the archerfish shoots down prey with jets of water—an ability first documented in 1766. In the wild, archerfish reach 20–30 cm; captive specimens commonly measure around 10–12 cm.

Archerfish are active, playful, and vividly colored. At roughly 20 cm long, they sport a pair of bulging eyes with scrolling vertical striations on the whites—when swimming near the surface, these eyes can detect both surface-level objects and airborne targets above the waterline. Body shape is roughly oval, laterally compressed, with a long pointed head. Base coloration is pale yellowish with a greenish tint, silver-white overall, sometimes showing pale yellow-green. Six bold black vertical bars run along the flank: bar 1 passes through the eye, bar 2 covers the operculum, bar 3 runs from behind the operculum down toward the chest, bar 4 starts at the dorsal origin and extends to the belly, bar 5 runs from the dorsal fin onto the flank, and bar 6 encircles the caudal peduncle. Eyes are large, black, and expressive. Dorsal and anal fins are symmetrically placed, semi-circular, pressed close against the caudal peduncle. The tail peduncle is short; the caudal fin is truncate, nearly triangular. Both dorsal and anal fins bear broad black marginal bands.

3 Habitat & Living Environment

A familiar sight in aquarium stores, the archerfish reaches 20–30 cm in nature but usually only 10–12 cm in captivity—so an appropriately sized aquarium is essential for proper care.

Originally native to the Amazon, Southeast Asia, and Australia—specifically river mouths where fresh and saltwater mix. First documented in 1766. Distributed across alkaline coastal rivers from East Africa to Australia. Most populations inhabit tropical coastal zones and river systems across the Indian Ocean to Pacific region, making the archerfish essentially a semi-brackish species capable of living in both fresh and brackish water, typically patrolling near the surface.

4 Feeding Guidelines

The archerfish’s hunting behavior is so unusual that scientists have studied it extensively: how does a fish shoot down prey with such precision? The answer: archerfish strongly prefer animal-based foods, especially insects found above the water surface. In nature, flies, mosquitoes, spiders, moths, and other small insects resting on overhanging branches and leaves are all fair game. The archerfish is nature’s marksman—as a fish capable of targeting prey above the waterline, it truly stands apart.

Its specialized hunting mechanism sets it apart from virtually every other fish: the prey it aims at sits above the water surface, yet it has evolved a remarkable way to bring it down.