One of the most popular kinds of marine aquarium fish are made up by the big family of surgeonfish. Usually thought of a big fish, the smallest of them can reach a length of at least 7 inches in captivity. The biggest of them can reach a length no less than three feet in their natural habitats. Made up of some very colorful fishes, they are a tropical species that are usually found in large groups. They fall under the family Acanthuridae which translates into thorn tail, describing the blade that all surgeonfish have near their caudal fins.
Among all the species present within this family, two of them are one of the most admired saltwater fish in the marine aquarium hobby. They can be found on stickers, magazines, advertising banners and big range of other products. They are the yellow tang along with the blue tang.
Due to their large size, they require tanks no smaller than a 100 gallons for the smaller surgeonfish species. The largest among them such as the Sohal Tang require tanks surpassing the 200 gallon mark.
They mouths are specially intended for tearing algae from rock. They form huge shoals in the day time as they scour the reef for algae to graze on. The vast majority of them are very social fish that can usually be found among huge shoals that may include one or two other species of surgeonfish. Prices for specimens range from as little as $20 all the way up into the thousands of dollars as is the case for the Gem Tang.
They do not eat corals and are thought of as reef safe. This fact merely adds to their popularity within the hobby. There is difficulty in getting a few species to feed in captivity such as the Achilles Tang.
The majority of them however, will eat some if not all meaty and dried foods that are offered. To mimic their diets in the wild, they should be offered greens in the form of Seaweed or spirulina on a daily basis.
They are also some of the most parasite contracting prone fish and are also susceptible to lateral line erosion. Appropriate quarantining practices are needed to ensure they are healthy and do not spread any saltwater parasites to other tank mates.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Monday, January 4, 2010
Flame Angelfish
The flame angelfish (Centropyge Loriculus) is possibly the most familiar member of the genus centropyge in the saltwater aquarium hobby now. It owes this fact to the beauty this saltwater aquarium fish possesses. The entire angelfish is a very intense red to orange while its dorals fin ends and accentuated by an electric blue patch.
Also present are the tiger like black stripes that run down its main body. Flame angelfish generally differ greatly with regards with their general color mix and the number of stripes found on each specimen. Some have more orange than others.
Marine aquarium fish that have an abnormally uniform red can be found in Hawaii. Unlike other variants, their black stripes are not thick but almost always narrow. Hawaiian variants are very rare in the marine aquarium trade as most angelfish are usually collected from Marshall and Christmas Islands.
With proper acclimation and feeding, they can become a robust fish to have. They are a grazing fish their natural habitats that consume algae, detritus and have been known to nip on corals . Coral nipping is generally hit or miss and there is never a way to tell if such a behavior is about to take place.
Many enthusiasts have kept them in full reef aquariums without any troubles but there is always a chance this may change. In large systems with plenty of live rock, removing the offending flame angel is a tricky task that typically requires the use of a trap or physical removal of the rock structure to capture it.
They are not tricky feeders and will try out a wide range of foods in captivity. These fish are semi aggressive and can become the dominant fish in an aquarium with smaller fishes. Never put more than one flame angelfish in the same tank except if you have a exceptionally big aquarium as there will be heightened aggression between the two.
Also present are the tiger like black stripes that run down its main body. Flame angelfish generally differ greatly with regards with their general color mix and the number of stripes found on each specimen. Some have more orange than others.
Marine aquarium fish that have an abnormally uniform red can be found in Hawaii. Unlike other variants, their black stripes are not thick but almost always narrow. Hawaiian variants are very rare in the marine aquarium trade as most angelfish are usually collected from Marshall and Christmas Islands.
With proper acclimation and feeding, they can become a robust fish to have. They are a grazing fish their natural habitats that consume algae, detritus and have been known to nip on corals . Coral nipping is generally hit or miss and there is never a way to tell if such a behavior is about to take place.
Many enthusiasts have kept them in full reef aquariums without any troubles but there is always a chance this may change. In large systems with plenty of live rock, removing the offending flame angel is a tricky task that typically requires the use of a trap or physical removal of the rock structure to capture it.
They are not tricky feeders and will try out a wide range of foods in captivity. These fish are semi aggressive and can become the dominant fish in an aquarium with smaller fishes. Never put more than one flame angelfish in the same tank except if you have a exceptionally big aquarium as there will be heightened aggression between the two.
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