The bristlemouth surgeonfish of the Ctenochaetus genus are some of the most perfect aquarium fish with a size, behavior and disposition that seems tailor made for a life in a reef tank. There are many species available in the aquarium hobby…
This Yellow Scopas Koi is Turning Into a Dirty Bird
Rare fish fanciers will probably be well aware of the large aberrant Zebrasoma scopas that are frequently collected in the Maldives and in western Indonesia that are known as Koi Scopas tangs in the aquarium hobby. But it is less…
RVS Fishworld Stumps Us With a Wild Acanthurus Surgeonfish Hybrid
When you handle as many fish as RVS Fishworld does, especially within the Filipino region of the Coral triangle, you’re bound to come up with some real rare oddballs and hybrids. Today we learned that their network of fisherman have…
Anubis Tang is Probably the Rarest Surgeonfish Ever
We’ve been following Anubis, the one-off purple scopas tang hybrid, for almost a year now. Despite its radical juvenile appearance, we initially thought that the Purple X Scopas tang would lose its appeal as it grows. But we are glad…
Black and white Penguin tang is the latest aberrant Scopas to appear
Reefbuilders is the home of saltwater color morphs and has covered more koi, calico, yellow and piebald Scopas tangs than anyone else. So let us introduce you to our next example of polychromatism in Zebrasoma scopas, the Bicolor.
Powder Blue Tangs & Emperor Angelfish: Two Common Fish That New Reefkeepers Should Avoid
Reefkeeping is a paradox. We set up an aquarium to display all the wonderful diversity of the tropical oceans, only to be told that we can’t keep the vast majority of species in our tanks. I help out in my LFS on Saturdays and the following two species are probably the two that people ask me for and point out the most, only for me to deliver the grim news that they can’t have them. And here’s why.
This Wild Powder Blue Tang Has a White Dorsal Fin!
The powder blue tang is so named because of its sky blue body coloration, which is a different shade than other blue surgeonfish, most notably the regal blue tang, AKA Dory. Well apparently this is not the full evolution of…
Coral Loss Can Lead To Bigger Fish Size, But The Results Are Short-Lived
According to a new study published in Functional Ecology, turf algae that grows on dead coral branches is a food bonanza for herbivorous fish. Turf algae overgrows corals after bleaching events and herbivorous fish like parrotfish, surgeonfish and rabbitfish grow even bigger in…
Wild Aberrant Scopas Tang Discovered in Kenya
Aberrant Zebrasoma tangs come in many different varieties; there’s ‘koi’ scopas tangs, calico scopas, yellow scopas, piebald and white yellow tangs, but today’s spotlight falls on a very unusual piebald scopas tang. This curious specimen photographed by Dawn Goebbels in…
Mysterious ‘Zebra Tang’ Created by Bali Aquarich
During our most recent monthly visit to Mr Su at the Bali Aquarich facility in North Bali, we were greeted by the cutest little juvenile tang we’ve ever seen. This single individual is a one of a kind fish, a…
