Blue Tang
Paracanthurus hepatus
- Expert
- Semi-aggressive
- 30 cm adult
- Saltwater
Knowledge-base entry — ask in store about availability.
Regal blue with a yellow tail — yes, that movie fish. A powerful, ever-swimming surgeonfish for large, mature reef systems only.
- Min tank size
- 400 L
- Temperature
- 24–27 °C
- pH
- 7.9–8.4
- Hardness
- 8–12 dGH
- Salinity
- 1.025 sg
- Group size
- Can be kept singly
- Diet
- Omnivore with heavy algae need — nori sheets, marine pellets, mysis
- Lifespan
- 20+ years
- Adult size
- 30 cm
Breeding difficulty: Hard
Open-water egg scatterer; not bred in home aquaria, only recently in research facilities.
Needs serious swimming length (180 cm+ tanks), pristine water and daily greens. Prone to ich when stressed; quarantine carefully.