Queen Angelfish
Scientific Name : Holacanthus Ciliaris
Origin : Carribean, Western Atlantic Ocean
Temperament : Semi-Aggressive
Temperature : 72F - 82F
Maximum Size : 18 Inches
Diet : Omnivore
Difficulty : Medium
Reef Safe : No
Tank Size : 150 Gallons
The Queen angelfish is a favorite among the staff at flameangelfish.net. A large angelfish that is equally stunning as a juvenile or as an adult, the queen angelfish is one of three very popular big angels in the marine aquarium hobby. The other two slots are filled in by the Emperor angelfish and the French angelfish. Their scientific name is Holacanthus Ciliaris.
As juveniles, queen angelfish look very different. They have beautiful coloration with horizontal electric blue outlines across their bodies, anal and dorsal fins and their face. Their bodies are generally yellow. Adults are a uniform yellowish green and they lose the horizontal stripes. The most distinctive feature is their bright blue crown.
This fish is often confused with the blue angelfish (Holacanthus Bermudensis). They both look entirely the same as juveniles or as adults and they both inhabit the same areas in the wild. Hybrids from the two have been known in the wild. Telling them apart is easy. Blue angels do not have the crown that is present on all queen angelfish.
Like most other large angelfish juveniles, the juvenile queen angelfish often acts as a cleaner in the wild. They will pick off parasites from other fish. They quickly outgrow this behavior as they begin to mature. Queen angels are one of the more popular larger angelfish in the market and are generally considered an expensive fish. Juveniles can be purchased for as little as $90 while fuly mature show quality adults can go beyond the $200 range. It should be noted that these fish can get very aggressive especially towards other big angels. It is generally a bad idea to put more than on in the same aquarium.
Large angels are not considered reef safe and can quickly consume your corals in the marine aquarium. Of course, there is always an exception to this rule. This is why most larger angels are kept in fish only marine aquariums and not in reef aquariums.
In the wild they are grazers that will feed on sponges, corals, polyps and algae. In captivity, they will feed on a wide variety fo foods that are both meaty and vegetable based. Ensure they are given a balanced diet.
Larger angelfish species are known coralivores and can consume sponges, tunicates along with algae. As this is their natural diet in the wild, we should try to emulate it within reason. Feeding them corals or tunicates on a consisten basis is unreasonable. Thankfully, most of them accept prepared foods willingly.
A good mix of meaty and vegetable matter is essential to the overall health of dwarf angels. Some other good foods to feed daily are * Sea Veggies Seaweed, which are nutritious seaweed for grazers. Prime Reef * Flake Food which is a blend of numerous seafood and algae such as seaweed, lobster meat, salmon, shrimp, squid and zooplankton.
The best dry pellet foods on the market come from the highly reputable makers, * New Life Spectrum. Use a * Seaweed Clip when feeding them seaweed sheets. Simply take a sheet, fold it and clip it. Secure the clip to the aquarium glass in a location of your choice and they should graze on it throughout the day. Centropyge species can nip on corals so be warned.
Queen angelfish are some of the biggest angels that come into the marine aquarium trade. They have the potential to reach lengths of up to a foot and a half. Therefore, only the largest aquariums can hold them. A 150 gallon aquarium is the bare minimum for this species. But they could really use the space of a 250 to 300 gallon.
Always quarantine your specimens to ensure they are disease and parasite free. From time to time you may come across 2 inch juveniles for sale at the marine store. Resist the temptation to buy them if you do not have a large enough aquarium.
Queen angelfish are some of the most stunning species within the angelfish family and their price and demand generally reflects this fact. Not for everyone, they need huge quarters and can be a bully in captivity.
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