Saltcorner
By Bob Goemans
By Bob Goemans
Likely Reef Tank Suitable
Likely Fish-Only Tank Suitable
Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Papua New Guinea, Solomon and Loyalty Islands, Fiji and Tonga.
Size: 3 inches (7 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabits coastal drop-offs and usually found in small groups at depths between 100 to about 250 feet (30 – 75 m) where it feeds on zooplankton.
General Husbandry: Very rarely seen in the trade, with males having an orange-pink body, becoming pale lavender towards the rear, and a red bar under the dorsal and a yellow band on the head. Females also have an orange-pink body, with spots o the scales.
One of the more shy species in this family and best maintained in dimly lit aquaria since this is a slightly deep collected species, yet maintainable in brightly lit reef aquariums, yet will be quite shy and take longer to acclimate. Aquarium should also have several rocky caves and strong water movement, and have a large unencumbered area for schooling, which will occur in the upper third of this area. Tankmates should be peaceful and it would be best that all tankmates be last to enter the aquarium.
As to diet, will eat most regular aquarium foods, e.g., finely chopped various frozen or fresh meaty foods such as mysis, squid, fish flesh, shrimp, clam, etc., and should be offered at least twice daily and dispensed upstream so water currents carry food to their location.
Sometimes difficult to get feeding, and if so, fortified live adult brine shrimp may be necessary until they accept other types of aquarium foods, e.g., frozen foods and fresh marine fish and invertebrate flesh.
Taxonomy:
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Percoidei
Family: Serranidae
Subfamily: Anthiinae
Genus: Pseudanthias
FYI: Can jump out of the aquarium, therefore some sort of cover may be necessary.
Can be maintained in small groups.
Experience Level: Intermediate
Temperament: Peaceful
Diet: Carnivore
Coral Safe: Yes
Fish Safe: Yes
Invertebrate Safe: Yes
Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+
Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium
Tankmates: Peaceful
Minimum Tank Size: 100 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 - 80°F (22 – 27°C)
Specific Gravity: 1.020 - 1.026
pH: 8.0 - 8.5
