Pomacentrus lepidogenys

(Fowler & Bean, 1928)

Scaly Damselfish

Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Andaman Sea east to Fiji and Tonga, north to Philippines, south to Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia.

Size: 4 inches (9 cm)

Natural Environment: Inhabits lagoons, reef channels and outer reef slopes at depths between 3 to about 50 feet (1 – 15 m) and feeds on zooplankton, benthic invertebrates and algae.

General Husbandry: One of the more attractive, yet rarely seen in the trade species in this genus, having a pale blue body, sometimes grey depending upon the area of collection, with a yellow dorsal and caudal peduncle.

Best maintained in small groups of at least five to seven members and non-aggressive tankmates.

As to diet, will eat most regular aquarium foods, e.g., live fortified brine shrimp and/or finely chopped various frozen or fresh meaty foods such as mysis, squid, fish flesh, shrimp, clam, etc., and plant material, e.g., flake foods, especially those containing Spirulina and offered once or twice daily.

Taxonomy:

Order: Perciformes

Suborder: Labroidei

Family: Pomacentridae

Subfamily: Pomacentrinae

Genus: Pomacentrus

FYI: Even though quite passive and will ignore other fish in the aquarium, larger aquariums, e.g., 50 gallons and above for this species, provide far more openness for small shoals to ‘peacefully’ coexist.

If maintained in groups of less than mentioned above, they tend to be over dominate of each other and may force some members into hiding. The bigger the group, the less intergroup picking on each other exists.

May pick on/annoy smaller peaceful species.

Experience Level: Beginner

Temperament: Semi-aggressive

Diet: Zooplanktivore/Omnivore

Coral Safe: Yes

Invertebrate Safe: With caution

Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+

Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium

Tankmates: Peaceful

Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons

Temperature Range: 74 - 84°F (23 – 28°C)

Specific Gravity: 1.020 - 1.026

pH: 8.0 - 8.5