Saltcorner
By Bob Goemans
By Bob Goemans
Not Reef Tank Suitable
Likely Fish-Only Tank Suitable
Range: Western Pacific Ocean: Christmas Island to Tonga, north to Southern Japan, and south to Lord Howe Island.
Size: 6 inches (15 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabits lagoons, reef faces, and fore-reef slopes at depths of 10 – 100 feet (3 – 30 m) and feeds on stony corals, mushroom anemones, other various sessile invertebrates and filamentous algae.
General Husbandry: An attractive species having a yellow body with a black eye band, black patch on the upper mid body, and yellow dorsal, anal, pelvic, and tail fins, with the tail edged in black.
Known to be a difficult species to get feeding in aquaria, and said to be best maintained in larger peaceful fish-only aquariums, especially those with lots of open swimming space, lots live rock hiding places and areas to browse containing some micro and macroalgae As to diet, its often necessary to begin feeding with live meaty foods, such as fortified brine shrimp and black worms (Lumbriculus variegatus) and be offered several times daily. If accepting these foods, various frozen meaty foods such as mysis can be offered. It is not known if any algae is consumed in the wild, nevertheless, some flake foods, especially those containing Spirulina and/or Nori should also be offered.
And should there be a problem getting this species to feed, small human consumption clams/black mussels purchased in local grocery stores and placed on the half-shell in the aquarium may help entice it to begin feeding. Over time, frozen foods like mysis and brine shrimp may be more readily accepted.
Taxonomy:
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Percoidei
Family: Chaetodontidae
Genus: Chaetodon
FYI: Pressing some soft foods into openings/crevices on a piece of old dead coral skeleton can sometimes encourage finicky eaters to begin feeding.
Experience Level: Intermediate
Temperament: Peaceful
Diet: Carnivore
Coral Safe: No
Invertebrate Safe: No
Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+
Aquarium Environment: Fish-only aquarium
Tankmates: Peaceful or non-aggressive
Minimum Tank Size: 75 gallons
Temperature Range: 74 - 82°F (23 – 27°C)
Specific Gravity: 1.020 -1.026
pH: 8.0 - 8.5
