Likely Reef Tank Suitable
Likely Fish-Only Tank Suitable
Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Indonesia to the Solomon Islands, north to the Philippines, and south to Ashmore Reef.
Size: 6 inches (16 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabits lagoon patch reefs at depths between 3 to 30 feet (1 – 10 m) where it feeds mainly on filamentous algae and somewhat on benthic invertebrates.
General Husbandry: Extremely aggressive, and not normally distributed in the trade. Quite drab, having whitish body with the head capped in brown and the lower jaw area yellow. Males having a large black patch on the belly.
Not purposely collected for the hobby.
Taxonomy:
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Labroidei
Family: Pomacentridae
Subfamily: Pomacentrinae
Genus: Dischistodus
FYI: Shown here for identification only.
May occasionally show up in the trade as an ‘Assorted Damselfish.’
Unsuitable for most home aquariums.
Best left in the wild.
Experience Level: Professional
Temperament: Very aggressive
Diet: Omnivore
Coral Safe: Yes
Invertebrate Safe: With caution
Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium
Tankmates: Very aggressive
Minimum Tank Size: 75 gallons
Temperature Range: 74 - 84°F (23 – 28°C)