Genicanthus lamarck

(Lacepede, 1802)

Lamarck's Angelfish

Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: East Africa to the Philippines, New Guinea, and Indonesia and north to southern Japan, and south to the northern Great Barrier Reef.

Size: 9 inches (23 cm)

Natural Environment: Inhabits coastal reefs and steep fore-reef slopes on outer reefs at depths of 30 to 130 feet (10 – 40 m) and is an open water plankton feeder.

General Husbandry: This attractive species is quite common in the trade and makes for a colorful and peaceful addition to both fish-only and reef aquariums.

The male has a somewhat different coloration than the female, i.e., sexually dimorphic. Both have three to six horizontal bars on an overall white body, with the female upper bar much wider than those on the male. There’s also a blue spot at the base of the pectoral fins on the male, but not the female. And the male’s pelvic fins are black and the caudal lobes are white, with females just the opposite colorations. Also, the males have very long tail streamers. Both have a tail that tapers into the body, resulting in what can be called a swallowtail appearance. In fact, those in this genus are sometimes called Swallowtail Angelfish.

Best maintained in aquariums with lots of wide-open swimming areas. As to diet, they should be offered at a minimum several daily feedings so as to quickly acclimate it to its surroundings. Like many others in this genus, their captive diet should consist of a wide variety of meaty foods including fortified brine shrimp, mysis and angelfish food preparations, and continued to be offered several times daily after its acclimated to its surroundings. Some flake foods, especially those containing Spirulina should also be offered occasionally, as algae, especially Spirulina is a healthy addition to all that consume it.

Depending upon its tankmates, it can be quite shy when first entering the aquarium, and may hide in caves and crevices. But as time passes, will become more outgoing. Those in this genus, as those in the genus Apolemichthys and Chaetodontoplus, are almost always very good tankmates and considered one of the least aggressive in the family. Keep in mind males will fight among themselves, so the limit is one per aquarium, whereas multiple females can be maintained, and all can be maintained with other genus angelfish.

Taxonomy:

Order: Perciformes

Suborder: Percoidei

Family: Pomacanthidae

Genus: Genicanthus

FYI: Keeping more than one genus of angelfishes in the same aquarium is possible, yet depends upon several aspects. The following suggested circumstances are just that, possibilities that when heeded and adjusted to actual aquarium conditions ‘may’ make multiple angelfish collections feasible.

Aquarium size – the larger the better.

Other species from the same genus should not be in the same aquarium.

The smallest and most docile genus species should be the first introduced with the largest and most malicious the last to be added.

Do not place similar coloration species in the same aquarium.

Those already in the aquarium should be well fed before adding a newcomer.

Have sufficient hiding places/rocky caves.

Keep in mind all angels have cheekspines at the edge of their gill cover; therefore use caution when handling and also avoid using a net to capture it, as it may become stuck or tangled in the net and become damaged when removed.

Experience Level: Beginner

Temperament: Peaceful

Diet: Planktivore

Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+

Aquarium Environment: Fish-only and reef aquariums

Reef Safe: Yes

Minimum Tank Size: 150 gallons

Temperature Range: 70 - 79°F (21 – 26°C)

Specific Gravity: 1.020 - 1.026

pH: 8.0 - 8.5