Fact Sheet: QUEEN ANGELFISH - Holacanthus ciliaris

(Original Title: Facts About the Queen Angelfish)

A Queen Angelfish (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Queen angelfish is considered the most beautiful of all the angelfish, although it isn't suited for a small aquarium. The Queen angelfish was named in 1758 by Linnaeus, a scientific name of Holacanthus ciliaris. They live to up to 15 years of age. If you decide to introduce a Queen angelfish to your aquarium there are some guidelines to follow:

Description

The adult Queen is blue with yellow rims on its scales. The ventral fins and pectoral fins are yellow, their lips and edging on their dorsal fins and anal fins are blue. They also have blue around each gill cover. They grow up to 45 cm in length.

The juvenile queen angelfish has blue bodies with yellow gills, tail, and lips. They have vertical bars ranging from light blue to white.

Geographical Location

The Queen angelfish is found in the Western Atlantic, from Florida to Brazil to the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. It is also found in the Eastern Central Atlantic, around Saint Peter and Saint Paul Islets. It is found at a depth of up to 70 meters. It can be found on stony reef corals and Porifera sponges.

Breeding

Adult Queen angelfish are found in pairs leading to suggest that they are monogamous fish. Reproduction occurs with the pair rising to the surface of the water and releasing sperm and egg in a cloud effect.

Females can release from 25-75 thousand eggs each evening, which equates to 10 million eggs in their spawning cycle. The eggs hatch in 15-20 hours as larvae. The larvae don't have eyes, fins or a gut. Within 48 hours the sac is absorbed and somewhat resembles a free-swimming fish. The larvae feed on plankton. 3-4 weeks later the juvenile will settle on the bottom and is around 15-20 mm in length.

Aquarium Requirements

The Queen angelfish is not recommended for a novice aquarist. It is sensitive to organic waste and because of that, it is hard to feed. It is a lively fish and swims in the open in the day.

The tank needs to be at least 150-200 gallons as it approaches its full size in length. It needs to have hiding spots for the Queen as well as other fish who may want to keep away from it. The Queen angelfish can be semi-aggressive and therefore should be added last to the aquarium. Two male Queen angelfish can lead to violence, but if it's to be kept with other angelfish they should all be introduced together. This is not a guarantee though that it won't be aggressive, however.

It is best to make sure the aquarium environment factors such as water temperature and pH-balance is stable before you introduce the Queen.

Queen angelfish respond well in a reef aquarium. They will nip at soft corals, clam mantles, and stony corals. It is best to train it to eat foods other than sponges, hydroids, tunicates, feather dusters because they can deplete the environment and it leads to malnutrition.

Food

In the sea, the Queen survives mainly on sponges. In an aquarium it is expensive to feed it only sponges so training it to eat other foods is advised. Serving up frozen meat foods like shrimp, squid and an angelfish formula which consists of sponges is beneficial. They also require algae on a daily basis. You can also feed them vegetables like spinach, aubergines, and zucchini. They require many small portions of food a day.

By Kate Strong Although there are a few requirements to get your Queen angelfish to thrive in your aquarium, the beauty of these fish certainly outweigh any hardships you encounter along the way. Article Source: EzineArticles

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QUEEN ANGELFISH Care

Young Queen Angelfish - Photo  by      laszlo-photo  (cc)

The Queen angelfish (Holacanthus Ciliaris) is one of three very popular "large" angelfish in the marine aquarium hobby today. The other two being the Emperor Angelfish (Pomacanthus Imperator) and the French Angelfish (Pomacanthus Paru). It reigns as the most popular angelfish in the genus holacanthus. They are a member of the family Pomacanthidae and are one of the largest angelfish among its cousins.

The queen angelfish is commonly found throughout the Caribbean sea, Florida, Brazil and the Gulf of Mexico. It is closely related to the Blue Angelfish (Holacanthus Bermudensis) and to the untrained eye they look completely alike. These two angelfish have been known to interbreed in the wild. Their offspring have also been known as Holacanthus Townsendi. It should be noted that Holacanthus Townsendi is not a valid species, it is merely a hybrid. Fortunately, telling them apart is easy, queen angelfish possess a blue-ringed crown on its head while the blue angelfish does not.

As with all larger angelfish species, juvenile coloration differs from that of an adult. Juveniles possess bright blue vertical bars from its face to its main body. These bars will slowly disappear as they grow. Adults sport a brilliant iridescent yellow and blue throughout their entire body.

Juvenile angelfish also take on a peculiar role in the wild. They assume the role of "cleaners". As cleaners they provide a valuable service for other marine fish, they feed on any parasites present on the bodies of other fish.

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This is an expensive fish, small specimens usually retail for $80-$90 USD with large adults (Show quality) costing $200 and upwards.

Larger angelfish of the family Pomacanthidae have developed a well deserved reputation or being aggressive bullies in captivity. Queen angelfish is no exception.

It generally ignores other species of fish but is pretty hostile towards other large angelfish. It is especially hostile towards other queen angels or blue angelfish for that matter. One queen angelfish per tank is the general rule.

This angelfish reaches lengths of up to 18 inches. A foot and a half! They rarely achieve such lengths in captivity however, expect a maximum size of 12 to 13 inches or so.

Marine aquariums no smaller than 150 gallons should be used to house a queen angelfish. As with all larger marine fish, the bigger the tank, the better. Ensure your rock scape in the aquarium allows for ample swimming space.

Do not be fooled into buying smaller juveniles for a 50 gallon aquarium. They will quickly outgrow such small tanks in a matter of months. The queen angelfish is not reef safe, it can eat corals or at least nip on them until they eventually perish. Though some hobbyists have been successfully keeping them in reef aquariums, they are more often seen in large, fish-only aquariums.

They feed on tunicates, sponges, corals, algae and plankton in the wild. Avoid housing them in a reef aquarium with many corals as they can make short work of your expensive corals.

Offer them a good variety of foods from sheets of nori/seaweed to meaty foods like krill or mysis shrimp. New Life Spectrum produces some of the highest quality pellets on the market and would be my first choice as a good pellet food to offer my fish.

Formula two is a pretty balanced food for angelfish as well, containing seafood and extra algae for herbivorous fishes. It is available in pellet, flake or frozen cube form.

The most complete food available for Queen Angelfish is Angel Formula by Ocean Nutrition. This food was specifically designed to cater to the needs of large angelfish, they contain a good mix of fresh seafood, algae, vitamins and most importantly, marine sponges. Angel Formula is only available in frozen cube form.

With regards to nori sheets/seaweed sheets for your queen angelfish. You could choose either branded seaweed sheets from companies catering to herbivorous fish or you can always run down to your local supermarket and get some there. Depending on the brand they could either be very expensive or very cheap.

If you're buying from the supermarket, make sure you buy the plain, unflavoured/unspiced version. Raw nori is a good choice if available. Get a clip for your nori and stick it on the side of the aquarium glass.

By Indran Manickam I also have guides on the Queen Angelfish and the Emperor Angelfish on Hubpages complete with photos and videos so do drop by. Article Source: EzineArticles

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