Blue Surgeonfish, Acanthurus coeruleus
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Description
The blue tangs, barbero azul o Acanthurus coeruleus, You are confused with the actual surgeonfish (Paracanthurus Hepatus), because in the areas of origin to the surgeonfish Real it is called Caribbean Blue Blue tang or tang, which creates some confusion. Although the two fish are acanthurids, are two different varieties. The first description of this fish is the work of Block&Schneider 1801, and your name Acanthurus coeruleus refers to its spiny tail (Acanthurus) and dark blue color as the sky (coereleus).
Morphology
The blue surgeonfish is morphologically very interesting. Like all surgeons, It has a flattened body, slightly oval and small mouth with serrated teeth. Has two removable spines located on either side of caudal peduncle the, they use to fend off other fish and can be dangerous when handled. Its color changes as it matures, even in adulthood you can change coloration, if I feel threatened. When the Acanthurus coereleus is young, its color is bright yellow with a light blue lines, marking the perimeter of the dorsal fin and anal fin, and a very characteristic blue stain, in the eye. As you grow, He is changing and taking their shade to blue. First you will have a light blue and its tail fin will remain yellow. When they arrived to adulthood, are completely blue or violet blue shooting, and a stain on the tail fin which may be white. The adults, They can change the tone of your skin, under certain circumstances It can happen to have a blue-gray coloration brown or orange, with brands more marked in blue strong, black or brown. In the aquarium do not get to be more than 20 centimeters, but nature is much larger size, about 75 centimeters.
Distribution and habitat
- Easytest with 50 test strips water.
- Strips for analysis 6 important water values in 1 minute.
- nitrites (NO2) from 0 a 10 mg / l.
- Mide el pH de 6,four a 9,zero.
Is a marine fish with a wide geographical distribution. It can be found in the western Atlantic Drift Ocean, Bermuda, Caribe, South America and Africa. Pure habitat are coral reefs and rocky coastal areas, which form small groups.
Aquarium conditions
The aquarium should be a good size with a less 800 liters, They are tireless swimmers and need space, if we keep them in small aquariums, its increased aggressiveness. The temperature of the water should be in the range of 22º to 26 ° C, with a pH between eight.1 and 8.4, salinity of the water should be placed around 1.023-1.25. It is superb that the parameters remain stable. For decoration, we must try to reproduce their habitat puree with rocks and coral, in which we leave spaces so that they can hide and sleep. On top, areas should be open for them to swim freely. A good idea is to provide a stream of water, so that fish can swim against the tide. For good maintenance of the aquarium, You should change a 10% of water from the aquarium every two weeks.
Diet
The blue surgeonfish es herbivorous, in natural state eat benthic algae, in the aquarium they are usually fed with all kinds of foods in which vegetables and algae are present. There preparations of dried seaweed, which they are ideal for the diet of these fish, which can be supplemented with Artemia frozen foods, Mysisâ € | A good thought and used by some aquarists, it is add broccoli leaves, zucchini, lettuce or spinach, which are left floating in water, and they serve as a complement to his give. Others, let algae grow in their aquariums, which they serve as food free of charge, for your surgeonfish.
Behavior and compatibility
El Acanthurus coereleus It is not too sociable and is better to have only one in the aquarium, even with others of the same species uncongenial well, and often show aggressive. Nevertheless, If the aquarium is the right size can coexist with other species that are quiet, provided the blue surgeon fish is the last to arrive at the aquarium. Congenia with gobies or angelfish, species found in their own habitats.
Reproduction
Despite the efforts that have been made, nowadays You can not play the blue surgeon fish in captivity, even in companies specialized in breeding aquarium fish, They have managed to succeed. The difficulty begins when the eggs hatch. The stage in which the Acanthurus coeruleus are fry is very long, through previous seasons as pelagic larvae and planktonic larva, where they are very fragile and easy to damage. Remember that in the aquarium probably only have one copy, or the best if we play we try a couple, which requires a good installation. In nature surgeonfishes, They congregate in groups of 6-7000 individuals for spawning, although there are also couples far away from the group. The courtship starts with the male showing something aggressive with the female, to spawn with them. Once the female accepts, the two swim to the surface to the last evening, releasing eggs on the surface and the sperm of the male. The eggs are very small, They have a diameter of 0, eight millimeters and float, because they contain a small drop of oil. At 24 hours, the eggs hatch and transparent larva is born a small diamond-shaped, thin flat, with a triangular head and silver belly. In the early stages it feeds on plankton. Until it reaches a size 2 a 6 mm, does not develop the dorsal fins, anal and covered with scales. When they reach thirteen millimeters, They develop the caudal spine which serves as a protection. Sexual maturity is reached when they already have between 9 Y 12 months and a 10 centimeters long.
Tips
Los peces Acanthurus coeruleus They are difficult to acclimate to the aquarium, but once this phase, They are quite resistant. So that they are in perfect health, you need to have some fellow aquarium (not of the same species) and that the water quality is good and stable. They are prone to skin diseases, fish are called dry skin. If we see that our fish lose color, is that power is not being properly, missing vitamins or aquarium does not meet the conditions that the fish needs. It is a fish that is commonly available in pet stores throughout the year, although the price of the Acanthurus coeruleus, will depend on the size of the copy.
- The article is easy to install and use. Fairly dirty things from the bottom of your aquarium effectively. Support two sizes of pipe…
- Siphon tube supplied. Caudal 520 liters per hour.
- With this tool, You can remove dirt from the bottom of your aquarium. Supplied with two sizes of suction tube, It is suitable for…
- It can also be used as a water trap to change the water, or to empty your aquarium when connecting a hose to the outlet.
