Genicanthus Angels: The True Reef-Safe Angels, Part 1

Fishnut

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Thank you for the fine article and photos. Looking forward to part 2. I have been keeping marine fish for 50 years and never tried these angels. Thanks to your article I am going to make room for one in my tank.
 

Neptune 555

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Thank you for the article! I am investigating what angel to place in my 180 gallon reef upgrade. When I am looking at angels how can I be sure they are in the right family to be the most reef friendly? On LiveAquaria The emperor angel is easy to identify as correct b/c it says family Pomacathus. BUT the Queen Angel is listed in family Holacanthus. I ask b/c as I go to the LFS I want to be sure I get the right angel.

Can I assume that all angels in family Pamacanthus or Holacanthus is reef safe/safer.

Thanks!
Neptune
 
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fabutahoun

fabutahoun

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Thank you for the article! I am investigating what angel to place in my 180 gallon reef upgrade. When I am looking at angels how can I be sure they are in the right family to be the most reef friendly? On LiveAquaria The emperor angel is easy to identify as correct b/c it says family Pomacathus. BUT the Queen Angel is listed in family Holacanthus. I ask b/c as I go to the LFS I want to be sure I get the right angel.

Can I assume that all angels in family Pamacanthus or Holacanthus is reef safe/safer.

Thanks!
Neptune

Angelfish family have 8 genera:
Apolemichthys, Centropyge, Chaetodontoplus, Holacanthus, Paracentropyge, Pomacanthus, Pygoplites and Genicanthus, only Genicanthus angels -which are mention in this article- are reef safe . however you can keep some of the other angels in a reef but with caution and care. usually they will eat some corals and leave the others, or nip on everything. and some individuals will behave and other will me a total nightmare.

If you are going to add an angel other than Genicanthus you should be careful and research and see how it is behaving in aquariums kept by other reefers.
 

Neptune 555

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In your article, you mention in your 180 you have 3 swallow tails and an emperor angelfish with tangs... How is the behavior of the emperor angelfish to coral / invertebrates / other fish? How big and old is your emperor angel? I am really interested in adding an emperor angelfish in my upgraded new 180 tank when ready... my tank is more dedicated to fish then coral but I do want soft coral as I love the flow.... I also have blue / yellow tang.

thanks!!
 
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fabutahoun

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CMO

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So what generally determines which fish will turn male? I thought I had read that typically the most dominant fish would become the male but I'm experiencing the exact opposite. My Wantanabie angle originally introduced male has turned female and my Bellus female is now turning male. Interestingly, my Wantanabie is much larger and by far the most dominant fish in my entire system while the Bellus is among the most passive. Does this make sense or is sex change more random with genicanthus?
 
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fabutahoun

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So what generally determines which fish will turn male? I thought I had read that typically the most dominant fish would become the male but I'm experiencing the exact opposite. My Wantanabie angle originally introduced male has turned female and my Bellus female is now turning male. Interestingly, my Wantanabie is much larger and by far the most dominant fish in my entire system while the Bellus is among the most passive. Does this make sense or is sex change more random with genicanthus?
It is reported by many that male Genicanthus can change back to female in case of introducing another male or a dominant large female, but This case is interesting, usually the larger and more dominant fish will be the male.

Comparing maximum sizes for both fish, Wantanabie is the smallest memeber of the genus. And bellus will have a little lrager maximum size. So maybe this related somehow.
 

Nathanemmerich

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I read this article and bought a Lamarck angel. It is not reef safe at all. It ate a ton of lps. Sits there munching the tissue off the skeleton.
 
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fabutahoun

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I read this article and bought a Lamarck angel. It is not reef safe at all. It ate a ton of lps. Sits there munching the tissue off the skeleton.
Sorry To hear that, I kept Lamarck angel for years , and I know many reefers who are keeping them without any issues. I had an incident a while ago, where a gorilla crab was killing a coral , and the Lamarck was picking the dead tissue. when I removed the crab and there where no dead tissue anymore the Lamarck stopped.

Are You sure that there is nothing else killing or stressing your coral? if you are sure its the Lamarck then remove the fish.
 

Nathanemmerich

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Sorry To hear that, I kept Lamarck angel for years , and I know many reefers who are keeping them without any issues. I had an incident a while ago, where a gorilla crab was killing a coral , and the Lamarck was picking the dead tissue. when I removed the crab and there where no dead tissue anymore the Lamarck stopped.

Are You sure that there is nothing else killing or stressing your coral? if you are sure its the Lamarck then remove the fish.

I’m am certain it’s the Lamarck. I can watch him doing it. I’m picking up a fish trap this weekend.
 

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I have a female wattenabei now. Got maybe 6 months ago, she was about size of a quarter. Now about 2.5”. Doesn’t bother any wrasse, copperband or anyone else.

wondering if I ever find a male, how is the chance she will accept him without major fighting? I assume the male will be bigger. Tank is a 425 reefer, lots of rock.
 
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fabutahoun

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I have a female wattenabei now. Got maybe 6 months ago, she was about size of a quarter. Now about 2.5”. Doesn’t bother any wrasse, copperband or anyone else.

wondering if I ever find a male, how is the chance she will accept him without major fighting? I assume the male will be bigger. Tank is a 425 reefer, lots of rock.

If the female you already have is still small, most likely there will be no issues. The possibility of fights increases when the female gets larger and starts to turn to a male.
 

PhilT

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Would another female fight? Or would getting a small female help trigger the other to turn male?
 
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fabutahoun

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Would another female fight? Or would getting a small female help trigger the other to turn male?
Expect a little fight at start. You can try and see what will happen if the old female turn to male. sometimes it turn some times it doesn't.

I'v seen some females quickly turn to males after introduction of another female. however In my home tank its exactly the opposite.

Social acclimation box for few days is not a bad Idea when adding fish to your tank.
 

OrionN

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Watanabei is my favorite. The smallest of them all, which is a huge plus IMO because these guys are really active and swim a lot.
Female
WatanabeiFemale2016051502.jpg
WatanabeiFemale2016051504.jpg


Male
WatanabeiMale2016051501.jpg
 

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