Animal-World > Marine Fish > Marine Angelfish > Multicolor Angelfish

Multicolor Angelfish

Multicolor Pygmy Angelfish ~ Pastel Pygmy Angelfish
Many-colored Angelfish Family: Pomacanthidae

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Centropyge multicolor Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy David Brough

   With is 'multiple' colors, the Multicolor Angelfish is a very attractive fish, though not as flashy as some of the other angels.

   The Multicolor Angelfish or Multicolor Pygmy Angelfish is a very active swimmer, but does like to dart into secret places. It will need plenty of swimming space along with lots of rockwork with many nooks and crannies for hiding. It is a hardy aquarium inhabitant once it is acclimated.

   It can definitely be kept in a fish only aquarium. A reef environment is actually ideal for it, but as with most of the pygmy angelfish it may damage some of the stony and soft coral species. This is an individual behavior with each fish having its own tendencies, so if you wish to try it in a reef keep a close eye on your corals and see how your fish will behave.

For more Information on keeping marine fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Marine Aquarium

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Status:
   These fish are not listed on the IUCN Red List.

Description:
   The Multicolor Angelfish or Multicolor Pygmy Angelfish is definitely a multicolored fish. It is pale on the upper half of body, shading to yellow on the anterior half of the abdominal side, orangish centrally, and blackish blue posteriorly. The head is deep blue above eye-level with vertical black bars. The caudal fin is yellow, the dorsal and anal fins bluish black with deep blue margins, and the pectoral and pelvic fins are yellow.
   It is very similar and closely resembles Nahacky’s Pygmy Angelfish C. nahackyi, but the latter has a broad black area on the dorsal and posterior sides, and has no white area. Also closely related is the Blue Mauritius Dwarf Angel C. debelius (Mauritius, Reunion and Aldabra) but this angelfish has an overall deep blue body with a yellow area on the face and chest, and also has numerous black spots on head region.

Length/Diameter of fish:
   Adults reach 3.5 inches (9 cm), but most available specimens are below 2 3/4 inches (7 cm).

Maintenance difficulty:
   To acclimate this fish when you first acquire it, you need to help it feel secure. Do this by providing multiple hiding places and keep it with a few non-aggressive but active fish such as flasher wrasses or chromis damsels. They can entice it to come out and explore, also encouraging it to accept food. Once it is successfully acclimatized it will become a very hardy fish. As it may harm the polyps of some stony and soft coral species, so it is not recommended for reef-type aquariums.
   Most of the Centropyge members are very colorful but unfortunately are rather difficult to keep for a long period, and on occasion they suffer from “ich” (white spot disease) and other infectious diseases. They can be treated successfully with medical care or copper drugs, but some species hate sudden changes of water including PH and temperature, and any drug treatment. In the wild a cleaner wrasse (Labroides sp.) will help them by taking parasites from their bodies.

  Diseases that marine angelfish are susceptible to:
Marine Ich (white spot disease), Marine Velvet, and Lymphocystis (a viral infection).

Foods:
   The Multicolor Angelfish are omnivores. Provide a varied diet. Meaty foods, dried flakes, shrimps, frozen prepared diets for sponge and algae eaters, and tablets are acceptable. Feed frequently at first with various foods, including ‘wet foods’ like frozen shrimps. Feed at least twice a day.

Maintenance:
   Once this angelfish is successfully acclimated it will become a hardy fish. No special care is needed, it takes a variety of foods and is easily kept in a captive environment. It needs many crevices to hide even if it is an adult and it is quite active, so needs plenty of room to swim. Frequent water changes are not necessary, rather normal water changes at 10% biweekly or 20% monthly are fine. Sudden massive water changes can cause trouble.
   For more information see, Marine Aquarium Basics: Maintenance

Aquarium Parameters:
   This is an active fish so needs lots of space for swimming. It also needs many crevices to hide in even as an adult. An aquarium well decorated with rocks/ corals will providing it with many places for retreat
Minimum Tank Length/Size:
   A minimum 50 gallon (189 liters) or more.
Light: Recommended light levels
   It can be kept under strong lights or in a dimly lit aquarium.
Temperature:
   This species lives in tropical areas. Temperatures between 75 -79° F (24 - 26° C) will serve them well, but temperatures higher than 84° F (29° C) or below 72 ° F (22° C) would not be good.
Water Movement: Weak, Moderate, Strong
   Water movement is not a significant factor. It can tolerate a rather stronger flow, but slow-moving
water is preferable.
Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom
   It is rather a quick swimmer around the rocks or corals, and also it will venture to the surface for foods when it is well acclimated.

Social Behaviors:
   The Multicolor Angelfish is recommended for fish only community aquariums. The tank should be well decorated with rocks/ corals with many hiding places even if it is an adult. It is also said to be a reef safe fish as it does well in a coral-rich tank with sessile inverts, but it may eat some species of hard and soft corals. However not every fish is going to damage corals, the behavior of each individual fish will be different. If you do want to keep it in a reef observe its behavior towards the corals closely, removing it to a fish only tank if it tends to pick at them for any length of time.
   A group of several individuals of this angelfish can be kept successfully but they need a lot of space for swimming and many hiding places. It is an active fish and can get along together with more aggressive species. It can be kept with larger and rather territorial angelfishes like Pomacanthus and Holacanthus. Other angelfish such as members of Centropyge, Apolemichthys, Genicanthus, Chaetodontoplus and Pygoplites could be good tank mates. Smaller cardinalfish, gobies, tilefish, butterflyfish, fairy basslets, fairy and flasher wrasses, etc. are also good candidates; as are wrasses of a variety of genera. Small but very territorial fishes like dottybacks should be avoided in the same tank.

Sex: Sexual differences:
   No visual sexual difference is reported.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   In their natural habitat, the pygmy angelfish form a harem dominated by one large male with between one and four smaller mature females and up to nine juveniles. At dusk during the lunar month the male will conduct an elaborate mating ritual and then spawn with each of the females individually. They are pelagic spawners, each pair will rise up several feet above the reef and release the eggs and sperm together directly into the water column. The eggs are fertilized and continue to rise up to the plankton rich surface.
   The Multicolor Angelfish is being successfully bred and cultivated in Hawaii, along with several other species of pygmy angelfish, Centropyge. Like all the adult pygmy angels, the Multicolor Angelfish are hardy, adapt well to captivity, and will often spawn in the aquarium even without any special provisions. However egg production can be poor and random when their diet and the subsequent care of the young is not given due consideration.
   For more information see, Marine Fish Breeding

Buy Multicolor Angelfish From LiveAquaria.com

Availability:
   The Multicolor Angelfish or Multicolor Pygmy Angelfish is available fairly regularly at retailers nowadays. In Hawaii the species has been cultivated successfully for the aquarium trade. They ship well and these hardier juvenile and young specimens are becoming popular. Most of the available specimens do not exceed a length of 2 3/4 inches (7cm).

   It commands a fairly high price (for Centropyge) with prices starting at about $90.00 USD, but some can be obtained at a cheaper price of about $70.00 USD.
   This is an attractive active fish. If you get a chance to acquire this angelfish observe it carefully. See whether or not the specimen is breathing slowly and is adequately fat (especially on head). Many reef-keepers wish to keep it in a mini reef setup, but it will often pick at the polyps of living corals.

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