Asfur Angelfish

Care at a glance

Overview

Keep a single asfur in at least 510 litres with plenty of rock shelter and open swimming water at 24 to 28 C. It usually adapts well to spirulina, marine algae, mysis and angelfish preparations and is more manageable than most large angels. It has a taste for large-polyp stony and some soft corals and clam mantles, so treat it as reef safe with caution. Add it after calmer fish are settled.

In the wild

The asfur angelfish carries a bold yellow crescent and yellow tail on a deep blue body. It stays near caves and overhangs on Red Sea reefs and darts back to shelter when startled. Adults are territorial but not as bruising as some large angels. It is prized for its clean, high-contrast colors.

Good to know

Pomacanthus asfur reaches about 40 cm and is closely related to the yellowbar angelfish, from which its narrower crescent-shaped bar sets it apart. It is native to the Red Sea and Arabian region. Juveniles show the pale-barred pattern typical of the genus.

Did you know

Its crescent bar is narrower and more moon-shaped than the yellowbar angel, which is the quickest way to tell the two apart.

Related species

• 

  Koran Angelfish

  Pomacanthus semicirculatus

  15.7 in (40 cm)132 gal (500 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)

• 

  French Angelfish

  Pomacanthus paru

  16.1 in (41 cm)201 gal (760 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Blueface Angelfish

  Pomacanthus xanthometopon

  15 in (38 cm)219 gal (830 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)

• 

  Emperor Angelfish

  Pomacanthus imperator

  15 in (38 cm)185 gal (700 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)

• 

  Annularis Angelfish

  Pomacanthus annularis

  17.7 in (45 cm)219 gal (830 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)

• 

  Yellowbar Angelfish

  Pomacanthus maculosus

  19.7 in (50 cm)180 gal (680 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)