Clown tang

Care at a glance

Overview

The clown tang is a demanding surgeonfish for a very large reef tank. Only experienced keepers should try it.

Caring for the clown tang

Give a clown tang at least 238 gal (900 L), with strong flow, high oxygen and long swimming runs. Adults are constantly on the move.

Keep the water pristine at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) and a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. This tang is prone to ich, and to stress if crowded.

Offer constant grazing food such as nori, spirulina and macroalgae, and feed it heavily. It is reef safe with corals, but it may nip large-polyp stony corals if underfed.

The clown tang is one of the more aggressive members of its genus and bullies most tank mates. It is highly aggressive to similar fish, so keep it as the only tang. Add it to the tank last.

Good to know

Acanthurus lineatus carries a notably large tail blade that is associated with venom. Its blue and orange stripes are among the boldest of any surgeonfish.

In the wild

Clown tangs range across the Indo-Pacific, from East Africa to the central Pacific. They live on the shallowest, most turbulent part of the reef crest, where they fiercely defend a grazing territory.

Common questions

Related species

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  Sohal tang

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• 

  Achilles tang

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• 

  Powder blue tang

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• 

  Atlantic blue tang

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• 

  Orangeshoulder tang

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• 

  Whitecheek tang

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