TankBud

Herald's angelfish

Centropyge heraldi

Also known as Yellow Angelfish, False Lemonpeel Angelfish, Golden Angelfish

SaltwaterFish

Herald's angelfish (Centropyge heraldi)
seastung · CC BY-SA 4.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
72–79°F
22–26°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Adult size
3.9 in
10 cm
Minimum tank
55 gal
210 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Solitary
Own kind
One male per tank
Swim level
Middle
Diet
Omnivore
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Hard
Rarity
Common
Reef safe
Reef safe with caution
Family
Pomacanthidae
Origin
Western and central Pacific, from the Philippines and Micronesia to the Marshall Islands, Fiji, and French Polynesia

Overview

The Herald's angelfish is a yellow dwarf angel for a mature saltwater tank. It is best with a little experience.

Did you know

Large-scale captive breeding has made the Herald's angelfish one of the more affordable and consistently available Centropyge. Most of its relatives are wild-collected.

Caring for the Herald's angelfish

Add the Herald's angelfish to a mature, well-cycled tank of at least 55 gal (210 L), not a new one. It can be slow to settle, but after that it is one of the more dependable dwarf angels day to day. Give it live rock with a strong algae film and enough structure to claim as its own.

Keep the water at 72 to 79°F (22 to 26°C) and a pH of 8.1 to 8.4. Once established, it is a steady grazer that needs constant algae growth in the tank. Add small feedings of algae-based and meaty foods a few times a day.

The Herald's angelfish is mostly peaceful and safe with community fish. Keep only one male per tank.

Many Herald's angelfish leave corals alone, though some nip large-polyp stony corals, soft coral polyps or clam mantles. Reef keepers rate it caution. It is a hard fish to breed.

Good to know

Centropyge heraldi is a dwarf angel in the family Pomacanthidae, also called the yellow, golden or false lemonpeel angelfish. It is a protogynous hermaphrodite that lives in small harems, and the dominant female changes sex to male if needed. It is unusual for its genus in wearing an almost entirely plain, solid yellow body with no bars, spots or eye markings. That makes it easy to confuse with a lemonpeel angelfish that has lost its blue eye ring.

In the wild

The Herald's angelfish ranges across a wide swath of the western and central Pacific. It is found from the Philippines and Micronesia to the Marshall Islands, Fiji and French Polynesia. It lives on steep outer reef slopes and occasionally lagoon reefs, over a broad depth range. It grazes algae off rock through the day and stays within easy reach of cover.

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Tank mates

The Herald's angelfish is a mostly peaceful, solitary species that keeps to the middle. Keep only one male per tank. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.

Check the full mix in the stocking calculator

Common questions

What size tank does a Herald's angelfish need?

A Herald's angelfish needs at least 55 gal (210 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a Herald's angelfish need?

A Herald's angelfish is comfortable at 72–79°F (22–26°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.

What does a Herald's angelfish eat?

A Herald's angelfish is a steady grazer that needs constant algae growth in the tank. It also takes small feedings of algae-based and meaty foods a few times a day.

How big does a Herald's angelfish get?

An adult Herald's angelfish reaches about 3.9 in (10 cm).

Related species