Potter's Angelfish

Care at a glance

Overview

A committed grazer that needs plenty of established algae growth plus two to three small feedings a day of algae-based and meaty foods. It is notably slow to settle into a new tank and can go off food for a stretch after arrival, so it suits an experienced keeper with a mature, stable system rather than a new setup. Reef keepers rate it caution: it will usually leave corals alone if well fed, but it may pick at soft corals or clam mantles otherwise.

In the wild

Endemic to Hawaiian waters, where it lives over coral, rock, and rubble on seaward reefs; juveniles stay shallow while adults range down to considerably deeper water. It grazes algae constantly and never wanders far from shelter. It needs a long-established tank with heavy live rock cover and a mature algae film, since it settles in slowly and has little patience for unstable conditions.

Good to know

Centropyge potteri reaches about 13 cm and, like other Centropyge, is a protogynous hermaphrodite living in a harem with one dominant male. Its orange body marbled with blue and a dark blue-black tail make it one of the most striking Hawaiian reef fish, and researchers have only recently begun to work out how to rear its larvae in aquaculture, which reflects how tricky the species is to reproduce even outside the home aquarium.

Did you know

It is one of relatively few Hawaiian endemic reef fish in the aquarium trade, and its limited range plus Hawaii's tightened aquarium-collecting rules keep wild-collected supply tighter and pricier than most Pacific dwarf angels.

Related species

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  Lemonpeel Angelfish

  Centropyge flavissima

  5.5 in (14 cm)55 gal (210 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Bicolor Angelfish

  Centropyge bicolor

  5.9 in (15 cm)55 gal (210 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)

• 

  Eibli Angelfish

  Centropyge eibli

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• 

  Coral Beauty Angelfish

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• 

  Flame Angelfish

  Centropyge loriculus

  3.9 in (10 cm)50 gal (190 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Half-Black Angelfish

  Centropyge vroliki

  3.9 in (10 cm)55 gal (210 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)