Springer's Dottyback

Care at a glance

Overview

This is one of the more active, visibly busy dottybacks, spending its day cruising the rockwork rather than lurking in one spot, which makes it an engaging fish to watch. It is territorial and can be aggressive toward its own kind and toward similar-shaped tankmates, so keep one per tank unless you have a bonded pair or a very large aquarium. It is reef safe and leaves corals and invertebrates alone. Offer a varied meaty diet of mysis, vitamin-enriched brine shrimp, and other frozen carnivore foods once or twice a day in small portions it can finish quickly.

In the wild

Endemic to the Red Sea, where it lives on lagoon and seaward reefs among coral at depths of roughly 2 to 60 meters. It is an active, constantly moving fish that patrols its stretch of rockwork rather than hiding for long, though it always keeps an escape hole within reach. A tank of 75 liters or more with plenty of live rock gives it the territory and bolt holes it wants.

Good to know

Pseudochromis springeri remains in the original dottyback genus and is one of the smaller Red Sea endemics in the family, topping out around 6 cm. It is a protogynous hermaphrodite like its relatives, and the dominant fish in a pair matures into the male. Because Red Sea collection is limited, most fish sold today are captive bred, commonly by aquaculture facilities such as ORA, and tank-raised stock is considered hardier and calmer than wild-caught fish.

Did you know

Its near-black body traced with electric blue stripes down the head is a genuine Red Sea original, and because wild collection from the Red Sea is limited, most springer's dottybacks sold today were actually born on an aquaculture farm rather than shipped in from the reef.

Related species

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  Diadem Dottyback

  Pseudochromis diadema

  2.8 in (7 cm)20 gal (75 L)73–81°F (23–27°C)

• 

  Orchid Dottyback

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  2.8 in (7 cm)29 gal (110 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)

• 

  Sunrise Dottyback

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• Sankey's Dottyback

  Pseudochromis sankeyi

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• 

  Neon Dottyback

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• 

  Magenta Dottyback

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