TankBud

Vlamingi tang

Naso vlamingii

Also known as Bignose Unicornfish, Vlaming's Unicornfish, Bignose Unicorn Tang

SaltwaterFish

Vlamingi tang (Naso vlamingii)
Rickard Zerpe · CC BY 2.0

Care at a glance

Temperature
75–81°F
24–27°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Adult size
23.6 in
60 cm
Minimum tank
359 gal
1,360 L
Temperament
Mostly peaceful
Social behavior
Solitary
Swim level
Middle
Diet
Omnivore
Difficulty
Medium
Breeding
Hard
Rarity
Common
Reef safe
Reef safe
Family
Acanthuridae
Origin
Indo-Pacific reefs, from East Africa to the central Pacific

Overview

The Vlamingi tang is one of the largest tangs in the hobby, a mid-water unicornfish for a very big reef tank. It suits a keeper with a little experience.

Did you know

Vlamingi tangs can live for decades and keep growing a couple inches a year for most of that time. A fish bought as a juvenile can take the better part of a decade to reach its full adult size.

Caring for the Vlamingi tang

Give a Vlamingi tang room from day one, because tank size matters more than water chemistry for a fish this large. It needs at least 359 gal (1,360 L) with a long, open swimming lane to do well long term. Keep the water at 75 to 81°F (24 to 27°C) with a pH of 8.1 to 8.4.

Juveniles feed mainly on algae, so give them plenty of nori and marine algae. Adults shift toward an omnivore's diet and do well with meaty foods such as mysis added to the rotation.

The Vlamingi tang is mostly peaceful with tank mates and safe with corals and invertebrates. Like most of its genus, it will not tolerate other tangs in the same tank. It is a hardy tang once established.

Males develop a pronounced bulge on the forehead as they mature. It is a broadcast spawner, and breeding it is hard. Researchers have reared it through to juveniles in captivity a few times, which only a handful of Naso or Acanthurus species have managed.

Good to know

The Vlamingi tang is a unicornfish of the genus Naso, in the surgeonfish family Acanthuridae. Blue scribbling and bright blue lips give the species its color. It is also known as the bignose unicornfish or Vlaming's unicornfish.

In the wild

Vlamingi tangs patrol the upper edges of steep reef drop-offs across the Indo-Pacific, from East Africa to the central Pacific. They hang in the water column and pick zooplankton out of the current. Unlike most tangs, they often gather in loose groups at these drop-offs instead of sticking close to the reef itself.

Weekly picks

Tank mates

The Vlamingi tang is a mostly peaceful, solitary species that keeps to the middle. 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 Vlamingi tang need?

A Vlamingi tang needs at least 359 gal (1,360 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.

What temperature and pH does a Vlamingi tang need?

A Vlamingi tang is comfortable at 75–81°F (24–27°C) with a pH of 8.1–8.4.

What does a Vlamingi tang eat?

A young Vlamingi tang eats mainly algae, so feed it plenty of nori and marine algae. Adults eat more like omnivores and do well with meaty foods such as mysis in the rotation.

How big does a Vlamingi tang get?

An adult Vlamingi tang reaches about 23.6 in (60 cm).

How can you tell a male Vlamingi tang from a female?

Males grow a pronounced bulge on the forehead as they mature.

How does a Vlamingi tang breed?

A Vlamingi tang is a broadcast spawner, and breeding it is hard. Researchers have reared it to juveniles in captivity only rarely.

Related species