The Emperor Pomacanthus imperator looks at the name and feels mighty and domineering, and it is truly one of the most well-known angelfish in the sea circle. With their beautiful skin color, good posture, and distinct personality, they have been unanimously praised by aquarists.
It is an easily available and relatively cultureable fish that thrives in most household tanks as long as certain nutritional, water and space requirements are met.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > magical transformation journey</h1>
The Emperor Angelfish goes through three distinct stages in its life (juvenile, sub-adult, and adult). At each different stage, their appearance changes dramatically and significantly.
Left: Adult Right: Juvenile
It takes about 2-3 years for the Emperor Angelfish to fully mature and transform into the color of adulthood. And most of the juvenile and adult fish of the genus Spiny Fish have different appearances, and several juvenile and adult fish have been given different names by aquarists.
For example, the juvenile fish of the emperor angelfish are called blue circles, they have a bluish-black complexion, and have a concentric white and blue circle pattern. The dorsal fin edges are white with an irregular blue pattern on the fin.
Basket angelfish
Emperor angelfish will enter sub-adulthood at 8-12 cm in size, when their skin color will be between juvenile and adult, the pattern gradually expands from concentric circles, bright yellow stripes begin to appear, and the tail fin changes from blue to white to yellow.
As an adult, the queen angelfish has a beautiful appearance and a very bright color, with a blue base color, a tight horizontal yellow stripe distributed to the dorsal and fins, and the eyes are surrounded by black with blue edges. The base of the pectoral fin is black, while the ventral and caudal fins are striking yellowish-orange.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > suitable living environment</h1>
The growth rate of the emperor angelfish is still quite fast, in natural waters the emperor angelfish can grow to about 40cm, in our family tanks can grow to about 30-40cm. So we need to prepare a space that is enough for its activities.
The volume of the sea tank is recommended to be more than 500L, which contains multiple spaces built with reefs. The height of the tank is not a big factor, because most of the fish only move in the middle area of the water body, and the large amount of space between the reefs allows them to feel safe and avoid the generation of stress.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > diet</h1>
The emperor angelfish with an omnivorous stomach grows in the wild mainly on algae, sponges and plankton, and sometimes some shellfish, invertebrates, corals and so on. In our family tank feeding, spirulina, seaweed, high-quality angelfish feed, bran shrimp or frozen shrimp and other meaty feed can be used to meet the growth needs of emperor angelfish.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > compatibility</h1>
Emperor angelfish is the first choice for FOT tanks, most of the fish under the genus Of thornfish are not very peaceful with corals, if you want to put the emperor angelfish in the coral tank to raise, then your SPS, brain coral, soft finger coral and other soft corals have the risk of being eaten by them. When hungry for a long time, they even prey on small fish, and feeding them on time and in good quality can reduce their probability of taking the initiative.
Tank friends about the Emperor Angelfish, like the Dwarf Fairy, the Masked Swallowtail Fairy, the Hanging, the Bulge, the ClownFish can all live in peace. But it is also considered to be aggressive and territorial, the same breed 1-3 is more appropriate, should avoid multiple large fairy breeds polyculture, their awareness of their own territory may cause endless fighting, unless you have a volume of more than 1000L of the sea tank (first large and then small, or the similar size of the fish into the tank at the same time can reduce the fight situation).
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > selection method</h1>
There is no obvious difference in the appearance of the emperor angelfish female and male fish, and special attention should be paid to its face color and swimming posture when selecting. Healthy adult fish should have a white part of the face that is bright and shiny. If a fish is infected or injured, the face is gray, dark blue or coffee.
They are very active and like to swim around in the tank in search of food, and if they find that the fish are sluggish or timid, do not choose.
The emperor angelfish of the sub-adult stage cannot only look at the face when choosing, because they have not yet metamorphosed into a white face. At this time, we can see whether the blue parts of the body are shiny, healthy individuals can emit a golden velvet light, and the problem fish will have a dull body color, white patterns and blue base color turbidity, and the eyes are not shiny.
< h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > reproduction</h1>
The Emperor Angelfish is polygamous. Breed once a year. Spawning periods in natural waters are in August and September. Each female has its own territory, and both male and female mate with each other as the current rises. Before transforming into juveniles, the eggs float in the water for several weeks.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > other matters</h1>
The newly bought emperor angelfish must be quarantined before entering the tank, marine white spots, lymphatic cysts are common diseases of angelfish, so it is recommended that aquarists who plan to raise angelfish should be prepared for separate quarantine and isolation in advance.