African Flameback Angelfish Care Tips
Gold African Flamebacks Centropyge acanhops are family members Pomacanthidae. They are native to the Indo-West Pacific. Significant populations can be found around the coasts of the archipelago’s island chain, as well as along the entire east coast of Africa. These shallow to mid-water reef dwellers occupy depths from 20 to 130 feet.
This is a small fish, even for dwarf angles. It only grows to a maximum adult length of 3 inches. What they lack in size they more than make up for in exotic beauty. This is one of the most striking of all dwarf angles. The lower half of their bodies are a royal purple-blue. This is contrasted with the dazzling yellow-orange upper bodies. The upper body color begins just below the mouth, extends up behind the eyes, and then follows the curve of the back to the base of the tail, hence the name Flameback. The dorsal, anal, and pectoral fins are accented in neon blues. The caudal fins are typically yellow and semi-transparent. This species is very similar in appearance to the Brazilian angelfish, although they are completely different species. Brazilian Flamebacks can be distinguished by their solid blue tail fins. The aquarium industry sells this species under various pseudonyms, including; African Flameback Angelfish, African Pygmy Flameback Angelfish, African Cherubfish, Orangeback Angelfish, and Jumping Bean. The latter reference should imply that this fish should be housed in an aquarium with a tight lid.
This fish has a moderately aggressive temperament. They are generally peaceful in a community setting, as long as they are in the company of fish of the same or slightly larger size that are not naturally docile. This species can be reef friendly if introduced to your tank as a small juvenile. An abundance of cured live rock will help deter the possibility of it developing a taste for coral and shellfish as it matures. Flamebacks can express territorial behavior towards similar looking species. These are harem fish. A single male and several females can be successfully housed together. Introducing two males to an aquarium could easily result in a battle to the death. This species is classified at a moderate care level. A minimum tank size of 20 gallons is recommended with plenty of hiding spaces. Flamebacks can live up to 8 years of age.
This is an omnivorous species. The juveniles feed mainly on plankton. Adults are more inclined to be algae. However, they will also eat small crustaceans, mollusks, and corals in their natural habitat. This is why only a very young flameback should be added to a marine reef aquarium. If the fish’s diet consists of plankton, it may be conditioned to find all the sustenance it requires from aquarium foods and live rocks before it develops its adult dietary habits. A well-fed fish is less likely to find clams and coral to be its favorite delicacy.
These fish should be fed a high quality marine angelfish food preparation. Foods especially for angelfish contain the essential nutrients needed to maintain a healthy specimen. Their diet can be further supplemented with vitamin-enriched brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, and dried or frozen spirulina algae.
There is more than one benefit to buying this species when they are still quite young. There are no distinguishing characteristics between males and females. Therefore, you will not be able to determine their sexes. Two males cannot be housed together in the same aquarium.
Problem solved: These fish are protogynous synchronous hermaphrodites. They enter life genderless. They will all become female early in their life cycles. If there are no males present in the population when they reach sexual maturity, the largest and most dominant fish will become male. Introducing several of these fish while they are still young to an aquarium will result in a single male with a harem just as it would in the wild. Despite their ability to change gender, these fish are not known to breed in captivity.
