Golden Angelfish (Centropyge aurantia) Reef Safe?

tony73 · 09/20/2017, 08:19 AM

Hi all

I would like to add Golden Angelfish (Centropyge aurantia) in my 80g SPS tank.

Any experience with this fish? Reef safe about SPS?

Jasanden · 09/20/2017, 10:14 AM

Beautiful fish . No personal experience because everything I've read says you'll rarely see it.

mike61289 · 09/20/2017, 03:35 PM

I had one for 3.5 years, but not in a reef. Gorgeous fish and definitely one of my favourites, but it's also tricky to keep. It's a very shy fish, which makes feeding it difficult. It is easily spooked by other tankmates. It also has a smaller mouth compared to other angels. It took me about 3 weeks to get it feeding properly. It didn't take prepared food the first few days. I noticed that it was picking at tiny things off the rocks and glass though. So, I decided to try feeding it daphnia. It went for the daphnia with gusto! After a week, I started mixing mysis shrimp with the daphnia and day by day put in more mysis and less daphnia. Eventually, it was feeding on the mysis regularly without coaxing. Even so, it still rarely came out in the open if anyone was watching the tank. It was just too shy.

albano · 09/20/2017, 04:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike61289

I had one for 3.5 years, but not in a reef. Gorgeous fish and definitely one of my favourites, but it's also tricky to keep...

Not many success stories with golden angels... consider some other dwarf angels or Genicanthus

Angel101 · 09/20/2017, 07:13 PM

If you provide plenty of recesses in the rock structure they will actually become very bold. Mine is in a 200 litre cube, which he shares with a flame and argi. He is always out and about. He doesn't bother SPS at all but fleshy LPS do not last five minutes..blastos, cynaria etc.

jda · 09/20/2017, 09:00 PM

I had one that was shy for about a year and then was out more. SPS were fine, but clams would get destroyed.

Rilelen · 09/20/2017, 09:49 PM

Gorgeous fish, but I don't know anyone personally who's kept one. I'd be interested to hear about folks' experiences; sounds like they may be difficult.

alton · 09/21/2017, 08:43 AM

I was very fortunate to get a pair from DD over two years ago. They are great fish for a 65 since they would rather hide then swim in the open. After two years one has gotten very brave and cruises my office tank, the other only comes out when eating. The one that comes out will peck on frogspawn and SPS but has never killed anything. He like pecks one time and then moves on, and not very often. Since they are rare hopefully someday, some one will breed them. I wish I could find the article that told of their collection practices, but in a nut shell divers will look for a pile of dead coral and find one inside.

humaguy · 09/21/2017, 10:37 AM

shy when compared to some other fish but she cruises the tank and handles the "action" of her tankmates in stride.

09/20/2017, 08:19 AM	#1
tony73 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Milan (Italy) Posts: 70	Golden Angelfish (Centropyge aurantia) Reef Safe? Hi all I would like to add Golden Angelfish (Centropyge aurantia) in my 80g SPS tank. Any experience with this fish? Reef safe about SPS?

09/20/2017, 03:35 PM	#3
mike61289 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Montreal, Quebec Posts: 424	I had one for 3.5 years, but not in a reef. Gorgeous fish and definitely one of my favourites, but it's also tricky to keep. It's a very shy fish, which makes feeding it difficult. It is easily spooked by other tankmates. It also has a smaller mouth compared to other angels. It took me about 3 weeks to get it feeding properly. It didn't take prepared food the first few days. I noticed that it was picking at tiny things off the rocks and glass though. So, I decided to try feeding it daphnia. It went for the daphnia with gusto! After a week, I started mixing mysis shrimp with the daphnia and day by day put in more mysis and less daphnia. Eventually, it was feeding on the mysis regularly without coaxing. Even so, it still rarely came out in the open if anyone was watching the tank. It was just too shy. __________________ Just keep swimming... Just keep swimming... Just keep swimming swimming swimming. What do we do? We swim swim!

09/20/2017, 09:49 PM	#7
Rilelen Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Location: Virginia Posts: 245	Gorgeous fish, but I don't know anyone personally who's kept one. I'd be interested to hear about folks' experiences; sounds like they may be difficult. __________________ 72g: Percula pair, Foxface, Kole tang, Midas Blenny, Blue/green chromis, Yellow & green clown goby pairs Office Nano Tank System (29 Gallon + 20 Gallon): Saltwater mollies + fry

09/20/2017, 10:14 AM	#2
Jasanden Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: southeast , pa Posts: 417	Beautiful fish . No personal experience because everything I've read says you'll rarely see it.

09/20/2017, 07:13 PM	#5
Angel101 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Melbourne Australia Posts: 172	If you provide plenty of recesses in the rock structure they will actually become very bold. Mine is in a 200 litre cube, which he shares with a flame and argi. He is always out and about. He doesn't bother SPS at all but fleshy LPS do not last five minutes..blastos, cynaria etc.

09/20/2017, 09:00 PM	#6
jda Dogmatic Dinosaur Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 6,256	I had one that was shy for about a year and then was out more. SPS were fine, but clams would get destroyed.

09/21/2017, 08:43 AM	#8
alton Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Zuehl, Texas Posts: 4,460	I was very fortunate to get a pair from DD over two years ago. They are great fish for a 65 since they would rather hide then swim in the open. After two years one has gotten very brave and cruises my office tank, the other only comes out when eating. The one that comes out will peck on frogspawn and SPS but has never killed anything. He like pecks one time and then moves on, and not very often. Since they are rare hopefully someday, some one will breed them. I wish I could find the article that told of their collection practices, but in a nut shell divers will look for a pile of dead coral and find one inside.

09/21/2017, 10:37 AM	#9
humaguy Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Western Ct, NYC Posts: 8,218	shy when compared to some other fish but she cruises the tank and handles the "action" of her tankmates in stride.