The surgeonfish family are some of the most well-liked marine aquarium fish in the marine aquarium hobby. By and large considered a big fish, the smallest of them can attain a length of at least 7 inches in captivity. The largest of them can reach lengths of over 3 feet. They make their homes around most of the worlds tropical seas and are regularly found in a myriad of colors. They fall under the family Acanthuridae which translates into thorn tail, describing the blade that all surgeonfish have near their caudal fins.

Two members of the surgeonfish family make up some of the most popular marine aquarium fish in the hobby. They are a admired fish to depict on a variety of saltwater aquarium related products such as equipment, magazines and the like. They are known as the Blue Tang and the Yellow Tang.

Surgeonfish really do need larger than average tanks with a minimum size of 100 gallons . Larger species such as the Sohal Tang have need of tanks around the 200 gallon range to truly do well in the long term.

They mouths are specially designed for tearing algae from rock. In the wild, they spend most of the day grazing on algae in big shoals. These big shoals are not limited to one species but may have up to two species grazing together. The cheapest surgeonfish can be had for no more than $20 while true rarities such as the gem tang can cost upwards of two thousand dollars.

They are a reef safe species that do not eat corals. This makes them very attractive to hobbyists that like large fish that are reef safe. Some do well in our aquariums and some are harder to care for such as the Beautiful Achilles Tang.

But for the most part, surgeonfish can be trained to eat a wide variety of meaty, leafy and pellet foods. To ensure proper health, their diet in captivity needs to mimic their herbivorous diet in the wild.

Surgeonfish are famous for being susceptible to saltwater ich and lateral line erosion. Always quarantine newly purchased surgeonfish to ensure they do not spread any parasites into the main aquarium.

For supplementary pages about the Surgeonfish Family along with other kinds of Saltwater Aquarium Fish, kindly drop by the authors website. All manner of saltwater fishes ideal for the aquarium are focused upon.

• Achilles Tang : A Guide On This Highly Prized Surgeonfish by Roman Veaila This beauty known as the Achilles tang (Acanthurus Achilles) pops up in the trade from time to time. Dark chocolate colors its entire body while a single orange teardrop is present on its spine. White, orange and chocolate lines its tail. It goes by other names that......
• Preventing Parrot Feather Plucking If you parrot is feather plucking then it is a serious behavioral problem. The real problem is that once it had started it is nigh on impossible to get your parrot to stop. It is a very stressful situation for the bird and the owner. Early on it's possible......
• Most Popular Pet Fish Rearing of pet fish is increasingly becoming a common occurrence and as a result increasing the popularity of obtaining pet fish. There are various fish types that can be reared. Apart from keeping them as pets, the idea of staring at the colorful display of the fish as they swim......
• Blue Tang - The Stunning Regal Tang Within the surgeonfish family acanthuridae (Tang), there a few that really stand out as special beauties. The blue tang is among other tangs that are consistently treasured for their striking colors along with their prominent cousin, the yellow tang. These two major tangs are the faces of the surgeonfish......

• Coho Salmon in Mendocino County In Mendocino County, a scientist named Jennifer Carah was recently witnessed doing something that she is not known for, especially not while under water: She squealed. A recent snorkeling expedition in an obscure creek located along the North Coast recently caused her to abandon her normal demeanor for a moment......
• A Large Aquarium Re-Start There are all sorts of aquarium sizes that are kept at home, though none as large as can be seen at a public aquarium as far as I know. Successful small aquariums from the very small 10 gallons to the larger 50 gallons, fish only or reef, are very beautiful......
• Fly Fishing At Sea Many people pass their time away doing various activities. While some would prefer sitting down with a good book others just can’t wait for the weekend and holidays to get their hands on their fly fishing rods and head on out to the lake A hobby or a past time......
• Fishing Report: June 19, 2009 Ocean Beach has been virtually swimming in tiny shrimp, which is perhaps the cause for the striped bass finding their way into the surf. The bass have been biting crazy here, especially late in the nights and in the early mornings. Fishermen have been pulling out bass as large as......

	A PocketExpert Guide to Reef Aquarium Fishes: 500+ Essential-to-Know Species (Microcosm/T.F.H. Professional) List Price: $29.95 Sale Price: $18.72 Used From: $18.99
Brilliant photography by the world's best underwater photographers and leading international aquarists highlights detailed profiles of more than 500 species of reef aquarium fishes in this new title in the Microcosm/T...

AquaChef Automatic Aquarium Fish Feeder - 3 in. x 5 14 in. x 3 in. List Price: $31.72 Sale Price: $23.00

Going out of town? Don't rely on out-of-date feeding blocks when you can use the AquaChef. It's easy to give your fish up to eight feedings a day of flake, pellet, or crumbled food. Schedule single feedings for up to four different times, use the double-feeding feature to make any of those four two feedings, sixty seconds apart, or manually override the settings if you decide to give one more feeding yourself...

Written by Brian Logan using tags: marine aquarium fish, Pets, saltwater aquarium fish, surgeonfish, tang, tangs