The Sohal Tang (Acanthurus Sohal) is one of the most beautiful tangs in the family. Black lines streak across its white/cream body while its caudal and pectoral fins are yellow.
It is also known as the majestic tang, Arabian tang and the zebra tang.
They are collected from the Red Sea and near Sri Lanka. Among hobbyists the sohal tang is highly prized, it is a pricey fish. Smaller sohals go for between $110 to $150 while adults fetch more than $200. Very large show quality sohal tangs can fetch up to $350.
Like their cousins they are susceptible to lateral line erosion and marine ich so exercise care when buying one.
Sohal tangs are aggressive fish. Nothing really frightens this tang. Not even scuba divers are exempt from their aggressive behavior.
Assuming everyone knows their place, sohal tangs can get along with other species of fish. However, it is aggressive towards other tangs. Members of the genus acanthurus (Achilles Tang, Powder Blue Tang) are particularly susceptible to aggression. Lastly, putting two sohals into a small tank is sure to produce a dead or severely injured fish.
Sohal tangs are commonly seen living alone in the wild, unlike most of their cousins. Perhaps this has something to do with their heightened levels of aggression.
They are very hardy but like most tangs they are prone to parasite attacks (ich) and lateral line erosion.
Topping out at 18 inches, the sohal tang isn't just bad to the bone, its huge. Thankfully, it only reaches lengths of up to 10 to 11 inches in captivity. The minimum size tank for this beast is 100 gallons. They need a lot of space to swim so the bigger the better.
These fishes are completely reef safe. As they are grazers in the wild, a large part of their diet should be algae based foods.
While they're herbivores in the wild, they will consume a wide variety of foods in captivity. They'll take pellets, krill, and mysis shrimp, no problem.
We should ensure that a large part of their diet is algae based, since they eat so much of it in the wild.
Algae sheets like nori are a great algae to feed all herbivorous fish.Depending on the brand, prices vary greatly. Some people may find Julian Sprungs Sea Veggies to cost a little too much. They produce good algae sheets though. They're also available as flakes, which is very convenient since there's very little work involved during feeding.
Most nori sheets are produced for human consumption, primariy as sushi wrappers. High quality sheets can cost quite a bit while the regular stuff is very affordable.
You'll need to secure the nori to a clip. Commercial clips are cheap, but you could probably DIY one yourself with some household items. The sheets are fed as is or they're folded and cut beforehand. Once the nori is secured, stick the clip to the side of the tank, sit back, and enjoy the show.
Another good food to feed herbivores are Formula Two by Ocean Nutrition. It has an extra amount of algae in it along with a good mix of seafood, trace minerals, vitamins and more. It is available as a flake food, pellet or frozen cube.
The best flake for surgeonfish are those produced by two little fishes, Sea Veggie mixed flakes, Formula Two comes in second. A great all-rounder with a good balance of ingredients, New Life Spectrum comes highly recommended as well.
Never feed your tangs lettuce. You'll normally see this happening at pet stores that are trying to save a few bucks. Nutritionally, lettuce offers very little and should not have a place in this hobby.
Related posts:
- Achilles Tang : A Guide On This Highly Prized Surgeonfish
- The Blue Tang : A Guide On The Most Popular Surgeonfish
- Achilles Tang : An In-Depth Guide On The Rare And Expensive Acanthurus Achilles
- Paracanthurus Hepatus : Care And Requirements Of The Popular Blue Tang
- Marine Fish Species
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