All fish / Acanthuridae

Whitefin Surgeonfish

Acanthurus maculiceps

Also known as white-freckled surgeonfish, spotted-face surgeonfish, pale-lipped surgeonfish, whitefin tang, white-freckled tang, maculiceps tang, モンツキハギ, 斑头刺尾鱼

This is a large brown surgeonfish with small pale freckles on the head, a dark spot behind the eye, a yellowish bar on the pectoral fin and a pale band at the tail base. Experienced reef keepers keep it as a hardy algae grazer for very large display tanks, though it turns up in the trade much less often than other tangs.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

35 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

1000 litres

Keep as

Singly, unless the tank is very large

Diet

Herbivore: nori and other marine algae, spirulina-based flakes and pellets, with some mysis and brine shrimp

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

10 to 20 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Indo-West Pacific: eastern Indian Ocean to Indonesia, Philippines, Melanesia and Micronesia

Breeding

In the wild it spawns in open water and the eggs drift with the plankton. It has not been bred in home aquariums.

Good to know

It grows to about 40 cm and needs plenty of open swimming space. It can be aggressive towards other surgeonfish, and its scalpel-like spines at the tail base can cut fish and the hands of whoever is handling it.