All fish / Acanthuridae

Whitecheek Tang

Acanthurus nigricans

Also known as whitecheek surgeonfish, gold rim tang, goldrim tang, gold rim surgeonfish, velvet surgeonfish, powder brown tang, white cheek tang, goldrim surgeonfish, メガネクロハギ, botana, 白颊刺尾鱼, 金边倒吊

A dark navy to black surgeonfish with a white patch below the eye, a yellow stripe along the base of the dorsal and anal fins and a yellow bar on the tail. People keep it for its smart colours and because it grazes nuisance algae in reef tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

18 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

500 litres

Keep as

Keep singly; one tang of this genus per tank 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 15 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Indo-Pacific and eastern Pacific, from Cocos-Keeling and Indonesia to Hawaii and the Gulf of California

Breeding

It spawns in open water as pairs or groups, releasing eggs that drift in the plankton for a long larval stage. It has not been bred in home aquariums, so almost all fish are wild caught.

Good to know

It often hybridises with the Powder Brown Tang (Acanthurus japonicus) and looks similar, and it can be aggressive towards other tangs. It needs a large, mature tank with strong water flow and is prone to marine whitespot, and the scalpel-like spine at the tail base can cut hands.