All fish / Pomacanthidae

Rock Beauty Angelfish

Holacanthus tricolor

Also known as rock beauty, rock beauty angel, rock beauty angelfish, tricolor angelfish, yellow and black angelfish, ロックビューティー, 石美人, 三色刺蝶鱼

Adults are bright yellow at the head and tail with a large black patch over most of the body, while juveniles are yellow with a blue-edged black spot. Fishkeepers want it for its striking two-tone colouring and bold character in large reef-free systems.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

20 cm

Temperature

23 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

500 litres

Keep as

Keep singly; one angelfish per tank unless the tank is very large

Diet

Omnivore: sponge-based angelfish foods, spirulina, nori, mysis and chopped seafood

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

8 to 10 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Western Atlantic: Georgia and Bermuda south through the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean to Brazil

Breeding

It spawns in pairs or harems in open water, releasing tiny floating eggs at dusk. It has not been bred reliably in home aquariums and nearly all specimens are wild caught.

Good to know

In the wild it feeds mainly on sponges, so many specimens adapt poorly to aquarium foods and waste away; choose one that is already eating. It becomes territorial with age, nips at corals and clams, and should not go in a reef tank.