All fish / Siganidae

Bicolor Foxface

Siganus uspi

Also known as bicolor rabbitfish, two-tone rabbitfish, bicolour foxface, uspi rabbitfish, fiji foxface, bicolor foxface rabbitfish, ツートンラビットフィッシュ, 双色狐篮子鱼, 双色狐狸

The front half of this rabbitfish is dark chocolate brown and the rear half and tail are bright yellow, with a white spot near the gill area. Aquarists keep it because it looks striking and grazes nuisance algae, and it usually behaves well in fish-only and reef tanks.

Care at a glance

Care level

Moderate

Temperament

Semi

Adult size

20 cm

Temperature

24 to 28 °C

pH

8.1 to 8.4

Smallest tank

500 litres

Keep as

Keep singly, or as a pair in a very large tank

Diet

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

Swims

Middle of the tank

Lifespan

5 to 10 years

Water

Marine (saltwater)

Wild range

Southwest Pacific: Fiji, New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Tonga

Breeding

It scatters eggs in open water, as other rabbitfish do. It has not been bred in home aquariums in any reliable way, so the fish on sale are caught in the wild.

Good to know

The fin spines are venomous and can give a very painful sting, so take care when netting it or working in the tank. It may pick at soft corals and fleshy LPS corals if it does not get enough algae.