Orange Spot Tang

Facts about the Orange Spot Tang Fish, it is a popular aquarium fish, especially the juveniles.

All in a Name

The Orange Spot Tang has the scientific name Acanthurus olivaceus. Its alternative scientific name Acanthurus chrysosoma.
It is part of the Acanthuridae family. It is called the Orange band surgeonfish, gendarme fish, orange epaulette surgeonfish, orange spot surgeonfish, orange blotch surgeon, orange ear surgeon fish and even the olive surgeon fish.

Physical Description

Juvenile Orange Spot Tangs are mostly yellow with faint blue markings. The Orange Spot Tang have a bar marking on their side that is orange or brown. When the fish reaches adulthood, the front half of the body turns light grey while the back becomes dark grey, and the bar shape turns into an orange spot for which the species is name. The tail develops a lyre shape. The Orange Spot Tang fish develops blue and orange highlights on the edges of the body while those on the body itself fade.
The Orange Spot Tang fish reach essentially their final length at four years of age, though they do grow much more slowly from this point. Their most common size is nine to ten inches, with the maximum size of most being twelve inches. They often live up to ten years in the tank.
This Orange Spot Tang species cannot change genders. The males do become more colorful during courtship.
The Orange Spot Tang species can hybridize with Acanthurus nigricauda and Acanthurus tennentii.

Behavior

The Orange Spot Tang fish range from peaceful to semi aggressive. They are least aggressive toward tangs with the same size and coloring as themselves. The Orange Spot Tang may become aggressive toward others of the same species if not added to the tank at the same time as juveniles. This Orange Spot Tang fish will share a tank peacefully with other species, even other tangs. They will not bother corrals, clams or invertebrates.
These animals eat mostly organic detritus and sediments containing algae. Those in tanks will eat algae as it grows on live rocks. Orange Spot Tangs eat almost any food, but they do best with sea algaes, flake food, and pellet food. While they may eat lettuce when it is offered, it does not contain the nutrients they need. Give them nori, spirulina and dried marine algae. The algae growing in your tank will not be enough for them.

Habitat

The Orange Spot Tang species is found at depths from ten feet to 240 feet. Adults are commonly found on exposed coasts. Juveniles are found in protected bays and lagoons. These fish are reef safe. The Orange Spot Tangs are active swimmers and need a lot of space. They do best in tanks of at least 180 gallons. The Orange Spot Tangs need tanks with a few hiding spots, at least one per fish. Their ideal temperature range is 24C to 28C. They do best where the pH is between 8.1 and 8.4.
The Orange Spot Tang species is rated as being of least concern by the IUCN.
The Orange Spot Tang species is common in the wild but hard to breed because they are pelagic spawners.

Range

The Orange Spot Tang species is found off the coast of southern Japan to Australia’s northern coast, the Hawaiian Islands to Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean. Its range is distributed and includes several marine protected areas.

Trivia

The Orange Spot Tang species was first identified by Bloch & Schneider and 1801.
This is one of the most commonly collected aquarium fish in Hawaii.