Orbic Bathfish

Facts about the Orbic Batfish, it is a trendy aquarium fish, belonging to the genus Platax of the family Platacinae. The binomial name of this fish is Platax orbicularis, and it is also recognized as the orbiculate batfish, circular batfish, round batfish, or orbicular batfish. The Orbic Bathfish species occurs in the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean naturally.

Features

In the wild, an adult Orbic Batfish is capable of attaining a maximum body length of 20 inches (50 cm), though aquarium fish are usually much shorter. The body of the Orbic Bathfish species is more or less disc-shaped, and extremely thin. The Orbic Bathfish has an elongated fan-shaped tail that contributes about 20% of its body length, which is taller than its length. The Orbic Bathfish species changes a lot in its look during its life span and a matured Orbic Batfish appears nothing like a juvenile fish. Both the body shape and the coloration will change.

In the wild, the Orbic Batfish can be largely seen in brackish or sea waters, generally around reefs, at depth, ranging from 16.5 feet to 99 feet (5 meters to 30 meters). Juvenile Orbic Batfish are lone or live in small collections, in the middle of mangroves or other internal sheltered ponds. The range of the Orbic Bathfish species extends from East Africa and the Red Sea in the east to the west of French Polynesia in the Tuamotu Islands, and from the southern parts of north Japan to the northern parts of New Caledonia and Australia. The Orbic Bathfish species has been recorded off the coastline of Florida, although this may be the consequence of abandoning of aquarium specimens.

As the Orbic Batfish is a popular aquarium fish, it is vital to maintain them in a tank of sufficient height as they develop much higher when compared to their length. A fully developed adult Orbic Bathfish should be supplied with an aquarium of minimum height from 6 feet to 7 ft (2 meters). The aquarium should be designed with sufficient open space to make the fish swim freely and they favor sand as the base substrate.

In the wild, Juvenile Orbic Bathfish are often found in the middle of the roots of the mangrove trees and it is likely that the matured fish strolls from open water to spawn in the middle of the mangrove trees to provide their fry a fine start in live. If that is the situation, the aquarium should be equipped to mimic such situations for the Orbic Bathfish species to spawn. So a bigger aquarium of minimum capacity of 180 gallons is required to make the Orbic Batfish to breed because of size of the matured fish. Ideal conditions of water for the Orbic Batfish is pH between 8.1 and 8.4, specific gravity between 1.020 and 1.025, and with the water temperature ranging from 72 ºF to 78ºF (22C to 26C).

Diet

The Orbic Batfish is a predatory fish, and in the wild, it mostly feeds on small fish, anemones, corals, and invertebrates. In an aquarium, the Orbic Bathfish are nourished with a diverse diet consisting of dissimilar types of meaty live and frozen food, like chopped up marine food. The Orbic Bathfish can occasionally be taught to acknowledge pellets, but they have to be nourished 2 to 3 times in a day.

The maximum lifespan of the Orbic Batfish is 5 years.