Description:
The Coral Beauty angelfish is commonly found in shallow reefs that are rich in corals, like the Great Barrier Reef and reef areas in Tahiti, Australia and East of Africa. This hardy, vibrant angelfish is a member of the Pomacanthidae family. The Coral Beauty has a dark purplish-blue body that is highlighted with an iridescent orange to yellow. The dorsal, caudal and anal fins have a bright blue margin. A Coral Beauty can reach up to 4 inches in length and requires an aquarium of at least 70 gallons with lots of live rock for grazing and places to hide. It should be noted that dwarf angelfish are sensitive to copper. If you quarantine new fish - like you should - this fish should not be exposed to copper levels near or above 0.15ppm.
Diet:
Coral Beauty are omnivores. They spend most of their days swimming around the live rocks, grazing on algae. A Coral Beauty will enjoy Nori and Spirulina as well. They will accept pellet or flake foods sometimes, but for good nutrition, they also need small meaty meals like Mysis shrimp, phytoplankton, copepods, and/or prepared or frozen offerings. They could nip at snails, clams, sponges, and corals. For this reason, Coral Beauty angelfish are not considered to be reef safe. Although some have had success in deterring their own Coral Beauty from eating corals, many have not.
Behavior:
As stated earlier, a Coral Beauty can reach up to 4 inches and requires an aquarium of at least 70 gallons. This is a rewarding fish to add for those who spend a lot of time viewing their aquarium. While they may hide when you initially add them, the Coral Beauty will swim almost constantly for your viewing pleasure, picking at any algae it can find when it gets settled in. These fish are considered to be semi-aggressive. They aren’t very fast swimmers compared to other reef fish. So, their aggression is often the result of territorial disputes with other aggressive fish, especially other angelfish. A larger tank with a good amount of rockwork can deter some of these disputes. It is not recommended to keep other angelfish with a Coral Beauty. If you intend to keep fish, a netted lid is recommended.