Tang fish, also known as surgeonfish, are a diverse group of vegetarians found in tropical waters worldwide. They include some of the most recognizable marine aquarium fish. As well as exotic fish even experts might not recognize.
Several are good beginner aquarium fish. While others are a challenge even for master fish keepers. So which tang saltwater fish is right for your aquarium?
10 Popular Types of Tangs
Here are 10 of our favorite fish tang species for saltwater enthusiasts:
1. Yellow Tang
The most popular Tang of all is the Yellow Tang. Small, hardy, and colorful, these surgeon fish are found in pet stores worldwide. No Tang is truly a beginner’s fish. When kept in mature aquariums and given plenty of vegetable matter Yellow Tangs do come close.
Yellow Tangs are unusual for their genus because they will live in groups. You have to buy them when young and all at the same time. When kept singly they become aggressive towards new Yellow Tangs as well as other Zebrasoma species.
Yellow Tangs are also less susceptible to Marine Ich and Hole in the Head compared to their relatives. It’s best to buy captive bred whenever possible as they will be even hardier. Captive bred tangs also accept new foods with ease.
- Scientific Name: Zebrasoma flavescens
- Origin: Pacific Ocean
- Size: Up to 8 inches
Difficulty: Easy
2. Powder Blue Tang
Powder Blue Tangs are common in the hobby but they aren’t as popular as Yellow or Royal Blue Tangs. Unfortunately, the majority don’t last long because they are a sensitive type of Tang.
Powder Blues don’t suffer transport from the ocean to pet stores very well. They are also prone to Marine Ich and Velvet infections.
When a Powder Blue Tang arrives at your local fish store it’s better to put a deposit down and observe them for a week. That way you can be sure it has a strong feeding response and won’t starve when you bring it home.
With their delicate blue and yellow tones and contrasting black masks, Powder Blue Tangs look regal in the schools they form in nature. They will live together in harmony depending on how much algae is available for feeding.
Otherwise they are intolerant and territorial. In all but the largest of aquariums Powder Blue Tangs should be kept alone.
- Scientific Name: Acanthurus leucosternon
- Origin: Indian Ocean
- Size: 9 inches
- Difficulty: Difficult
3. Achilles Tang
Like many Acanthurus species the Achilles Tang is a fish for advanced level hobbyists. They are not only susceptible to skin infections like Marine Ich but also HITH disease.
Sheets of dried Nori can also encourage a picky Achilles Tang to feed. Some aquarists also modify sumps to grow macroalgae to then feed their Tangs.
Achilles Tangs also require well oxygenated water and are highly sensitive to ammonia levels, making them best for mature cycled aquariums only.
Lastly, they are especially aggressive towards other Tangs and will fight to the death with other Acanthurus species. While they can be semi-aggressive towards other fish, managing their personalities can be challenging. Achilles Tangs stress easily if kept with fish willing to fight back, like Triggerfish or large Angelfish.
- Scientific Name: Acanthurus achilles
- Origin: Pacific Ocean
- Size: 10 inches
- Difficulty: Difficult
4. Royal Blue Tang
Hippo Tang. Blue Tang. These are a few more common names for these iconic saltwater tangs. Royal Blue Tangs were well known to hobbyists even before the fame Dory launched for them in Finding Nemo.
Blue Tang saltwater fish are large, active, and brilliantly patterned, with a deep blue skin tone. When lacking proper nutrition they tend to fade and soon develop the facial pits of HITE, though.
While not as delicate as Powder Blue or Achilles Tangs, Royal Blue Tangs are not good tangs for beginners. Water parameters should be stable and they should only be introduced to mature aquariums. When stressed by disease, poor water conditions, or predators they often lie on their side.
Royal Blue Tangs are less aggressive towards others of their own kind. So long as they are all introduced as a group you can usually get away with keeping them together.
- Scientific Name: Paracanthurus hepatus
- Origin: IndoPacific
- Size: 12 inches
- Difficulty: Moderate
5. Yellow Eye Kole Tang
Kole Tangs fish live on coral atolls and reefs throughout the IndoPacific Region but are especially common around Hawaii. The Polynesian people found them to be so delicious they were ruled to be “royal food,” with death being the punishment for harvesting them without permission!
In Hawaiian waters they set up cleaning stations for migrating green sea turtles. By grazing on the algae that accumulates on their shells the Kole Tangs get a meal and the sea turtles lose drag in order to swim faster.
Kole Tangs are smaller and less aggressive than most types of Tangs. So they end up bullied if kept with their relatives. In larger aquariums it’s possible to keep multiple Kole Tangs. They may fight with one another for the best grazing areas, however.
Kole Tangs are otherwise peaceful towards other fish and are some of the best marine algae eaters. Macro, hair, and even diatomaceous algae are all kept under control by them. They graze algae without picking at soft or stony corals, making them good reef-safe algae eaters.
- Scientific Name: Ctenochaetus strigosus
- Origin: IndoPacific
- Size: 6 inches
- Difficulty: Easy
6. Sailfin Tang
Sailfin Tangs are the largest of the Zebrasoma group which includes Yellow and Purple Tangs. These tang fish are usually sold as cute 3 inch individuals with showy fins. But they get big enough to outgrow all but the largest of marine aquariums.
Like other tang fish types, Sailfins are mild mannered towards non-Tangs. They will chase other surgeon fishes around. But the more similar they look to one another, the more aggressive they become. So don’t keep them with Purple Tangs, Black Tangs, and other close relatives.
Sailfin Tangs have beautiful finnage and a hardy nature. They are excellent algae eaters for both fish only and reef aquariums.
- Scientific Name: Zebrasoma veliferum
- Origin: IndoPacific
- Size: Up to 15 inches
- Difficulty: Easy
7. Purple Tang
One of the pricier and attractive types of saltwater tang is the Purple Tang. While they are mostly found in the Red Sea there are small populations scattered throughout the Indian Ocean.
Purple Tangs are medium sized and reef-safe, making them a popular choice for advanced aquarists in need of a competent algae eater. While Purple Tangs are sometimes found in pairs or schools in the wild they are generally intolerant of each other and other Tangs in aquaria.
These surgeon tangs are sensitive when first introduced to new aquariums. So it’s best to give Purple Tangs a week in the pet store to acclimate. Or better still, set up a quarantine tank where you are able to watch them.
It’s easier to treat parasites and gauge their feeding response in a separate aquarium. Versus trying to treat them in the main tank, where other fish may be sensitive to medications. Or outcompete your new tang fish for food.
- Scientific Name: Zebrasoma xanthurum
- Origin: Indian Ocean
- Size: 9 inches
- Difficulty: Moderate
8. Black Tang
Black Tangs are some of the most expensive marine fish. Expect to pay anywhere from $800 to $1600 for even a small specimen. Black Tangs live around several remote archipelagos in the South Pacific. Most of which aren’t set up for marine fish collection.
Any Black Tang that makes it into the hobby has been shipped a long way and often under a lot of stress.
Such rarity makes the Black Tang a prized showpiece for any fish tank. But they are hardy and easy to care for once established in their new home. Their jet black color and brilliant white dot around the caudal spine is unusual compared to the showier colors most Tang fish types have.
A Black Tang would be stunning with other Zebrasoma species like Yellow and Purple Tangs. But Black Tangs will fight with their cousins as well as each other. So keep them alone unless your tank is larger than 300 gallons.
- Scientific Name: Zebrasoma rostratum
- Origin: South Pacific
- Size: 10 inches
- Difficulty: Easy
9. Clown Tang
Clown Tangs go by a few other common names, including Striped Tang and Lined Surgeonfish. These tangfish aren’t too sensitive in terms of water quality.
Their size and personalities make them more challenging, though. They will reach over a foot in length and are aggressive even towards non-Tangs.
Clown Tangs are also active swimmers and require large 180+ gallon aquariums. And don’t forget to provide plenty of macroalgae for them to graze on. They are ideal grazers for large reef or fish-only aquariums.
They are stressed during the shipping and delicate when first acclimating. But Clown Tangs are hardy and long lived once established in your aquarium.
- Scientific Name: Acanthurus lineatus
- Origin: IndoPacific
- Size: Up to 14 inches
- Difficulty: Moderate
10. Naso Tang
Naso Tang fish or Lipstick Tangs are one of the largest commonly available types of Tang. Since they grow almost 2 feet long you need a massive tank for one. They acclimate fast to captivity, however, and are eager feeders.
Despite being so large, Naso Tangs are on the peaceful side. They are much more gentle than other large types of tang fish like Clown and Achilles Tangs. Naso Tangs can even be kept in groups but only in aquariums larger than 300 gallons.
Naso Tangs are variable in color, depending both on the region they’re from. As well as their moods and individual character.
- Scientific Name: Naso lituratus
- Origin: Pacific Ocean
- Size: 18 inches
- Difficulty: Easy
Special Notes on Tangs
If you’re looking to get a tang for your saltwater aquarium, here are a few things that you should keep in mind:
Tangs Aren’t Always Easy to Care For
Several species, such as the Yellow Tang, are marked as “Easy.” But no type of Tang is truly easy in the way Damselfish or Gobies are. Tangs can be kept by beginners but you should have a good understanding of water chemistry.
No Tang should be the first fish introduced to cycle a new aquarium. Fluctuations in ammonia and other parameters may prove fatal for them. Tangs are also vegetarians and should be given limited amounts of high protein prepared foods.
Fresh macroalgae, Spirulina-based prepared foods, dried sheets of Nori (edible Japanese seaweed), and blanched vegetables like peas and spinach should be their main food sources.
When fed improperly all Tangs are susceptible to developing Hole in the Head (HITH). HITH is generally caused by nutritional deficiencies. When given plenty of macroalgae and plant-based foods Tangs will recover but may have permanent scars or discoloration.
You need a constant supply of both macroalgae and prepared seaweed-based foods for optimal health. The following products are perfect for any of the Tangs on this list.
Temperament
No type of Tang is fully peaceful, either. The most peaceful is the Kole Tang (Ctenochaetus strigosus). Even they will still fight if kept with similar looking Tang species, however.
Tangs do vary in personality as well. One individual may be 100% peaceful while others have to be the king of the aquarium. And with their sharp caudal spines an aggressive Tang fish will leave bloody wounds on each other or other fish that try to challenge them.
Conclusion
Tang fish are a staple in the saltwater hobby. These active, beautiful fish are different enough in appearance to find a place in most tanks. And their constant grazing on algae helps keep live rock and corals looking spotless. So long as you control their aggressive tendencies, tangs are a great choice for larger saltwater tanks.
FAQs
Are Tang Fish Poisonous?
Many Tang fish are poisonous, yes. As marine algae eaters they sometimes accumulate toxins in their flesh. The sickness is called ciguatera poisoning and occurs when marine herbivorous fish eat dinoflagellates. Ciguatera poisoning becomes more dangerous as you move up the food chain. Poisoning is sometimes fatal but sickness for several days is more common.
Why are Fish called Tang?
The exact reason these fish are called “Tangs” is unknown. But the family name for tangs (Acanthuridae) was chosen due to their caudal tail spine. It translates as “thorn” and “tail” in Greek. Their tail spine is a modified retractable scale that’s used for attacks against other Tangs. And defense against predators.
