chevron tang vs white tail tang, which one is best?

mtman58

New member
Between the Ctenchaetus hawaiiensis (Chevron Tang) and the Ctenochaetus flavicauda (White Tail Tang).

Which one is more attractive as an adult fish?

Which one does best in the home aquarium?

Thank you for your thoughts.
 
White Tail as an adult. Chevron as a Juvi. Chevrons as adults are very very bland. There are much better looking tangs as adults than the Chevron.
 
Good luck finding the white tail. Ive had one on order for six months and still nothing. Even had a friend a quality marine try and get me one but they didn't have any.

That said, if you've got the space go for the chevron.
 
They are both attrcative and will both do the same job regarding algae eating. Pick whichever one you like best! :)
 
Chevrons do have an ugly duckling stage in between juvi and adult I was given one about 3 years ago and is just now getting his blue/green lines in .. I really like his look now . not as flashy but nice
 
I have read that the Cevron Tang can grow up to 10 inches. Is that correct?
I never thought they grew to that size.
 
My chevron started out as about a 1.5 to 2.5 inch fish. Fairly small. Now about 6 months later. It's probably a good 4-4.5 " in size. If he grows that much in 6 months, or less, then I expect it'll be 8-9" within a year. I have him in a 125.. He's become the dominator of the tank. My 3 largest fish constantly swim up to each other side by side to see if any of them are bigger than the other yet. I swear they'll like kids.. "I'm bigger than you.. Oh wait, nope, you're still the same size, just wait.... I'll be beating you up later..."

They swim off and then rinse and repeat several times a day.. They must forget how big they all are. :)

In general I love my chevron. However, he's been a ****ant to other fish. Some fish he dominates, other fish he couldn't care less about. I'm not sure how he decides! One of my fish not sure if it was the chevron, chewed the tail off my sleeper goby. I've got a tiny rainford's goby that no fish ever touches.. Go figure... :(. I have a starry blenny, doesn't act much different than the goby, just lays around, and no one touches him. So why target the sleeper goby? Don't know.

I love the Chevron, it's been hardy, it's a great eater, and at times is mean, but seems to be o.k. with everyone now.
 
Thanks travis32, do you have anyother tangs in your tang? How do you think the Cevron Tangs compares to other bristletoothes?
 
my three big fish are: Bi color foxface rabbit fish (nipping at my toadstool. Grr), Bellas (genicanthus) Angel (smallest reef safe of the large angel family, and then the Chevron).

I did try a couple blue hippo tangs. They died of other issues. (parasite of some type.) But, for the time they lived, the Chevron checked them out, would occasionally chase the other tang out of its territory and then just went about its business. My bellas angel has a similar shape to the chevron, and they get along the least of everyone. Constnatly competing for food, and pushing each other out of the way so to speak.

Just my experience, but, I would say that a bristletooth tang would be fine because their body shape is really different. My chevron likes to compare its body shape and size to the other fish in the tank. I don't know if its looking for a mate, seeing who it can dominate, or just being cautious, but, I think other bristletoothes would be o.k. However, I would have an alternate home prepared for one or the other if it didn't work out. If there's anything I've learned in this hobby, no matter what anyone says, fish have their own personality... Juvenile Chevron's aren'ts "supposed to" be territorial very much. Mine's extremely territorial.. Does that mean all are or aren't? no.. :)

Your experience may be totally different! I love the health and color though. I couldn't keep hippo tangs alive for anything. The chevron though has never shown any signs of health issues and is very healthy. Go figure.
 
I thought max size they were rated at 10-12"... I don't know for sure. If it does, I may have a problem. But, if it stop at 6-8" it should be fine. I can't wait to see what it's new colors will be. It looks awesome as is. I love it's patterns and juvenile colors. I look forward to seeing it change.

Mine loves meaty foods as much as algae. It eats as much or more slime algae off the glass than my snails. So, its all around a great fish other than mine's bullying attitude at times.
 
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