Dark Colored Griffis Angel

[invincible569]

I have seen several of the Griffis Angels in this dark coloration in Japanese tanks, but wondering if this is a different version of the Griffis that some retailers are offering in the states? If so, can Liveaquaria bring these in?

 

[DFS]

invincible569,

We receive Apolemichthys griffisi angelfish about once every few months. These fish mainly come from the Central Pacific (Marshall Islands and Kiribati) and are almost always in the 5"-7" range. This species is not very abundant in the aquarium trade, as they are very solitary and secretive in their natural habitat, making them difficult to collect.

Griffis' Angels are very consistent in coloration, and the amount of black does not vary too much among the 50 or so fish I have seen in person over the last 20 odd years in the fish biz. I am not sure if the pictures you are viewing on these Japanese sites are in poor lighting conditions for the photograph or if the fish you have seen are actually very small specimens.

Griffis' Angels may show a little more black under their white stripe that runs from their first dorsal spine to the bottom of the caudal fin when they are in the 6-8 cm range (2.4-3.2").

Happy Reefing!
Kevin Kohen
Director of LiveAquaria
Drs. Foster and Smith

 

[invincible569]

Ok, i will continue to do more research and find out about this darker species. I also thought the same about lighting, but i have seen this species in different angles and also in different tanks from Japan. You could be right though.. it could be an age difference.