Hawaiian blue tang face color change

[houstonhobby]

Everyone,

My Hawaiian blue tang's face has changed color. The blue/black line that runs along his back now extends nearly to his mouth. When I got him 6 months or so ago it extended only to the eyes.

During the last few months, occasionally his face has seemed mottled, kind of like an old man. I now realize this was just the interim period, where that part of his face was changing from blue to blue/black.

It looks good and he seems very healthy, but I had no idea that they did this or any idea what it means.

Is he looking for love? Is there anything I can do about that? He is in a lightly stocked 210.

Thanks,
Rod

 

[Marine fish man]

Post a pic he might be a hybrid

 

[Dmorty217]

a pic would help alot like mentioned above. it could be the tang is lacking something in its diet or it could be the start of HLLE

 

[houstonhobby]

Sorry I don't have time for a pic but this is not HLLE. This is a good-looking fish with no health issues. I am sure of that. Hybrid, maybe. Since I just got him from the tanks at the LFS, I have no idea about his parentage, and I imagine he is wild-caught.

 

[houstonhobby]

http://www.redorbit.com/education/reference_library/animal_kingdom/fish/2578380/blue_tang/

Here is a link to a picture of a tang where the change has started. In this case, mine never had the dots back farther on the body (and those do sort of look like HLLE to me) but the mottled face part was the same. Then the mottled face part took on the same smooth color as the other blue/black areas on the fish.

 

[Dmorty217]

Maybe you got lucky and got one of the black cap Hippos as they are called. I havent seen one in awhile and without a pic it is hard to be certain, but it sounds like you got lucky

 

[the808state]

hawaii doesn't have blue tangs? Where did it come from?

 

[houstonhobby]

Andy's Fishland

 

[houstonhobby]

Anyway I have snorkels there a hundred times. This is a common fish in Hawaiian reefs.

 

[sedgro]

The 808 in "the808state" is the area code for Hawaii, so he may know what he is talking about. Check fishbase.org - Paracanthurus hepatus does not occur in Hawaii.

 

[wakesetter]

Those fish DO NOT occur in Hawaii.

 

[gobolts23]

Yup...never seen a Hippo Tang in Hawaii.

 

[houstonhobby]

Every now and again one encounters a troll. Or even a shoal of trolls. The best approach is to ignore them.

As Mark Twain (Samuel Clements) wrote, "The more I learn about people, the more I like cats"

 

[sedgro]

Well next time you "snorkels there a hundred times" make sure you snap a picture of a "Hawaiian Blue Tang", I am sure we would all love to see it. You should also contact fishbase.org to inform them you have discovered that their database is incorrect and they need to extend the range of the species to the Hawaiian Islands.

 

[gobolts23]

I just contacted a collector buddy of mine in Hawaii just to make sure and he said in 35 years he has never seen a Hippo tang lol. Maybe "houstonhobby" is talking about another fish....

I also have been to HI collecting numerous times and have never seen a Paracanthurus hepatus

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1950036

 

[Dmorty217]

The all black one is awesome in that link half way down

 

[Winwood]

I wouldn't get to caught up on the "Hawaiian" thing. Many fish get labeled as such from wholesalers. I believe many fish from other locations are repackaged in HI and then marketed as being from there. Probably because HI has a better reputation than places like the Philippines, Indonesia, etc..

 

[copps]

I wouldn't get to caught up on the "Hawaiian" thing. Many fish get labeled as such from wholesalers. I believe many fish from other locations are repackaged in HI and then marketed as being from there. Probably because HI has a better reputation than places like the Philippines, Indonesia, etc..

This is exactly what happens... most commonly with wholesaler labelled "Hawaiian flame angels". These are almost always Christmas Island flame angels that go through Hawaiian wholesalers. The confusion here is worse though as flame angels are the only non endemic Centropyge with breeding populations in the main Hawaiian Islands... but they are VERY rare... if you've seen a flame angel in Hawaii consider yourself lucky... they are most common on the Big Island.

Hippo tangs also come out of Christmas Island and go through Hawaii... but as mentioned are not found in Hawaii. All Christmas Island shipments still have to go through Hawaiian wholesalers... unlike Marshall Islands shipments that used to, but now many go direct to LA.

Anyway, from my experience most of these dark hippo variants hold their color... unlike most of the chromatic abnormalities I've kept! Here's mine...


Copps

 

[houstonhobby]

Actually most of my vacations to Hawaii were on the big island, at least for part of the time. Thanks for a knowledgeable reply. Mine looked like yours for a while but the dots on the face grew larger over time and eventually merged into a smooth solid color.

Have not been to Hawaii since 2005 and it looks like I will never make it again. In that year, while we were staying on Kauai near kee beach (1) my wife got a call from her best friend saying that her cancer had returned. We never saw her again, (2) my wife's mother died unexpectedly. These things take their toll.