Regal Angel Primer
- Thread starter DJPB
- Start date
I found my Regal Angel dead the other day. He had been acting strange hiding. then when I put food in,he would come out,and look at food but not take it.
I have had him just over 5 months. I said I would never get one of these as I knew they were hard to keep. But the bloke at the fish shop showed me him,although he wasnt feeding great. He also said that as he's a red sea specimen he should be fine,as long as he's in a mature reef tank. My reef was just over a year old at that point. I got him eating on day 6,eating mysis,brine,marine cuisine,and san fran angel and butterfly food. He would never eat Nori though,which always concerned me. As my Flame and Red Stripe Angel love nori,and are a nice healthy plump. I would feed the angel three times a day. Once a week I would put in a mussel in the shell which he would love,although he would never compete as well for the mussel as my 3 tangs,and 2 clowns.
So there is the sad story. I had a feeling he wasnt getting the nutrition he needed. He wasnt skinny,but wasnt a confident feeder and never got that healthy plump look.
I definetley wont get another one. I have been to the Red Sea twice now,and seen these beutifull fish on the reef,and they are big and fat. and the colours are so much better than any I have seen in a reef tank. They need sponges and tunicates as there main diet,which nearly everyone in the hobby cant provide for them. So in my opinion people should leave them in the ocean. It really saddens me,to read through this thread and learn the amount that have died. most not making many days or weeks! and thats just a forum. what about all the other ones that get brought across the world that end up dead within a few weeks. some fish are just not suitable for this hobby,and in my opinion the Regal Angel is one of them.
I have had him just over 5 months. I said I would never get one of these as I knew they were hard to keep. But the bloke at the fish shop showed me him,although he wasnt feeding great. He also said that as he's a red sea specimen he should be fine,as long as he's in a mature reef tank. My reef was just over a year old at that point. I got him eating on day 6,eating mysis,brine,marine cuisine,and san fran angel and butterfly food. He would never eat Nori though,which always concerned me. As my Flame and Red Stripe Angel love nori,and are a nice healthy plump. I would feed the angel three times a day. Once a week I would put in a mussel in the shell which he would love,although he would never compete as well for the mussel as my 3 tangs,and 2 clowns.
So there is the sad story. I had a feeling he wasnt getting the nutrition he needed. He wasnt skinny,but wasnt a confident feeder and never got that healthy plump look.
I definetley wont get another one. I have been to the Red Sea twice now,and seen these beutifull fish on the reef,and they are big and fat. and the colours are so much better than any I have seen in a reef tank. They need sponges and tunicates as there main diet,which nearly everyone in the hobby cant provide for them. So in my opinion people should leave them in the ocean. It really saddens me,to read through this thread and learn the amount that have died. most not making many days or weeks! and thats just a forum. what about all the other ones that get brought across the world that end up dead within a few weeks. some fish are just not suitable for this hobby,and in my opinion the Regal Angel is one of them.
I am sorry to hear you lost your Regal angel. I had my Red Sea Regal angel for over 5 years. I know of a number of other people who have had long term success with this fish so I would not make the blanket statement that they should not be kept in captivity. They are definitely a fish for an experienced aquarist with a mature reef tank i.e. a reef tank probably greater than 1 year old. Getting a good specimen is paramount but size of the fish, tankmates and grazing opportunities are an important issue too. Specimens in the 3" to 4' range seem to adapt best. Success is possible with this fish and once they adapt they are as hardy as any other angel. My Regal ate everything including Nori. The hardest thing is obtaining a specimen that has been handled properly. There is no question they have to be treated with kid gloves every step of the way from collection point to the retailer. If you are lucky enough to obtain a properly handled specimen, they usually acclimate very well to captive life. I truly believe that the collection process is a major factor, in addition to the above, that determines the success with this fish.
HOZERTHEBONEFISH
Member
Chooch1
Would you mind sharing with us who the "number of people" who kept regal long term are? BTW how do you define long term exactly?
What you are saying goes against every expert analysis (Fenner, Scheimer, etc) of this fish. They typically do NOT acclimate well to captive life.
As far as I know only you and Greg Scheimer have claimed to have kept a regal alive for 5 years or more. I am sure there are a few other people out there who kept regals for longer, but not "a number of people"
For those who are in the closet and kept this fish alive for decades and not sharing your secret achievement, please step forward.
Henry
Would you mind sharing with us who the "number of people" who kept regal long term are? BTW how do you define long term exactly?
What you are saying goes against every expert analysis (Fenner, Scheimer, etc) of this fish. They typically do NOT acclimate well to captive life.
As far as I know only you and Greg Scheimer have claimed to have kept a regal alive for 5 years or more. I am sure there are a few other people out there who kept regals for longer, but not "a number of people"
For those who are in the closet and kept this fish alive for decades and not sharing your secret achievement, please step forward.
Henry
Hozerthebonefish,
I said I know OF a number of aquarists successfully keeping this fish. Yes, Greg Schiemer has had long term success. I also know Julian Sprung has kept a RS Regal in the Two Little Fishies office tank for a number of years. Copps on this board has had long term success. A number of European hobbyists have had long term success. Many people are keeping this species successfully. I don't dispute that this is a difficult fish and for experienced aquarists only. I stand by my position that IF this fish is properly handled with care at EVERY stage from collection to the hobbyist, that a RS Regal is a keepable fish and shouldn't be banned from collection. Collection and acclimation are the keys. IME once sucessfully acclimated they are as hardy as any angel. The ballgame is getting a properly collected specimen to begin with. Unfortunately, they often are not handled properly. This is true with many fish, many of which are inherently better able to handle some abuse.
I said I know OF a number of aquarists successfully keeping this fish. Yes, Greg Schiemer has had long term success. I also know Julian Sprung has kept a RS Regal in the Two Little Fishies office tank for a number of years. Copps on this board has had long term success. A number of European hobbyists have had long term success. Many people are keeping this species successfully. I don't dispute that this is a difficult fish and for experienced aquarists only. I stand by my position that IF this fish is properly handled with care at EVERY stage from collection to the hobbyist, that a RS Regal is a keepable fish and shouldn't be banned from collection. Collection and acclimation are the keys. IME once sucessfully acclimated they are as hardy as any angel. The ballgame is getting a properly collected specimen to begin with. Unfortunately, they often are not handled properly. This is true with many fish, many of which are inherently better able to handle some abuse.
Steve Atkins
New member
Not necessarily. Mine came from Indonesia and it is the Indian Ocean/ Red Sea variety. From what I understand, both can be found around that area as it is where the two populations meet.
Steve
this is just my personal opinion take it for what it's worth. I bet you would see more long-term success rates if people would dedicate their tank to this one species. At least have it be the first one in the tank. I just don't think there's a magical food this fish needs to eat two surviving in captivity. (Stress kills this fish). I've had my regal for a year and a half, in and I don't see why it won't last a lot longer. It eat anything I've put in the tank. I think the reason I'm having so much success is because it's the only thing in my 210. I've tried to put other fish in the tank but they don't survive long because this fish is plain nasty.
Steve Atkins
New member
My understanding is that there are two populations of these fish. One (with the yellow chest) ranges from the Red Sea to Indonesia and the other (with the grey chest) ranges from Indonesia out across the Pacific. I fish from the Red Sea or Sri Lanka will have the yellow chest and one from the Great Barrier Reef of the Philippines will have the grey chest. A fish from Indonesia might have either colouring not because they are the same but because it could come from either population.Steve,
Indo-pacific is Indian Ocean/Pacific Ocean......So we're talking about the same thing.
How is your Regal BTW?
Nick
The yellow chested variety are apparently a lot easier to keep than the grey chested variety. This is possibly due to diet, which seems to differ between the two populations, but it might be other factors. Individual fish seem to vary a lot in dietary preferences also.
My fish is doing very well. It appears to have reached a compromise with the Clarks Clown and Javanese Damsel as I have not seen it with any fin damage for a few weeks now. Perhaps it has finally established itself as #2. If so, I hope it will not try to challenge for #1 spot anytime soon as it will have no chance of success.
Steve
triggerfish1976
New member
Here is a link to another thread I posted on my local club forum showing pics of my new Red Sea Regal. He was one of the most healthy looking specimans I had seen so I had to pick him up. He has been eating some Angel food Formula and pellets but nothing with gusto but he his nice and fat and I have a large amount of spong in the tank for it to pick on.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=954399
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=954399
i am not very good at posting,in fact the last time was 24/10/04 that was when i first got my regal {page 5} he is still with me and doing great after two years. about six months ago i got a grey bellied female to try and pair up. i couldn't see it eat so we agreed that i would pay for it as soon as it ate. it ate off the rocks but would not eat any thing else{i tried every thing going}.
after six weeks i gave up and gave it back. two weeks ago i travelled 200 miles and got a small regal that i thought was female. i put it in the tank and all hell let loose,the resident male hammered it. i tried mirrors,food. i caught the smaller regal with my hand it was that stressed. "this is in a 200 english gallon tank"
and put it in the sump. next day i caught the resident fish,he went in the sump the new one went in the main tank. i re arranged the rock work. i told my mate that i was worried about putting them back together. he's been after one for ages, so he bought the new one off me. yesterday i travelled 257 miles and looked at different regals in two marine shops. i found a female about one and a half inch bigger than my male so i bought it. she is really bold and was swimming around in half an hour of being in the tank. she was eating off the rocks,so i put some food in and she scoffed like she was starving. i watched her today and i could tell nothing would bother her, so i put the male in. he charged up to her, she flicked her tail at him and he shot off. she swims up to him and shows that she's the new boss, and he seems to agree. i have tried to take pics but they are blurred,but i will show you some soon.
chris.
after six weeks i gave up and gave it back. two weeks ago i travelled 200 miles and got a small regal that i thought was female. i put it in the tank and all hell let loose,the resident male hammered it. i tried mirrors,food. i caught the smaller regal with my hand it was that stressed. "this is in a 200 english gallon tank"
and put it in the sump. next day i caught the resident fish,he went in the sump the new one went in the main tank. i re arranged the rock work. i told my mate that i was worried about putting them back together. he's been after one for ages, so he bought the new one off me. yesterday i travelled 257 miles and looked at different regals in two marine shops. i found a female about one and a half inch bigger than my male so i bought it. she is really bold and was swimming around in half an hour of being in the tank. she was eating off the rocks,so i put some food in and she scoffed like she was starving. i watched her today and i could tell nothing would bother her, so i put the male in. he charged up to her, she flicked her tail at him and he shot off. she swims up to him and shows that she's the new boss, and he seems to agree. i have tried to take pics but they are blurred,but i will show you some soon.
chris.
Flighty
Premium Member
Hi everyone. I love to keep up on this thread and see how everyone is doing with their regals.
My pair is doing really well. The male is still growing faster than the female, but there is no fighting, just a little bit of intimidation over food. They are both filled out and stout now and have a glowing healthy fish look. I worry about the female getting enough food, so I still feed pretty heavily. They will eat half a sheet of nori a day along with a good bit of mysis, pelets and fish goo. I am propogating some sponges on rocks in my sump and hope to start rotating those through the display for extra variety.
I recently was able to go to Fiji and see grey bellied regals in the wild. Just a few observations over two weeks of diving in one small area of the reef off the northern tip of the main island.
-They generally hung out in male/female pairs. Sometimes you would see a solo adult and sometimes you would see a male following a pair around. I didn't see any juvis or small regals on our dives.
-They were very plentiful in this area. We would see 15++ every dive we did. One of the most common fish you saw out there.
-They mostly would hang out on the vertical walls of the reefs in the low light areas where the non photosynthetic things were.
-They were very shy and would hide if you pointed a camera at them or looked at them too long.
-Many were very very fat. I was surprised at how much their bellies bulged out.
-I got to watch two large males fight it out over a nice large female. She stayed about a meter away watching while they sliced at each other. Both males turned very white during the fight and really were using their cheek spines.
My pair is doing really well. The male is still growing faster than the female, but there is no fighting, just a little bit of intimidation over food. They are both filled out and stout now and have a glowing healthy fish look. I worry about the female getting enough food, so I still feed pretty heavily. They will eat half a sheet of nori a day along with a good bit of mysis, pelets and fish goo. I am propogating some sponges on rocks in my sump and hope to start rotating those through the display for extra variety.
I recently was able to go to Fiji and see grey bellied regals in the wild. Just a few observations over two weeks of diving in one small area of the reef off the northern tip of the main island.
-They generally hung out in male/female pairs. Sometimes you would see a solo adult and sometimes you would see a male following a pair around. I didn't see any juvis or small regals on our dives.
-They were very plentiful in this area. We would see 15++ every dive we did. One of the most common fish you saw out there.
-They mostly would hang out on the vertical walls of the reefs in the low light areas where the non photosynthetic things were.
-They were very shy and would hide if you pointed a camera at them or looked at them too long.
-Many were very very fat. I was surprised at how much their bellies bulged out.
-I got to watch two large males fight it out over a nice large female. She stayed about a meter away watching while they sliced at each other. Both males turned very white during the fight and really were using their cheek spines.
