the differences between a Palani tang and a Dussumieri tang.

C

commandertekki

Premium Member
Is there a differnce?

I am purchasing a few dussumieri and a few palani tang. I wanted to know if they are the same. The research I found on the web tell me they are called a palani tang:
a. Acanthurus dussumieri or
b. Ctenochaetus nigrofuscus

What confuses me is Ctenochaetus nigrofuscus is also known as a lavender tang. Does anyone out here know the differences?

Any help distinguishing the Palani and Dussumieri tang will be greatly thankful.
 
There are three main tangs coming out of Hawaii that are very similar in appearance and are normally reffered to as Dussumer Tangs. They are:

Acanthurus dussumieri
Acanthurus blochii
Acanthurus Palani

All three of these fish have very similar colors. Greenish brown body's with yelloe blue and green outline patterns. They also all have the characteristic yellow band across the eyes. Generally all three of these fish get brought in and sold as Dussumieri Tangs because they are so close in appearance.

Acanthurus nigrofuscus or Lavender Tangs are also collected in the same area but they have a totally difference appearance and are usually not mislabeled as Dussumer tangs. They tend to be purple/brown throughout the whole body with light lavender accents but they are not as colorful as the Tangs listed above IMOP.

Word of warning the Dussumieri tangs are not very colorful until they reach 6-8" and they are usually collected in the 2-4" range so you may have to wait a few months before they start showing the adult coloration. If you ordering from a collector and have the room, I would try to get the largest specimans they can find.
One last thing to keep in mind, if you are getting these for your home aquarium be aware that they get HUGE (16-20") so multiple Dussumer's may not be a good idea unless you have a huge tank (at least 400 gallons).
 
The 3" Dussumer's usually have very little coloration on them. They generally are a pale tan color with a faint sign of the yellow eye band starting to show but don't fret they are maginificant fish once they get their adult colors.
Please post pics once you get them.
 
I dont think Acanthurus palani is a valid name.
I saw this name only with LA wholsellers.

Acanthurus dussumieri is, and it's a beautiful fish, if you're getting small specimens,you wont see their colors till they'll reach about 8". the larger the more colors it'll get.
12" and up are just awsome fish.

Ctenochaetus nigrofuscus is not valid either.
It is Acanthurus nigrofuscus the Lavender Surgeon.
It is not a similar fish, but still a beautiful fish, some are with nice orange spots on the face, and they're good grazres.

The so called palani should be Acanthurus bariene ,Acanthurus blochii or Acanthurus xanthopterus.
All similar to the Dussuimier, but never have so much color as the later.

They all grow very large, the only one that stays relatively small is the Lavender-A.nigrofuscus.
 
Vili Shark,

Do you ever see 12" specimans available?
I have tried to find ones with full coloration for over a year and the largest I have been able to locate are in the 6-7" range just starting to show some decent color.
 
Hello Triggerfish,
Yeah, in Hong Kong there are some 10" up to even 16" available .
Amazing fish at this size, but needs a lot of room and lots of food as well.
It is surely one of the most beautiful fish one can get for a large tank.
They're quite expensive at this price due to transportation costs.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8707736#post8707736 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by triggerfish1976
Vili Shark,

Do you ever see 12" specimans available?
I have tried to find ones with full coloration for over a year and the largest I have been able to locate are in the 6-7" range just starting to show some decent color.
Click to expand...

The largest one I have obtained is a 9" from justrarefish.com. It should be coming in tommorow and will be place in the 560 gal tank. Hopefully, when I get the fish in, I can take some good pictures and post here.

I want to thank all of you for all your help in answering the questions for me and commandertekki. :D
 
I saw that on their website but I have heard mixed reviews on the quality of livestock from Tom's business. Please let me know how everything works out as I might see if he can get another one.
 
rarely will 3" juvies be collected. If they are collected 90% of the time they will be xanthopterus or blochii not dussumieri. The ones i usually see that are actually duss tangs are in the 8" range. While diving you see the 12-18" ones that are just gorgeous. They are massive and always fat! good luck with yours. they are my favorite tang!
 
I can't tell the differences between the tangs. They all look like dussumieri tangs. Did you get a chance to look at the pictures?
 
You cant go wrong when they are larger.
Dussumieri have some really nice BLUE stripes and a yellow masc on the eyes.
The other two looks like a pale version, even thugh when they are mature they are very nice as well.
 
Dusimers tail spine is white, the others are black. Thats any easy way to tell when they are small and less colorful.
 
In Hawaiian, Palani is the name for Acanthurus dussumieri. A. blochii and A. xanthopterus are called "Pualu".

In a perfect world, "Palani tang" and "Dussumieri tang" should mean the same thing, but in the aquarium trade a lot of people get confused.

12" plus Palanis are easy to find in Hawaii - just go to the local fish market! You might have trouble getting it to eat, though ;)
 
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