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Reef Fish Guide designation and why
Take it home
Although large angelfishes are not suggested for aquariums, the Cherub angel is a good addition to most tanks. It is tiny, but feisty, and will hold its own against larger fish. Cherub angels are healthy and hardy and will spawn in your home aquarium. Their constant reproduction in captivity, as well as in the wild, proves that they are a sustainable choice for any level aquarist.
Distribution
Tropical Western Atlantic: Bermuda and Florida, USA to French Guiana, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.
Maximum Size
3.1 inches (8 cm)
Care Requirements
Minimum tank size is 30 gallons, but it is recommended that you keep them out of trouble by putting them in larger tanks. Males have been known to fight to the death, if two are kept together. However if a male-female pair are introduced at the same time into a tank of at least 50 gallons, than they will live together peacefully. The most suitable tank for a Cherub angels is a well-aged aquarium with plenty of filamentous algal growth. The filamentous algae will serve as a large portion of the food source/nutritional value for the newly acquired Cherub angel.
Food: In the wild, the main component of the diet for most dwarf angels is algae and detritus. When in captivity it will accept a variety of foods including frozen preparations that contain marine or spirulina algae, mysid shrimp and/or finely shaved fresh or frozen shrimp. Sources suggest that you feed your fish three times a day, but if you have a healthy microalgae growth in your tank, then you need not feed so often.
Compatibility: Naturally this fish is a grazer, so when kept in captivity it may nip at large-polyped stony corals, some soft corals, and clam mantles. Being that Cherubs are feisty and slightly aggressive, only one should be kept in a tank. They adapt easily in captivity, but once they are comfortable in their surroundings they could cause a bit of trouble. It is important to keep them with more aggressive fish because they will harass more docile fishes and even kill other pygmy angelfishes.
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