Species Name : Centropyge Acanthops

Origin : West Indian Ocean

DIfficulty : Medium

Minimum Tank Size : 30 gallons

Temperament : Semi-Aggressive

Temperature : 72 - 82°F

Reef Safe : With caution

Maximum Size : 3 inches

DIet : Omnivore

Centropyge Acanthops is one of two very similar marine angelfish, the other being the Centropyge Aurontonotus or the Brazilian flameback angelfish. Its common names include the fireball angelifsh and the African Flameback angelfish.

Both centropyge acanthops and centropyge aurontonotus have similar coloration, a brilliant yellow/orange streaking from the face all the way to the top half of the body with the a deep blue filling up the rest of the body.

Fortunately, distinguishing between the two is very easy, the African flameback angelfish has a yellow tail as opposed to a deep blue one found on the Brazilian flameback angelfish. They are otherwise completely alike.

It is similar in size to a Cherub Angelfish (Centropyge Argi) but only much pricier. The high cost of purchasing an African Flameback angelfish is due to the fact that it they not all that common. The go for about $60 USD.

While its cousin the Brazilian flameback angel seems to have a reputation for being rather aggressive, i have to say that centropyge acanthops is a lot more laid back in general. Its not any more aggressive than a cherub angelfish.

Without enough space they can begin bullying smaller tank mates.

A marine aquarium no smaller than 30 gallons should be used to house an African flameback angelfish. A good sized tank for this angelfish would be a 50 to 100 gallon saltwater aquarium. They enjoy darting in and out of nooks and crannies so the aquarium rockscape should be set up accordingly. While not considered a particular threat to corals in a saltwater aquarium, caution must still be taken.

Dwarf angelfish are all grazers in the wild. Like surgeonfish, they scan the rock throughout the day for food. They feed on small crustaceans, algae of various types and sometimes even detritus.

They should be given a balanced diet in a saltwater aquarium. They should be fed a wide range of foods for variety. Feeding them a single type of food for too long is generally a bad idea. Although there have been people that have fed them new life spectrum pellets for months at a time with no ill effects. They all looked very healthy in fact.

They should be offered nori/algae sheets in addition to a balanced frozen food (Formula One, Formula Two) and a good pellet like those produced by New Life Spectrum.

The Pygmy Angel Formula by Ocean Nutrition is just about the perfect food for dwarf angels. A wide range of ingredients are used. They are shrimp, algae, krill, vitamins and trace elements, kelp, squid and much more. Prior to freezing, the cubes are mixed with these ingredients. Unfortunately there is only one form of Pygmy Angel Formula, frozen cubes.

Brine shrimp shouldn't be offered as they are the nutritional equivalent of garbage. Frozen adult artemia contain mostly roughage, which is nothing more than fibre. Krill and mysis shrimp are two superior foods that also have fibre.

If you must feed your dwarf angelfish brine shrimp then go for enriched brine shrimp like "spirulina enriched brine shrimp" by Hikari. Enriched artemia that were fed a nutritious food prior to freezing are known as enriched brine shrimp. So they are more of carriers of nutrition.

Newly hatched brine shrimp are also quite nutritious, as long as their yolk sacs are still in place. They turn back into garbage once their yolk sacs have been used up.

Cherub Pygmy Angelfish - Centropyge Argi

Coral Beauty Angelfish - Centropyge Bispinosus

Eibli Angelfish - Centropyge Eibli

Fishers Angelfish - Centropyge Fisheri
Flameback Angelfish(African) - Centropyge Acanthops
Flameback Angelfish(Brazilian) - Centropyge Aurantonotus
Golden Angelfish - Centropyge Aurantia
Heralds Angelfish - Centropyge Heraldi
Lemonpeel Angelfish - Centropyge Flavissima
Multibarred Angelfish - Centropyge Multifasciata
Multicolor Angelfish - Centropyge Multicolor
Potters Angelfish - Centropyge Potteri