Purple Queen Anthias
Scientific Name : Pseudoanthias Tuka
Origin : Indo-Pacific
Temperament : Semi-Aggressive
Temperature : 72F - 82F
Maximum Size : 7 Inches
Diet : Carnivore
Difficulty : Hard
Reef Safe : Yes
Tank Size : 100 Gallons
The Purple Queen Anthias is another popular member of the anthias family. They go by a few common names that include the Amethyst Anthias, purple queen basslet and the sailfin anthias.
They are found in very high flow areas on the reef where they congregate in groups. A group consisting of 500 speciems are not uncommon as they ride the currents in areas where there is usually a steep drop from the reef. They are found throughout the Indo-Pacific and are a very common and cheap fish in the marine aquarium fish hobby.
Their scientific names are Pseudoanthias Tuka and are one of the cheaper members of the genus Pseudoanthias. Expect to pay about $15 to $30 for a purple queen anthias. with males always costing more than females.
A harem of females are usually under the control of a single male. Because of this, it is not a good idea to put more than one male purple queen anthias in an aquarium. They will likely fight to the death in such a situation.
Purple queen anthias are a difficult species to keep in captivity due to their diet. Most will never accept prepared foods in the aquarium and will slowly perish as a result.
Both male and female specimens have different coloration. Females are usually purple with some orange on the back that can extend to their tails. Males are also bright purple but have a yellow lower jaw. They are hermaphrodites that start off life as females and have the potential to become males in appropriate conditions. This is very much like Dwarf Angelfish.
Smaller groups are unable to properly disperse and absorb the aggressive nature of the males. As the purple queen anthias is an open swimming species that can reach a length of about seven inches, they require large aquariums. The bare minimum required to house these jewels is a hundred gallons. However, larger tanks above 200 gallons are recommended if a small group is desired.
In the wild, all pseudoanthias are planktonivores that ride the heavy currents of steep drop off areas while preying on passing morsels of plankton. This behavior is conducted throughout the day. As such, the difficulty in keeping these fish have to do with ensuring they are feed enough every day.
Frequent feedings of meaty foods are required everyday. The recommended rate of feeding is no less than two times a day to be on the safe side. Like most marine aquarium fish, these fish tend to accept frozen perpared foods for more frequently than they will dry foods initially.
Some great choices for them include * Mysis Shrimp, * Cyclopeeze, * Prime Reef and * Frozen Krill. Cyclopeeze is probably the closest match to what they would normally consume in the wild as they are small planktonic feed that are very nutritious. PE Mysis Shrimp is the standard in high quality mysis shrimp and Prime Reef is a nutritious blend of a variety of blended seafoods with vitamins and additives added.
