Need help to ID Anthias

[barracuda]

Hi all,
i need your help to ID my Anthias. I have 2 of them for about month. Last couple of day i noticed that they started to change a bit. The very end part of the tail has become yellow with a little bit of blue.
Thanks.

 

[mlm]

I don't have my book here but I think thats Bartlett's Fairy Anthias or somthing like that. Ik no one comes up with it I will look it up when I get home.

 

[alti]

its a male lyretail anthia. females dont have the elongated dorsal fin and are more orange/yellow in color. if you have 2 males in the tank you might want to get rid of one of them. they can be pretty territorial and will probably end up killing each other. if you get 2 or 3 females for the male they will school in the tank. if the male dies the dominant female will slowly change --- and become the male.HTH.

 

[alti]

they also like to be fed frequently. i think its more mental than a physical need for food. i only feed my fish once a day, so the only way to give them frequent feedings without overfeeding is to thaw out a cube of frozen daphnia and let it sit on top of the tank. every few hours i pour a little bit in the tank and they go nuts trying to eat the tiny pieces. the corals love it too.

 

[alti]

heres the scientific name:
Lyretail Anthias (Psuedoanthias squamipinnis)

 

[jonthefb]

im gonna have to second alti's call on the lyretail anthias. i have a pair of bartletts in my 135,and they too like to be fed quite frequently. in the willd they chow mstly on plankton, but feed all day!
good luck
jon

 

[barracuda]

may i just add female without getting out one male?
may i have different types of anthias within the same tank?

 

[alti]

not sure about having other anthias in the tank, but i think adding females without removing one of the males will make it worse. they will definately fight over the females. mine chased both my firefish out of the tank. i think they just cannot stand to see another fish with the elongated dorsal fin.

 

[barracuda]

Alti and others,
thank you very much for your help. I wil leave the situation like it's now, with 2 males, unless i will see any harrasment.
Thanks again.

 

[bigeyedfish]

Definitely Male Lyretail Anthias. I had three males that lived together for almost a year with no problems then two stopped eating and slowly died. I'd recommend only one male and a harem of females. He definitely will feel like a pimp after that!

 

[jonthefb]

barraacuda, you can mix anthias species as long as you have a tank big enough to do so, and hav enough hiding spaces for all. i have the bartletts anthias, and bloodspot anthias, a pair of each in my 135 and they all hang out together and play around! its kinda cool!
good luck
jon