maybe this will help.
The body of the Hawaiian Kole Tang is brown in color and is
marked with about 35 fine, light, longitudinal lines which
continue onto the rear of the soft dorsal and anal fins at the
back of the body. Indian Ocean specimens bear spots, rather
then the distinctive stripes. The eye is encircled by a bright
yellow ring, small blue spots cover much of the head, and the
chin appears to be a purplish color. Some juvenile specimens
have a greenish yellow color with blue markings and faint dark
stripes.
Hawaiian History
The Kole Tang has a very interesting history from Ancient
Hawaiian times. It was considered as "Royal" food and was kapu
(forbidden) to be caught or eaten by anyone accept Royalty.
The penalty, if found with the Kole, was death. Remember, if
you have one of these fish it has a very sacred history with the
Hawaiian people, and in Hawai'i today is prized as a delicacy.
Characteristics
Kole's can be found anywhere on the reef from shallow to
deeper waters, with the large specimens usually residing in
shallower waters. They reach an average length of 4 inches,
but can grow to about seven inches.
Even though the Kole Tang is one of the less aggressive
Surgeonfishes, it will battle with its own kind, and possibly with
close relatives. Because it is less aggressive it may also be
picked on by other, more aggressive Surgeonfishes. For this
reason it is best kept singly, one per tank, but it does make a
good choice when it comes to compatibility with other more
docile, non-related species. To reduce compatibility problems if
you decide to put this fish together, it generally helps to
introduced them into the aquarium at the same time.
Like all Surgeonfishes the Kole has a very sharp spur or razor by
the tail. It may seem small, but it can inflict a pretty nasty cut.
Use caution when handling this fish.
Diet
This fish is a workhorse when it comes to eating various types
of algae in an aquarium, particularly brown diatom microalgae.
From our experiences of keeping this fish we could put a few in
a tank that had a brown diatom algae accumulation on the
glass, and within days it would be gone. All that was left were
the little lip marks on the glass where the algae used to be. Like
most Surgeonfishes, the Kole spends it day constantly grazing
br />and eating, so providing it with an environment with plenty of
algae growth is best. However, beware not to put one in a small
reef tank, as it can do a lot of damage if you have delicate
plants and algae growth that you want to keep. In a very large
reef tank the plant growth can recover, as the Kole has so
much to pick from.
The Kole Tang adapts to eating tank fed foods extremely well.
It will accept blue-green alga Spirulina, fresh romaine lettuce
and other vegetable matter such as broccoli and zucchini. It
likes nori (dried seaweed), flake foods made from dried marine
algaes, and will even nibble on some meaty foods like dried
shrimp and blood worms. When feeding with fresh romaine
lettuce, broccoli or other fresh vegetables, place these foods in
the freezer long enough to partially freeze them, then let them
thaw out. This helps to break down the tough fibrous matter in
the plants and allows the fish to digest them more easily. You
can also blanch them to get the same results.
