Bellus Angelfish (Female)

Overview

• Coloration: The body is primarily an iridescent pale white and blue, marked with black.
• Stripes: It features black and blue horizontal stripes that become more vertical near the head, and a prominent yellow or orange lateral stripe that runs horizontally from the gills to the tail.
• Dorsal Fin: The dorsal fin is edged or highlighted with yellow or orange coloring.
• Fin Shape: Females typically have a rounded dorsal fin.
• Size: This species can grow up to 7 inches in length.
• Sexual Dimorphism: The female’s coloration is distinctly different from the male, which is mostly gray/light brown with a yellow stripe. 

Bellus Angelfish are best housed as a male-female pair or small harem of one male and few females in a 125-gallon or larger aquarium, and are ideal candidates for the deep-water reef aquarium. Acclimation will be facilitated by a dimly-lit tank, but these fishes seem to adapt well to the intense lighting in most modern reef aquariums. The tank should have multiple hiding places and live rock for grazing. Do not keep two males in the same tank as fighting will ensue.

The Bellus Angelfish are hermaphroditic and have the ability to change sex from female to male, and males can even revert back to female if no females are present in the aquarium. They are difficult to breed, but many seasoned veteran aquarists have successfully observed these fishes spawning on a regular basis in very large home aquariums.

Approximate Purchase Size: Female: Small: Under 1-1/2″; Medium: 1-1/2″ to 2-1/4″; Large: 2-1/4″ to 3″, Male: Small: 3″ to 3-1/2″, Medium: 3-1/2″ to 4-1/4″, Large: 4-1/4″ to 5″