The Emperor Angelfish, also known as “Pomacanthus imperator” is an ocean angelfish species. This is a reef fish local towards the Indian and Pacific Oceans, ranging from the Red Sea to Hawaii and also the Austral Islands. This specie is usually related with stable populations and faces no significant extinction threats.
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Facts about the Emperor Angelfish
Because of its remarkable, fantastic color pattern, it is indeed a personal favorite of photojournalists, artists, and scuba divers. The emperor angelfish is a member of the Actinopterygii family. It is a species of fish with a sustainable population. They are classified as the least worry in terms of extinction. These kind of fish gets to live in clear lagoons, channels, and coral reefs. Its precise figure is unknown at this point, but everything that is known is these are not in danger. Outside of reefs, juveniles live in rockwork. In some households, they have been kept as pets in aquariums.
Behavior and life span
The emperor angelfish is a medium-sized, semi-aggressive fish. It cannot withstand another male entering their territorial waters, but these can also coexist with a female or, on rare occasions, two females. If you like to get those, keep each male inside a separate container from the other. Emperor Angelfish lived a long time. In captivity, these can survive for 15-18 years. But in the wild, these could perhaps live for more than 20 years. They just mate once a year and don’t really reproduce in captivity. The two sexes release sperm and eggs to undertake reproduction, which also occurs inside of the tank’s mouth. They fertilize eggs into larval stages, which gradually develop into fish larvae.
Sizes and appearance
Its size ranges in size from 4.5 to 12 inches or 11.4-30.4 in centimeters. In confinement, these can reach a height of 12 or 30.4 in centimeters. But in the wild, these can reach a height of 15 in (38 cm). Juvenile emperor angelfish have such a dark black or blue body with blue and white stripes on their face. Its body is being divided into three large stripes which begin at the dorsal fin and extend all the way to the caudal fin. Grown ups have blue and yellow stripes on their bodies, as well as a black mask-like band throughout their faces. Grown ups have yellow tails, whereas juveniles do not even have them until they attain the subadult stage.
Are Emperor Angelfish’ population in danger?
The continued existence of the emperor angelfish is a least concern, as these are not threatened or in danger. These can be found around the world as well as in aquariums or regular house tanks.
Emperor Angelfish is usually a semi-aggressive species of fish (but not a threat to divers). These can be quiet in the fish tanks, but are more likely to be violent towards the other bigger angelfish species or colonial fish. These would also harass other smaller fish inside the fish tank, including such blennies, clownfish, and gobies, on circumstance.
Where can we mostly found the Emperor Angelfish?
Emperor angelfish have already been confirmed off the coast of Hawaii and could be managed to be found in coral reefs in the Pacific and Indian oceans. This omnivorous fish consumes both tiny invertebrates as well as plants. Sponge and algae are its favorite foods. The emperor angelfish can reach lengths of up to 15 inches.
This can be found from the Red Sea southwards and along East African coast to Mozambique and Madagascar, and eastwards through the Indian and Pacific Oceans to the Tuamotu and Line Islands. It stretches north to southern Japan and south to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, New Caledonia, as well as the Austral Islands of French Polynesia. There have also been reports of vagrants from Hawaii. This has been observed at many locations off the coasts of Florida and Puerto Rico. The species has been reported to be colonizing the southeast Mediterranean since 2010, most probably as such an intruder via the Suez Canal.
Precaution
If you’re a diver and able to interact with an Emperor Angelfish, you should not touch them. Don’t disturb them and try to not go near them as much as possible. They might be cute, amazing, and colorful, but avoid directly touching them, as these are mostly territorial.
Conclusion
Because of its remarkable, fantastic color pattern, it is indeed a personal favorite of photojournalists, artists, and scuba divers. Never forget to take a video and picture of it. If you ever interact with the Emperor Angelfish, you must never forget the precautions and other important rules you need to follow whenever interacting with them.