Showfish: The Naso Tang
A Beautiful, Unicorn Fish Addition to the Reef or Saltwater Tank
The Orangespine Unicorn Fish, a wonderful show piece for the reef or saltwater aquarist. When properly housed and cared for, it will be the pride of your aquarium setup!
Lipstick Tang Food
An ever popular specimen, the "Lipstick Tang" is a personable fish that with time, enjoys being handfed. The trick is getting them to eat in the first place. With a little patience and extra effort, this fish can be a very hardy species that may be willing to accept commercial foods offered. Traditionally, however, the Orangespine desires lots of brown (or red) macro algae. So, seaweed sheets "nori" with a vitamin additive is a good consideration since they are entirely herbivorous and often will not eat the more common green macros found in the home aquarium.
Nasinae Varieties
The acanthuridae Nasinae come in two varieties:the Red Sea and Indian Ocean living Blonde Naso Tang, and the close cousin from the Western and Central Pacific Oceans.
- Naso Lituratus - Both types of lipstick tangs are known for their bright contrasting colour with stripes on their spines of orange, and black and blue. They get the common name "lipstick tang" for their unusual bright orange lips, giving the appearance of a madeup fish and going a step further, it almost looks like they are wearing eyeshadow in classic blue. The majority of the body of these fish are a smooth gray or beige colour and unlike other unicornfish, they are missing the classic horn protrusion on their head.
- Naso Elegans - The only major difference between the two types of fish is that the Blonde Naso has an orange-yellow colouration to the top fin and many marine authorities still argue whether this fish is in fact the same species as the Lituratus; differing in location and slight colouration changes as an environmental defense. The Elegans is a little more rare in trade and because of its slight boost in colour, is usually a more expensive option.
Orangespine Saltwater Show Fish
Ironically, the Nasinae that are often introduced to the tank are shy towards other tankmates; however, it won't be long before they become more confident, and will often turn aggressive toward other Unicornfish, especially of the same species. It is best then to keep just one Naso Tang, and ideally, one tang of similar shape and colouring, per tank as a general rule. When stressed, this fish will appear splotchy in colouration rather than the ordinarily uniform gray colouration. The good news is that of the many types of tangs available, this species is more resilient to marine velvet or "ich" making it a desirable additon.
Nasos are not known for being aggressive toward inverts, but rockslides could inadvertantly happen since they are an active swimmer that enjoys a strong current and grow quite large -- some more than 16 inches in length! A tank less than 120 gallons should not be considered to house this wonderful fish and understocking in general is preferred with the care of this fish in mind. Care must be taken, as this is a tang with a particularly large pair of spines (also known as scalpels for a reason) on the sides of its caudal peduncle that can offer a painful slice to the unwary aquarist.
Nasos in Retail
Small/younger varieties of this fish are not often offered and are not as hardy as their larger counterparts, since they are more apt to be finicky eaters. When thinking this fish over, a good idea may be to ask the fish store to monitor and report its eating habits for you (is it taking food readily?) and/or ask them about their trade-in or return policy if you find it is difficult in your particular home setting.
Lyretail Nassau Tang
The males are highly desired because of their lyretail which gives a higher interest to this stunning beauty. Unfortunately, that usually means a higher price tag than the already higher-end tang, but if a showfish is what you are looking for, there is no doubt that the male is exceptional.
With good care and husbandry, this fish can live for fifteen years, and is a more pet-like tankmate that will come to recognize you personally , coming to greet you when you walk by. In the end, the decison is yours alone, but ask an owner of this fish and they'll most assuredly tell you the pleasure of owning this marine fish far outweighs the initial investment.
