Blue Tang

Overview

The Blue Tang (Paracanthurus hepatus) — also known as the Palette Surgeonfish, Regal, Hepatus or Pacific Blue Tang — is one of the most recognisable fish in the ocean, and the famous 'Dory'. Its electric-blue body is splashed with a bold black palette pattern and finished with a vivid yellow tail — a genuine showstopper in any large reef.

Beyond the looks, it's an active, personable fish full of character, fully reef-safe, and a wonderful centrepiece. It does grow large and needs real swimming room and steady care, though, so it's best thought of as a fish for an experienced keeper with a big, established system.

We rate it intermediate for good reason: it's famously prone to ich, needs a genuinely spacious tank, and rewards attentive husbandry. Get those things right and it's a hardy, long-lived and spectacular reef fish.

Compatibility

The Blue Tang is a fast, constantly-moving fish that's generally peaceful toward unrelated tankmates but has a semi-aggressive streak toward its own kind and other tangs — especially those of similar shape or colour. As a rule, keep one Blue Tang per tank.

To house more than one, or to mix it with other tangs, add them all at the same time into a large, well-aquascaped system so no single fish can claim territory first; adding a tang to an established one usually ends badly. It mixes well with most peaceful-to-robust community fish that aren't surgeonfish — clownfish, wrasses, anthias, angels and the like. Take care with the sharp caudal scalpel when netting, and give it plenty of space to keep squabbling to a minimum.

Health & quarantine

This is where the Blue Tang earns its intermediate rating. It lacks a heavy body-slime coat and is famously susceptible to marine ich and other skin parasites, particularly through the stress of collection and introduction — so a proper quarantine period and a slow, patient acclimation are strongly recommended and dramatically improve long-term success. It's also prone to head-and-lateral-line erosion (HLLE) if diet or water quality slips. Keep it in a large, mature system with pristine, stable, well-oxygenated water and strong flow, support it with cleaner shrimp or wrasses, and feed a varied, algae-rich diet. Bought healthy, quarantined and well cared for, it's a robust fish that can live well over a decade.