List of Marine Aquarium Fish Species

Tangs

Tangs generally feed on algae, though there are a few carnivorous species. Most tangs will not tolerate other fish the same color and/or shape as them. They have a spine on their tails that can cut open other fish and unprotected hands. All tangs should be given plenty of swimming room; try to have at least a 4' tank. Contrary to popular belief they will tolerate smaller (4' to 5') tanks just fine but tend to live better in larger tanks, over 5'.

Common name	Taxonomy	Reef safe	Care Level	Description	Max size
Achilles tang	Acanthurus achilles	Yes	Difficult	Passive aggressive. This fish is native to the waters of Hawaii and the South Pacific and therefore requires substantial turbulent flow and circulation to be kept in an aquarium. This fish should only be kept in a six foot or large aquarium as it requires a large amount of swim room. Very prone to Cryptocaryon irritans	700128000000000000028 cm (11.0 in)
Atlantic blue tang	Acanthurus coeruleus	Yes	Moderate	Less aggressive than Achilles or Powder Blue	16 in
Blue eyed tang	Ctenochaetus binotatus	Yes	Easy
Blue lined surgeonfish	Acanthurus nigroris	Yes	Easy
Bristletooth tang	Ctenochaetus striatus	Yes	Easy to moderate
Chevron tang	Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis	Yes	Easy to moderate	Bright orange when young and dark olive green when transitioned fully to juvenile.
Clown tang	Acanthurus lineatus	Yes	Difficult	One of the most aggressive tangs	15 inches
Convict tang	Acanthurus triostegus	Yes	Easy
Desjardini tang	Zebrasoma desjardinii	Yes	Moderate
Doctorfish	Acanthurus chirurgus	Yes	Easy
Dussumieri tang	Acanthurus dussumieri	Yes	Difficult		700153000000000000053 cm (20.9 in)
Eibli mimic tang	Acanthurus tristis	Yes	Moderate
Gold rim tang	Acanthurus nigricans	Yes	Difficult
Regal / Hippo tang	Paracanthurus hepatus	Yes	Moderate	Very prone to Cryptocaryon irritans. More tolerant of other tangs than most other species.
Kole tang	Ctenochaetus strigosus	Yes	Easy to moderate
Lavender tang	Acanthurus nigrofuscus	Yes	Moderate
Lopezi tang	Naso lopezi	Yes	Easy
Mimic tang, Chocolate tang	Acanthurus pyroferus	Yes	Easy to moderate
Naso tang, blonde naso tang	Naso lituratus	Yes	Easy to moderate
Orange shoulder tang	Acanthurus olivaceus	Yes	Moderate
Powder blue tang	Acanthurus leucosternon	Yes	Difficult	Very prone to Cryptocaryon irritans.
Powder brown tang	Acanthurus japonicus	Yes	Moderate
Purple tang	Zebrasoma xanthurus	Yes	Easy to moderate
Sailfin tang	Zebrasoma veliferum	Yes	Easy to moderate
Scopas tang	Zebrasoma scopas	Yes	Easy to moderate	Similar to the yellow tang in shape and feeding.
Sohal tang	Acanthurus sohal	Yes	Difficult	One of the larger more aggressive tangs	700140000000000000040 cm (15.7 in)
Tennent tang	Acanthurus tennenti	Yes	Easy
Thompson's surgeonfish	Acanthurus thompsoni	Yes	Moderate		700128000000000000028 cm (11.0 in)
Tomini tang	Ctenocheatus tominiensis	Yes	Easy
Unicorn tang	Naso unicornis	Yes	Moderate
Vlamingi tang	Naso vlamingii	Yes	Easy
White freckled surgeon	Acanthurus maculiceps	Yes	Easy
Yellow tang	Zebrasoma flavescens	Yes	Easy to moderate	The yellow tangs require ample swimming room and plenty of algae to graze on. A single tang will not tolerate another of its kind unless there is ample space for each tang to have their own territory. They requires high oxygen levels. Can be kept in shoals when a tank of at least 5 ft is provided.
Yellowfin surgeon	Acanthurus xanthopterus	Yes	Moderate