Scientific Classification
- Common Name
- queen angelfish
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Osteichthyes
- Order
- Perciformes
- Family
- Pomacanthidae
- Genus Species
- Holocanthus ciliaris
Fast Facts
- Description
- Blue to greenish-blue ovoid body with yellow edging to mid and posterior scales. Pectoral, ventral, and caudal fins are yellow. Face is yellow save for the blue mouth. Distinctive dark blue oscellated spot on forehead. Dorsal and anal fins trail beyond body mass - as is seen in most angelfish. Solid, squared (truncate) caudal fin. Juvenile form consists of primarily dark blue body with multiple brilliant blue bars and yellow features (mouth, region from pectoral to ventral fins, and caudal fin). Additionally, mid-body bars are curved. Also, dorsal and anal fins are edged in brilliant blue.
- Size
- 20.3 to 35.6 cm (8 to 14 in.) avg.; 45.7 cm (18 in.) max
- Weight
- 1.6 kg (3.5 lbs.) max
- Diet
- Primarily sponges, supplemented by algae, tunicates, hydroids, and bryozoans
- Incubation
- Species exhibits dioecism. Fertilization is external. Species is open water/substratum egg scatterer.
- Sexual Maturity
- 22–24 cm (8.7–9.4 in.) in total body length
- Life Span
- No data
- Range
- Western Atlantic: Florida and Gulf of Mexico to Brazil, including Antilles
- Habitat
- 1 to 70 meters (3 to 230 ft) in tropical and sub-tropical coastal marine waters
- Population
- Global: No data
- Status
- IUCN: Not listed
- CITES: Not listed
- USFWS: Not listed
Fun Facts
- Juvenile form will symbiotically feed on ectoparasites found on other fish species.
- For more information about bony fishes, explore the Bony Fishes InfoBook.
Ecology and Conservation
No data
Bibliography
Bond, Carl E. Biology of Fishes - Second Edition. Saunders College Publishing, 1996.
Humann, Paul. Reef Fish Identification - Florida, Caribbean, Bahamas. New World Publications, Inc., 1992.
fishbase.org
