Dispar Anthias
Snapshot: Males rock a fiery red dorsal fin, no red stripes on their tail. Meanwhile, females flaunt a sunny yellow-orange up top, fading to a delicate pale lavender or white underneath.
Other tidbits: Can grow up to 10cm or so. Native to the tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific region including Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Bare bones must know: Live-rock fish-only system, fish-only system, or reef aquarium. Larger size aquarium needed. Best purchased in groups.
Aquarium set-up: Begin with a fine to medium-grain sand substrate. It's Anthias heaven for sifting. Anthias love hideaways, perches, and hangouts. Mix up live rock with different shapes and sizes to craft caves, overhangs, and swim-throughs. Give them plenty of room to zip around freely. Maintain an aquatic utopia by nailing the basics: rock-solid water quality with top-notch filtration and routine partial water changes.
Feeding: Anthias thrive on variety, gobbling up frozen mysis shrimp and enriched brine shrimp. Over time, sprinkle in high-quality flake foods in small doses throughout the day. But for the pièce de résistance, set up a refugium packed with copepods and amphipods — an endless buffet of live treats for these lively planktivores.
AQT note: All our fish feast on a diet of seaweed, marine pellets, flakes and frozen treats under our care. Keep the feast going in your tank!