Dispar anthias (Pseudanthias dispar).

This is one of the small peaceful species of Anthias (see below).

Care advice - Anthias

Anthias fall into broadly two types. Small peaceful species, and large active species.

• All small peaceful species of Anthias can be kept with other small peaceful species of Anthias.

• All large active species of Anthias can be kept with other large active species of Anthias.

• Do not mix the two types though because large active species of Anthias will attack and kill the smaller peaceful species.

Anthia stocking density guide

Small peaceful species of Anthias.

With small peaceful species of Anthias keep in groups of 4+ in tanks of 100L or more, they can be kept in larger groups too, and don’t mind being crowded either.

Large active species of Anthias.

Large active species of Anthias are a lot like Mbuna Cichlids for those of you familiar with keeping Malawi’s. So with large active species of Anthias you either need to give them plenty of space to keep out of each other’s way, in which case you need a minimum of 200 litres per Anthia, or, you have to solve the aggression by crowding them and keep a minimum of 1 Anthia per 50 litres.

Here are some examples for common tank sizes. Not all the Anthias need to be of the same species to make up the total number, but, they must all be other large active species of Anthias.

• Tanks under 200L - Too small for large active species of Anthias.

• 200L tanks - Keep either just 1, or 4+, avoid groups of 2-3.

• 250L tanks - Keep either just 1, or 5+, avoid groups of 2-4.

• 500L tanks - Keep either just 1-2, or 10+, avoid groups of 3-9.

• 1.000L tanks - Keep either just 1-4, or 20+, avoid groups of 5-19.

SIZE

Most small peaceful species of Anthias grow to around 2”-4” (50-100mm) for females, and the males may reach 4”-5” (100-125mm).

With most large active species of Anthias the females can reach about 3”-5” (75-125mm), and the males may get to 6”-8” (150-200mm) or more.

COMPATIBILITY

Reef safe with all corals.

Small peaceful Anthias

Small peaceful species of Anthias get on well with most other small reef fish, but, may be bullied by more aggressive species. Most small peaceful species of Anthias have very small mouths and may require feeding at least 3-6 times per day. Many small peaceful species of Anthias can be challenging to keep due to their feeding requirements. Frozen copepods are a good general food for small peaceful species of Anthias.

Large active Anthias

Large active species of Anthias may bully smaller fishes, especially other midwater fishes such as; Firefish, Chromis, small Damsels, etc. Large active species of Anthias have much larger mouths, and surprisingly sharp teeth too! They can eat larger foods such as Mysis etc, and are not fussy feeders. Because they can eat more food at once they generally only require feeding 2-4 times per day.

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