Saltcorner
By Bob Goemans
By Bob Goemans
Not Reef Tank Suitable
Likely Fish-Only Tank Suitable
Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Seychelles to Society Islands, north to Southern Japan, south to Lord Howe and Rapa Islands.
Size: 33 inches (84 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabits lagoons, reef faces and slopes at depths between 10 – 150 feet (3 – 45 m) and take shelter under overhangs or in caves during daytime and feed at night on shrimp, crabs, snails, worms and various other benthic invertebrates and small fishes.
General Husbandry: Rarely seen in the trade. Quite attractive as a juvenile has a black body with several oddly-shaped white patches. Undergoes a dramatic color and physical size transformation as it grows into adulthood, resulting in a whitish body with numerous black spots.
Requires a very large fish-only aquarium with wide-open swimming areas and caves or overhangs to take shelter during daytime. As to diet, newcomers are often easy to get feeding as they accept most aquarium foods, e.g., a wide variety of frozen and fresh meaty foodstuffs (chopped squid, fish flesh, scallops, shrimp, clam, etc.) and should be offered several times daily. Any ornamental crustaceans and small fish in the aquarium will also be consumed.
Taxonomy:
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Percoidei
Family: Lutjanidae
Genus: Plectorhinchus
FYI: Usually seen as juveniles in the trade, however, grow fast and soon outgrow most hobbyist aquariums.
May stir up the substrate looking for food.
Experience Level: Intermediate
Temperament: Peaceful
Diet: Carnivore
Coral Safe: Yes
Invertebrate Safe: No
Fish Safe: With caution
Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+
Aquarium Environment: Fish-only aquarium
Tankmates: Peaceful or non-aggressive
Minimum Tank Size: 300 gallons
Temperature Range: 72 - 82°F (22 – 28°C)
Specific Gravity: 1.020 -1.026
pH: 8.0 - 8.5
