Documenting My Experience With Orange-Spotted Filefish

[Chrisanthellae]

One month ago today, I acquired my first Orange-Spotted Filefish, AKA Harlequin Filefish. She was pretty emaciated and was a bit of an impulse buy, but I couldn't resist when I saw her eating frozen brine shrimp at the LFS. The LFS had a few more of these available, but she was the only one eating.

When I got her home, I was pleased to see she wasn't shy at all pretty much right away. She would eat the occasional brine shrimp but mostly spent her time picking at a cactus pavona coral. I saw reports online of people having good results from Masstick with these guys so I ordered some and gave it a try. It was an instant favorite! She picked at it constantly, all day every day. I could clearly see her belly filling out.

With how well she was eating, and having read about how social these fish are, I decided to go back to the LFS and get her a partner. Surely she could teach him to eat, even if he's not eating at the LFS, right? Turns out that was 100% correct! Within 20 minutes of adding the new male filefish he started picking at the Masstick!

Initially, they engaged in some posturing, fin displays, and a little bit of nipping, but nothing too concerning. By the next day they had completely worked out their differences and became inseparable. I believe they are a bonded pair now.

Today, one month later, you can clearly see the original female has much improved body composition:

I'm honestly astounded at how easy these fish have been so far. The key is the Masstick. They go for it before I even take my hand out of the tank! But they also seem to pick at a bit of everything around the tank, even some algae here and there. And yes, definitely corals too.

 

[kevgib67]

One month ago today, I acquired my first Orange-Spotted Filefish, AKA Harlequin Filefish. She was pretty emaciated and was a bit of an impulse buy, but I couldn't resist when I saw her eating frozen brine shrimp at the LFS. The LFS had a few more of these available, but she was the only one eating.

When I got her home, I was pleased to see she wasn't shy at all pretty much right away. She would eat the occasional brine shrimp but mostly spent her time picking at a cactus pavona coral. I saw reports online of people having good results from Masstick with these guys so I ordered some and gave it a try. It was an instant favorite! She picked at it constantly, all day every day. I could clearly see her belly filling out.

With how well she was eating, and having read about how social these fish are, I decided to go back to the LFS and get her a partner. Surely she could teach him to eat, even if he's not eating at the LFS, right? Turns out that was 100% correct! Within 20 minutes of adding the new male filefish he started picking at the Masstick!

Initially, they engaged in some posturing, fin displays, and a little bit of nipping, but nothing too concerning. By the next day they had completely worked out their differences and became inseparable. I believe they are a bonded pair now.

Today, one month later, you can clearly see the original female has much improved body composition:

I'm honestly astounded at how easy these fish have been so far. The key is the Masstick. They go for it before I even take my hand out of the tank! But they also seem to pick at a bit of everything around the tank, even some algae here and there. And yes, definitely corals too.

Beautiful fish, I’m glad it worked out for you!

 

[Chrisanthellae]

Here are some of my observations so far.

Corals they nip at:

• Pavona
• Elegance (visible damage)
• Psammocora
• Acros
• Pocillopora
• Duncan (maybe)

Corals they ignore:

• Mushrooms
• Plates
• Goniopora
• Candy cane
• Zoas

As far as tank mates go, they seem to be compatible with everything, including other filefish. Their current tank mates include:

• Aptaisia Filefish
• Copperband
• Foxface
• Blue Hippo Tang
• Black Leopard Wrasse
• Two Spot Hogfish
• Golden Dwarf Angel
• Schooling Banner
• Zebra Eel
• Hermits
• Snails

However, they are aggressive toward their own kind. I was enjoying these guys so much I thought I'd try making them a school. I acquired one more male and female. Even after spending the night in an acclimation box, the original pair chased and nipped the new pair relentlessly. It wasn't just male on male aggression either. Both the original male and female teamed up on both newcomers. I'm not sure if this would have worked out if they were all added at the same time, but I can say with certainty that once a pair is established, you cannot safely add more. I didn't let this go on too long. I brought the new pair back to the LFS.