Lemon tang

[BradB]

I noticed today's weekly special includes a "Lemon Tang" listed as "Acanthurus sp". This fish looks like Acanthurus pyroferus, but has yellow eyes with no blue, is from Indonesia (but sometimes available from Fiji) and has a max size of 10".

Live Aquaria has a separate listing for Acanthurus pyroferus, also from Fiji, Indonesia as well as Sri Lanka, but out of stock. It shows the typical blue like the lemonpeel angelfish and a max size of 8".

Is the "Lemon Tang" a different version of Acanthurus pyroferus? Are these the same fish and just a website issue? Or is this a completely different species? What does the new "Lemon Tang" look like as an adult?

 

[LiveAquaria]

I noticed today's weekly special includes a "Lemon Tang" listed as "Acanthurus sp". This fish looks like Acanthurus pyroferus, but has yellow eyes with no blue, is from Indonesia (but sometimes available from Fiji) and has a max size of 10".

Live Aquaria has a separate listing for Acanthurus pyroferus, also from Fiji, Indonesia as well as Sri Lanka, but out of stock. It shows the typical blue like the lemonpeel angelfish and a max size of 8".

Is the "Lemon Tang" a different version of Acanthurus pyroferus? Are these the same fish and just a website issue? Or is this a completely different species? What does the new "Lemon Tang" look like as an adult?

Hello and thank you for bringing this to our attention! We apologize for the confusion on the site. The Lemon Tang and Mimic Lemon Peel Tang are both the same species (Acanthurus pyroferus). Some species of Tangs (and other fish) can have color variants within species which is what you see with these two fish. Both the Lemon Tang and Mimic Lemon Peel Tang will transition to what is commonly referred to as a Chocolate Tang. Thank you!