Ordered Cardinalfish Online. ID Help?

[PicoDeNano]

Hi there,

I ordered what was supposed to be a Yellow-striped cardinalfish online from a vendor I won't mention unless they don't honor my original order.

I am nearly certain it is an Ochre-striped cardinalfish but wanted to run it past the experts. It is about 1 1/2" to 2". Engaging personality, currently in QT.

I have a 25 gallon reef I was planning to put the smaller cardinalfish in with a Pink-streaked wrasse, Yasha goby, and Red firefish. I read that these guys can get up to 4.7", but other places list it as not growing past 3". I'm assuming this guy is not a fit for that reef?

What are your thoughts on what it is and what I should do with it?

Thank you!

 

[Zionas]

Definitely not a Yellow-Striped Cardinal but I don’t know which one it is. Bump.

 

[PicoDeNano]

I'm starting to think it might be a Seale's Cardinalfish or Doederlein's Cardinalfish potentially.

 

[Louis Z]

It looks like a five lined . Hard to be sure with seeing downward . If looking up from the bottom and there is another line underneath , I think it’s 5 lined . Not ochre striped . Black spot near caudal with a highlight of yellow is similar to ochre striped . Ochre striped has usually thicker stripes and one of the stripes is often split near the head , plus it usually is bronze reddish stripes any. Any way I am always happy with different cardinalfish . I like them all so far . I am building my collection of them . So far I have banggai , yellow line and blue eye . The seale’s I had acquired locally had uronema and perished very quickly . That lFS wasn’t so great and eventually closed . I am on the hunt for the purple eyed ringtail cardinal .

 

[PicoDeNano]

It looks like a five lined . Hard to be sure with seeing downward . If looking up from the bottom and there is another line underneath , I think it’s 5 lined . Not ochre striped . Black spot near caudal with a highlight of yellow is similar to ochre striped . Ochre striped has usually thicker stripes and one of the stripes is often split near the head , plus it usually is bronze reddish stripes any. Any way I am always happy with different cardinalfish . I like them all so far . I am building my collection of them . So far I have banggai , yellow line and blue eye . The seale’s I had acquired locally had uronema and perished very quickly . That lFS wasn’t so great and eventually closed . I am on the hunt for the purple eyed ringtail cardinal .

Thank you for your thoughts! It does not have another stripe, just four. I posted this in another thread, but I'm relatively confident that it is a Doederlein's cardinalfish now.

Plot twist: now I'm 90% confident it is a Doederlein's cardinalfish aka the Four-striped cardinalfish. It has 4 horizontal bars, coloration match, pupil-sized caudal-peduncle spot, and a dorsal formula matching published meristics.

Interesting species that does not appear to be commonly available, so while I would have preferred the Yellow-striped I ordered, a neat mix-up to have received.

It also appears to potentially be a species complex rather than a single species with lifespans and size differences being markedly different between Great Barrier Reef populations and Japanese populations.

Genetic analyses between populations in close proximity in the Barrier Reef also support there being different clades and not a single species.

Fun fish to nerd out on.

 

[Louis Z]

That is why I really think they are interesting . Many come in with a possible I’d , but when looking at YouTube videos one can think they see a specific specie but with closer inspection slight differences appear. Does geographic variation show a slight variation or is it enough to call it a different species

 

[PicoDeNano]

That is why I really think they are interesting . Many come in with a possible I’d , but when looking at YouTube videos one can think they see a specific specie but with closer inspection slight differences appear. Does geographic variation show a slight variation or is it enough to call it a different species

I'm with you, they are awesome fish.

I'm exclusively focused on fish that are appropriate for 25 gallon reefs so that leaves me with cardinalfish, gobies, blennies, and a few wrasses. I'm going to look for a Yellow-striped or Yellow cardinalfish at some point too. I'm happy with this guy, but he did gobble up a Hi-fin red-banded goby I got with him that was absolutely tiny. Had them in QT and the goby in a breeder box, but it must have slipped through the lid. Thing was the size of a large mysis.

 

[Louis Z]

Sorrry that happened . They are big mouth predators . I lost two juvenile yasha gobies . I thought I had given them enough holes to hide in a 125 . I should have provided them pistol shrimps . I always think of Little red ridinghood : But what big mouth you have , what big eyes you have . . I love the gobies too and have to refrain from adding them . I keep Atlantic lantern basslets and they do fine . They are little predators too . I wish I had plenty of nano tanks to keep all the gobies . I would love to get the geometric pygmy hawk . That’s next on wish list . I just don’t know if the lantern basslets would accept them . Lantern bass are quite quick and fast in attacks . I had bought three to see if I could get a pair . I got a pair but a 125 was not big enough for 2males . It was relentless . . Some cardinals are just as aggressive toward each other once a pair forms .

 

[PicoDeNano]

Sorrry that happened . They are big mouth predators . I lost two juvenile yasha gobies . I thought I had given them enough holes to hide in a 125 . I should have provided them pistol shrimps . I always think of Little red ridinghood : But what big mouth you have , what big eyes you have . . I love the gobies too and have to refrain from adding them . I keep Atlantic lantern basslets and they do fine . They are little predators too . I wish I had plenty of nano tanks to keep all the gobies . I would love to get the geometric pygmy hawk . That’s next on wish list . I just don’t know if the lantern basslets would accept them . Lantern bass are quite quick and fast in attacks . I had bought three to see if I could get a pair . I got a pair but a 125 was not big enough for 2males . It was relentless . . Some cardinals are just as aggressive toward each other once a pair forms .

Yeah I should have just bought a separate tank and QT'd separately, but thought the breeder box would work. I ordered both online and was expecting a goby that was at least 1.5". I was pretty shocked how tiny it was. Not only under an inch but incredibly thin. He was a great little guy with an awesome appetite. Was super bummed. The cardinalfish I ordered was supposed to be under 2" but didn't come that way.

The cardinal will go into a tank with an adult Yasha and pistol pair that are established, a Pink-streaked wrasse, Red firefish, and eventually a Tailspot blenny. Right now it's finishing Prazi treatment up. I'll probably move it into a separate 25 gallon that is currently an observation tank once some coral has been isolated long enough since I'm not sure what its final size will be.

Sorry to hear about your Yasha gobies. They are such awesome fish. Pygmy hawk would be a sweet fish too! I'm with you on wanting different gobies. I want a trimma or two but def not in a tank with the cardinalfish in it.