Pygmy Cherub Angel... reef safe?

emsilkina · May 10, 2021

I want to buy a Pygmy Cherub Angel. Are they reef safe? I have a bunch of LPS corals.

hds4216 · May 10, 2021

It's always a 50-50 proposition. You take a risk either way. Some are angels (lol), and others are coral eating demons.

JumboShrimp · May 10, 2021

I just bought one, but it’s one of the tiniest fish I’ve ever bought (could fit on a quarter)... hoping that by the time it gets big enough to know what a Coral is, it will have fully developed a taste for fish-food instead! Lol. Wish me success.

emsilkina · May 10, 2021

JumboShrimp said:
I just bought one, but it’s one of the tiniest fish I’ve ever bought (could fit on a quarter)... hoping that by the time it gets big enough to know what a Coral is, it will have fully developed a taste for fish-food instead! Lol. Wish me success.

im thinking about getting a small one! do u think that the smaller it is the less chance there is for it to eat corals?

JumboShrimp · May 10, 2021

Most people would say they are 50/50 (individual-personality dependent), but my ‘start tiny’ strategy will maximize my chance for a positive outcome.

Shaummy · May 11, 2021

I had a flameback pygmy in my reef for a short time. At the time I only had a couple of LPS wellso/trachy brain corals and the pygmy would irritate them by picking at them and they would shrink up. I don't think that the angel was causing any real damage to them, but the picking annoyed them enough that they weren't full and opened like they should. Just FWIW, I had a real tough time getting that pygmy out of my 90gal, so be aware if you end up needing to catch them!

|Frank| · May 11, 2021

Pygmy (Cherub) Angelfish: Saltwater Aquarium Fish for Marine Aquariums

LA says with caution

Biokabe · May 11, 2021

Dwarf angels are *always* a risk. I don't think there's a single species that hasn't been observed at least picking at corals. Individual results do vary, though - not everyone runs afoul of their coral-picking habits. You get your best results by feeding heavier and making sure that the angel doesn't feel the need to supplement their diet.

There are some species that are less prone to picking than others. Pygmy Cherub, Coral Beauty, Flame and possibly Potter's seem to be the least likely to pick, but plenty of people have had to rehome specimens of all of those because of coral predation.

Tcook · May 11, 2021

I have one in my Nuvo 20. Hasn't picked at my zoas, mushrooms or hammers. Just to be clear, the flameback is a dwarf angel, not a pygmy/cherub. As an aside, the flameback from South American waters is supposedly milder in temperament than the African. I have yet to see it for sale on any of the sites in the past year.

shred5 · May 11, 2021

Cherub are on of the better ones even though any angel can nip. I have owned a ton of them and never had a issue with them and corals.
I own 3 right now.

Kaiser · May 11, 2021

Of all the dwarf angels, I've heard that pygmy angels are the safest. Never ever had an issue with mine with clams, softies, LPS, or SPS. In fact I plan to get another since mine finally passed about 5 months ago. I recommend them all the time and not a single person I've talked to has had issues with them. That being said, there is always a risk with any fish.

Buckster · May 12, 2021

I have a cherub and cannot say that I have seen it nipping at the corals. Would like to add a flame in my 180 but not sure how they would get along!

LegendaryCG · May 12, 2021

I got a African Flameback, never seen him nip at corals. However, he is a little jerk and and stirs up drama with the other fish.

ReefGrammie · May 12, 2021

I've never had a problem with the cherub angel in my 90, but as others said, I've always bought mine very small. I have no idea if that makes a difference or not. My current angel has been in the tank for 7 years and the only thing he/she picks at is my clownfish! They have never liked each other, but the clownfish is 12 years old, so I don't worry about them. ;Joyful

I also have plenty of SPS corals and have never had a problem with the angel bothering them.

Smirkish · May 12, 2021

Agree with above- depends on your fish and setup, in a way. Mine was also small when I purchased. Like a quarter. I’ve never caught mine nipping at sps coral (my main concern), but it doesn’t go up on top of the reef a lot. Too much going on down low, and all the sps are up top. Doesn’t seem to like the high flow up there. It spends the majority of the day scouring the reef for food. It is TINY compared to my other fish, and they don’t even seem to notice one another. The blue on the edges of their fins is gorgeous as they mature. I’ve seen it eating off of my lps coral and it’s never seemed to irritate them for more than a moment. It doesn’t touch the star polyps or my sympodium either.

And yes, it’s impossible to catch. It sees the net shadow coming before I even touch the water, and POOF gone. So be prepared to move some rockwork if you do have to take it out. Good luck!

@shred5 Did you ever notice any aggression between the angels? I’ve heard people have kept multiple ones together in large tanks, but was told it was not recommended due to how terrritorial the males can be with their own species.

shred5 · May 12, 2021

Smirkish said:
Agree with above- depends on your fish and setup, in a way. Mine was also small when I purchased. Like a quarter. I’ve never caught mine nipping at sps coral (my main concern), but it doesn’t go up on top of the reef a lot. Too much going on down low, and all the sps are up top. Doesn’t seem to like the high flow up there. It spends the majority of the day scouring the reef for food. It is TINY compared to my other fish, and they don’t even seem to notice one another. The blue on the edges of their fins is gorgeous as they mature. I’ve seen it eating off of my lps coral and it’s never seemed to irritate them for more than a moment. It doesn’t touch the star polyps or my sympodium either.

And yes, it’s impossible to catch. It sees the net shadow coming before I even touch the water, and POOF gone. So be prepared to move some rockwork if you do have to take it out. Good luck!

@shred5 Did you ever notice any aggression between the angels? I’ve heard people have kept multiple ones together in large tanks, but was told it was not recommended due to how terrritorial the males can be with their own species.

I never kept multiple in the same tank. Cherubs can be pretty aggressive to begin with I can not imagine unless they paired how they would be to one another. They seem to like to pick on certain fish, it is not constant and never ends up being a issue. They seem to hate things like Royal grammas and clowns for some odd reason. They do rule the tank unless there is a tang.

Alexusmc · May 12, 2021

emsilkina said:
I want to buy a Pygmy Cherub Angel. Are they reef safe? I have a bunch of LPS corals.

Not safe! I had one that was a model citizen for a few months until it started tearing up my brain coral and my precious war paint Scoly.

Alexusmc · May 12, 2021

Shaummy said:
I had a flameback pygmy in my reef for a short time. At the time I only had a couple of LPS wellso/trachy brain corals and the pygmy would irritate them by picking at them and they would shrink up. I don't think that the angel was causing any real damage to them, but the picking annoyed them enough that they weren't full and opened like they should. Just FWIW, I had a real tough time getting that pygmy out of my 90gal, so be aware if you end up needing to catch them!

I have a 50g and it was hell getting mine out as well.

Bruce Burnett · May 12, 2021

Pigmy Angels are algae eaters so you have to make sure they have plenty of algae food and nori. I would not keep multiples in a small tank they tend to fight to the death even in a 300 gallon. They get more aggressive and pick at corals more as they get older. Many times people blame them for a corals death but the coral was already doing poorly and was the only reason the angel was going after it. I learned that from a Coral Beauty I had.