Spotband Butterflyfish
Snapshot: This stunner rocks a pale gray to brownish-yellow base coat, jazzed up with vertical rows of inky dark spots that groove into yellow-striped patterns. They’ve also got a bold orange eye-band edged in black like a racing stripe.
Other tidbits: Can grow up to 12cm or so. Distributed throughout the East Indian Ocean, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Central/West Pacific Ocean.
Bare bones must know: Live-rock fish-only system, or reef system with care. Mature and well established aquariums only. Stable, top-notch water quality.
Aquarium set-up: These groovy fish thrive in a smooth-running aquarium where they can kick back and munch on algae like nature’s salad bar — right off the rocks and stones. If the buffet’s looking bare, crank up the feedings and toss in some algae-rich treats — Spirulina’s always a hit. These cool cats love a good hideaway, so be sure to stack those live rocks into cozy nooks and crannies. They’re not the life-of-the-party type so give them plenty of room to glide and vibe. Maintain an aquatic utopia by nailing the basics: rock-solid water quality with top-notch filtration and routine partial water changes.
Feeding: This shy and deliberate feeder isn't one to dive headfirst into a meal. You might need to pull out all the stops, offering a variety of foods to entice it to start chowing down. Treat them to a feast of brine shrimp, clams, mussels, blackworms, and small pieces of clam. At the first hint of thinning, amp up the feeding rate and swap in higher-fat options like mysis shrimp.
AQT note: All our fish feast on a diet of seaweed, marine pellets, flakes and frozen treats under our care. Keep the feast going in your tank!