Once acclimated, the Purple Tang is easy to maintain with proper feeding and good water quality. A very rare and expensive prize, for the more experience saltwater hobbyist, who does not mind spending a little extra cash. If housed properly, the Purple Tang is a rewarding and attractive addition to any large (100 Gallon) fish-only tank.
The Purple Tang fish (Zebrasoma xanthurum), or the Yellowtail Sailfin Tang, is not just beautiful, but it’s also one of the pricier and certainly one of the prettiest of the tang family. The body is a deep purplish blue with dark striped patterns and a bright yellow tail. Purple Tangs are often found in the West Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Maldives. Although these are their common homes, there have been reports of various other locations as well.
Plan to introduce the purple tang last. The Purple Tang will need plenty of space for swimming along with crevices in rocks/ corals for retreat and to sleep. Though it is a good community fish, it does get territorial and can be aggressive to new additions to the tank as it gets older and it is best to keep one Purple Tang in an aquarium because they don’t mix very well with others of their genus. Adults can reach a size of 10 inches.
Diet: Purple tangs are known to be herbivores. They are happy to graze along rocks and coral for algae in the ocean. But when in a tank, you will need to provide them with little more nutrients. Dried algae are available to buy and recommended for their tank.