Angelfish
angelfish
Rock Beauty
Holacanthus tricolor
About
The rock beauty is a small, deep-bodied angelfish that changes its look completely as it grows, starting out all yellow before turning mostly black. It reaches a common length of 30 cm, with a maximum of 35 cm.
- Length
- 30 cm · max 35 cm
- Depth
- 3–35 m
How to tell it apart
Young rock beauties can look like other black-and-yellow reef fish, but a rock beauty's iris shows a vivid blue rim at the top and bottom at every stage of growth.
Appearance
This fish has a deep, oval body flattened from side to side, with a short snout and small mouth. Juveniles are yellow all over except for a black spot near the tail. As they grow, the black spot spreads to cover most of the body, leaving only the head, the front quarter, and the tail fin bright yellow. The mouth is purple, and the edge of the anal fin and gill cover show a touch of orange or red.
Habitat
Rock beauties live around rocky reefs, jetties, and coral reefs, from about 3 to 35 m deep. Juveniles are often seen sheltering near fire coral.
Breeding
Adults usually pair up for the long term, often one larger fish with a smaller partner. To spawn, the pair rises together in the water and releases eggs and sperm at the same time. A female can lay between 25,000 and 75,000 eggs in one evening.
Did you know?
Unlike many of its close relatives, the rock beauty does not clean parasites off other fish.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
