The Powder Brown Tang Diaries

[Matt L.]

I don't know if anyone would really care, but I thought I'd document my attempts to acquire and keep one of the more uncommon surgeonfish.

I chose the powder brown Arcanthus japonicus over other, arguably more attractive Arcanthurus species such as the Gold Rim tang, Powder Blue tang, and Achilles tang.

I like the face and the ovoid body shape, but from all the information I could gather, the Powder Brown tang was on the sturdier end of the spectrum, and a more modest size wen full grown to boot.

Tomorrow is my last day of lab work, and then I am going to work from home for the remainder of the summer. Now is a great time to get a new fish that might require some extra care, right? I'm kind of a stay-at-home fish mom.

My 90gal is understocked, which is actually the way I like it. It is just so much easier to care for the fish when they are uncrowded.

Still, with only a 3" Majestic Angel, a 2.5" Flame Angel, and a pair of black ocellaris/percula clowns in their anemone, my tank does seem somewhat empty. The angels stick to the rocks, and the clowns now venture from their anemone home only during feeding, and the clam, well, the clam doesn't do anything. I wanted a more active swimmer, and I guess we are all guilty of wanting something a bit challenging and exotic.

I tried to find a Powder Brown locally, but no one seemed to have one in stock, and there seemed some reticence in ordering one. It was at that time that I turned to an online vendor I had used when I bought my last fish a year and a half ago.

I finally got through to them, and I said I wanted to order the fish to ship on Monday. The salesman talked me into placing the order to ship the very next day (today). There was some pressure tactics, in that he had "several" now, but didn't know what would be left come the weekend. Okay, that's fair enough. I would like to point out that when he said "several", he had so many "several" that he said it wasn't a problem selecting one of the size and personality I requested. This species isn't the most collected, according to the salesman. So I rearrange my schedule so the fish will ship today for an arrival on Thursday. At 9:00pm today, I get an e-mail that they are out of stock and won't be shipping until Monday at the earliest I am a little resentful that I was told to hurry up and place the order ASAP and rearrange my schedule only to have the fish not be there. I am wondering if because I placed the order so late on Tuesday, that they didn't have time to fill it early Wednesday morning, and thus just sent me a standard form letter letting me know it would come on Tuesday, which is the day I wanted it to come on in the first place.

I'm a little nervous about what I'm going to get through the mail. Its a lot of money, and I'm very nervous about upsetting the balance of my tank.

So right now, I don't even have a fish. I'll keep everyone posted,

Matt

 

[joefitz]

Sounds like scammers to me. I'd call them back and find out if they have any. For them to use pressure tactics to get you to purchase (we have it now, we may not have it tomorrow) and then not have it... Do you really want to do business with someone like that? I'd talk to them and try to figure out if they really had the thing or not.

Which local stores did you attempt to contact? I know I've seen them at Skipton's before (I almost bought one).

Personally, that is one fish I would never buy mail order (or even have a store order for me). There are incredibly beautiful specimens and then there are not-really-even-attractive specimens. Maybe that has more to do with care/health and age than anything else -- I'm not sure -- but I do know that the better specimens I've seen compare pretty favorably with the PBlT, Achilles...

Plus, if you get it locally you can make a quick health assessment and at least make sure the thing is eating.

I know you want it and timing-wise now is better than later for you...but you may want to consider a different course of action. And if you have the time, maybe you could even expand your search and see if any NY/CT stores may have it if our really local LFSs don't.

Either, good luck acquiring it -- I look forward to following the thread!

 

[marco67]

Good luck with him Matt,
If it were 2 months ago he would already be ordered, But I no longer have a system to QT him and especialy with this guy I'd want to hold him for at least a week before seeing him go out.

 

[jovreef]

Sounds like you ordered from live aquaria? If so, they do that ALOT! The person taking orders has no clue what they have in stock, they just go by whats on their computer screen.

 

[B.rian]

my pbt i ordered online. arrived looking excellent and once acclimated, he began eating right away. i would not fault an online vendor because they no longer had a fish instock unless they charged you for the fish. just give them a little time if they are reputable.

 

[merk1_99]

I would personally buy one in the store as suggested above to make sure I was indeed getting a nice healthy fat eating specimen. A. japonicus, and A. nigricans are both extremely similar looking specimens. And a less than untrained eye might mistake one for the other. The A nigrican does not fare well in captivity and often will refuse to eat in captivity, while the A. japonicus (good choice BTW) typically will do well in captivity. Not to be accused of being a member of the tang secret police but will a 90 gallon be big enough for a full grown adult specimen?
I really wish I had a 8' + long tank so I could keep multiple tangs...

 

[joefitz]

I'm not faulting them just for not having it in stock, I'm faulting them for what appeared to be high-pressure tactics to close a deal based on the fact they DID have SEVERAL in stock and all of a sudden they are all gone when it comes time to ship? That is either purely a sales tactic (unseemly at best) OR a mismanaged company if the person was really so uninformed.

 

[Matt L.]

Hi guys,

Sorry for the delays in getting back to this thread. I do want to clarify a few points.

I'm not going to mention the name of the online vendor.... yet I will say it was not Live Aquaria or Marine Depot Live, though.

This was a vendor I had purchased from once before (the only other time I resorted to ordering fish online) and this vendor was recommended to me by several semi-professionals in the club.

This vendor had developed a reputation (at least back then) for holding fish for two weeks to ensure they are eating and have survived their capture ordeal.

To me, their two week holding practice was analogous to what I would expect from a LFS (I would typically request that they hold the fish for three weeks at a LFS).

I would of course prefer to buy from a LFS, and contacted pretty much all our sponsors. Many were reticent to order a more sensitive and less in demand Arcanthurus species that might die in their tank (thus sticking them with the cost) or be difficult to resell if I should "back out." Of course I wouldn't, but...

One was willing to actually purchase the fish for me, but I got the e-mail after I ordered online, thinking no one was going to reply. If things fall through online, I am still going to go back to them.

Again, the first course of action was to try and find one locally from a BRS sponsor. However, in all but one instance, I was met with varying shades of reticence.

Add to this, the fact that I was once terribly bruned ordering a fish locally. The fish finally came in after 6 weeks, and I would go and check on him weekly while they held him for me. One week, he was gone. It turned out, one of the employees "bought him" by accident:mad, even though the fish was marked as a "hold": I did get a replacement fish from them, but was reluctant to go through an n week process all over again.

Okay, and now for more shades of online sketchiness...

So if the e-mail said they are out of stock, and their shipment comes in over the weekend, how can they hold the fish for 2 weeks? Oy. So I call them up, after I've placed the order, and learn that that no longer is their policy. Rgh. In their defense, it does not say that anymore on their web page, and the guy implied that it was actually harder on the fish the old way.

I was abundantly clear with them online that I was demanding an Arcanthurus japonicus and not the harder to keep Arcanthurus nigricans. The Arcanthurus japonicus reaches only 75% the size of a Powder Blue. So for the time being, I don't feel that terrible about keeping him in a 4ft tank. My next tank is going to be a special tang tank, and I'm thinking of either 8ft at 240gal (equivalent to two 120's) or 8ft at 180gal (equivalent to two 90's), but that won't be for 2 years.

I do appreciate tang policing, though, and do wonder if I am walking dangerously close to the borderline,

Matt

 

[ReeferMedic]

I've seen them locally also. I actually had one for about 2 years until I moved and killed it.

 

[Matt L.]

Well, after learning they weren't holding the fish for me for two weeks, I decided to cancel the order. Let me see what I can do locally,

Matt

 

[redpaulhus]

funny thing - I just saw PBT on the avail. list at Petco of all places - but I have no idea which PBT the wholesaler would send, nigricans or japonicus ... but I suspect the former...

 

[joefitz]

I just think if you are going after a show-piece type fish (or anything for that matter) that I'd want to see it before I bought it. Which would also preclude having an LFS order it for me as well. I know that isn't the most convenient and could result in a wait...but from my (quite limited) experience with that fish, there is a wide gap between the best and 'worst' appearance. Good luck in your hunting!

 

[~Flighty~]

Can you post a pic of each so we can keep our eyes out (for the correct one) for you? It might help if you could point out the distinguishing characteristics with pipe cleaners.

 

[Matt L.]

Pipe(cleaner) fish

Cindy, I was just going to make another pipe cleaner crack!

I love it! That was too, too funny

There is great confusion in the hobby over two different species Arcanthurus japonicus and Arcanthurus nigricans, each appearing in a variety of different color morphs, with even more names, often confused. It is a real mess, but Wet Web Media attempts to sort it out.

The Powder Brown Tang may be sold as the Gold Rim, White cheek, or White Face Tang. The important thing is that whatever the fish is being sold as, the fish is actually Arcanthurus japonicus.

Here is a picture of http://www.marinecenter.com/fish/tangs/powderbrowntang/ (good), and here is a picture of Arcanthurus nigricans, courtesy of The Marine Center who I think has some of the best pictures. Note that even The Marine Center has confused the descriptions of the two in terms of hardiness and adult size.

If you see one that you think is a Powder Brown, to ensure it isn't an Arcanthurus nigricans, check the following:

"...The [A. japonicus] is adorned with a red stripe on it's dorsal that starts one third back and extends to the end. Check out the white patch under the eye, it's larger in A. japonicus, extending all the way to the mouth, hence the name white-face (sometimes [incorrectly] white-cheek). Body-shape wise the [A. nigricans] is decidedly more oval than the [A. japonicus] as well,..."

I hope this helps.

I talked to Steve at Skipton's. He's going to order as many as four, and I can choose from amongst them. We'll see on Wednesday if any come in. Also, with four in stock, there won't be the difficulty in holding at least one for it to recover and get eating prepared foods,

Matt

 

[Matt L.]

I hadn't updated this thread for a while.

About 5 weeks ago, I contacted Steve at Skiptons about ordering a Powder Brown Tang. Three weeks later, and he had in four for me to choose from. I allowed the fish to stay at Skiptons for 2 weeks to recover from their journey, and yesterday, selected one of the remaining three and brought him home.

Here is a picture of him after drip acclimation in a plastic hang on transfer container:

I drip acclimate over several hours in a blacked out 2.5 gal bucket with PVC pipe, however, I cannot precisely match tank temperature with a 2.5 gal bucket, so for the last part of the acclimation, I put the fish in a plastic hang on container. The picture doesn't show his colouration, as I turned on the lights to photograph him, and he has blanched from the stress.

This morning, when the lights came on, he was up and active! He even took some food, although I believe he got confused about the mixture of krill and angel formula mixed in with the Mysis. He is very active, and seems to stay very close to the Majestic, who either ignored him or is annoyed by his presence. Tomorrow I am going to start exclusively with Mysis and then try and get him on an algae clip.

Here is a better picture of him in the cave; the favourite place for all the fish to hang out:

He needs to put on weight. I will keep everyone updated.

 

[Matt L.]

Okay, so the PBwnT has been in the aquarium since Tuesday night.

The minute the lights came on Wednesday morning, he was out and about, very active and alert and displaying normal tang behaviour. He seemed to stay close to the Majestic Angel, who either considered him a mild nuisance or just ignored him. I can't tell which.

At feeding, he was shy and picked at food mostly. He showed interest and took the food, but was being a picky eater. I tried more Mysis, and that seemed to help. I've really overfed this past week

On Thursday I tried a nori clip on the sand. The fish in general responded to my new nori clip by dragging it into the rocks where it is out of reach for good. That was a good $2.99 well spent The fish did nibble on the Nori, but mostly when it was free in the water column. I don't think they have connected it to food yet.

On Friday, I purchased Spirulina Brine from Skiptons (and a new Nori clip) to see if I could elicit a stronger appetite rtesponse. When I fed on Friday afternoon, this seemed to cause a huge change in behaviour. Now he is the most aggressive eater, and actually acting quite hyper as of this morning. I wonder if it is because of his appetite or if he has discovered his reflection? I might have to put up a sheet until he settles down.

The increased appetite carried back over from the Spirulina brine back to the Mysis and Angel formula he picked on before, and seemed to take everything in the water as much as the next fish. I will need to keep an eye on him and confirm.

The next task is to try and get him eating off the Nori clip.

Matt

 

[DLCanuck]

Hey, good luck, he look great so your clam and the angel.

 

[Matt L.]

That's a photo in front of the cave; universally all fishs' favourite place in the tank

Matt