Resplendent Anthias, Pseudanthias pulcherrimus, (male and 2 females)

Females 32 males 41

Resplendent anthias also go by the name Resplendent Goldies or Longfin Anthias. Resplendent Pulcherrimus Anthias are very vibrant fish. They have hot pink bodies with yellow: faces, dorsal and caudal fins. You can tell males from the females by the purple and yellow accents, in their ventral and anal fins.

These fish range from: the Seychelles, the Andaman Islands, the Maldives and Mauritius, in the West Indian Ocean. They live on and around: coral reefs, steep slopes, channels, drop offs or caves. The structures help the fish dodge predators. When feeling threatened, they will quickly vanish and fix themselves into nooks and crannies.

Anthias feed passively,which means they stay in relatively still positions, while facing the current. When Pelagic zooplankton drifts towards them in the water, the fish snatch their food up. With this method, the hunters easily get hold of small critters and eggs, while using up the smallest amount of energy possible. Feeding is fairly constant, although other behaviours break up this activity.

These are fish that live in social groups, with one male to around 5 or more females. Resplendent Pulcherrimus Anthias are protogynous hermaphrodites. Which means when the top male dies, the largest female in the group will turn male. It will then become the new breeding male. As a result, all juvenile Resplendent Pulcherrimus Anthias, are in fact immature females.

It is important to have good currents and regular feeding in order to copy the natural environment. A wave maker can help with this. Owners should think about using a jump guard to stop any loses.

Anthias do best when fed a varied diet. They will accept frozen mysis shrimp and enriched frozen brine shrimp. They will also eat live foods, such as copepods and amphipods, that can be cultivated in attached refugium. Over time, these fish may have small amounts of high quality flake food as well.