DaLilFishie's Guide to the Marine Angelfishes (Pomacanthidae)

Hix said:
Yellowhead (aka. Cocos) Angelfish Centropyge joculator
Cocos Angelfish - ZooChat

Indian Ocean Lemonpeel Angelfish (Centropyge cocosensis)
Lemonpeel Angelfish - ZooChat
Lemonpeel Angelfish juvenile - ZooChat
Lemonpeel Angelfish juvenile - ZooChat

:p
Hix
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Well, in that case,

Cocopeel Angelfish Centropyge cocosensis
Endemic to the Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island. It was formerly considered a colour variant of C. flavissima, and it’s status as a species distinct from it is somewhat dubious.
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Adult. Image by @Hix from Christmas Island

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Juvenile. Image by @Hix from Christmas Island


Yellowhead Angelfish Centropyge joculator
Endemic to the Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Islands.

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Image by @Hix from Christmas Island
 
Yoshistar888 said:
Of these I’ve seen thirty seven species captive and one of those I’ve also seen in the wild, that being Centropyge vrolikii. Centropyge colini annd Centropyge joculator are rare but not excessively rare and present in the Australian aquarium trade but I am yet to see either.
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I've seen 36, of which 6 were in the wild. Wild species are bolded:
Apolemichthys arcuatus
Apolemichthys trimaculatus
Centropyge abei
Centropyge aurantonotus
Centropyge bicolor
Centropyge bispinosa
Centropyge eibli
Centropyge flavicauda
Centropyge flavissima
Centropyge heraldi
Centropyge interrupta
Centropyge loriculus (widespread and Hawaiian forms)
Centropyge multifasciatus
Centropyge vrolikii
Centropyge woodheadi
Chaetodontoplus duboulayi
Chaetodontoplus meredithi
Chaetodontoplus personifer
Chaetodontoplus septentrionalis
Genicanthus caudovittatus
Genicanthus lamarck
Genicanthus melanospilos
Genicanthus semifasciatus
Genicanthus watanabei
Holacanthus ciliaris
Holacanthus tricolor
Pomacanthus asfur
Pomacanthus arcuatus
Pomacanthus imperator (Pacific and Indian Ocean forms)
Pomacanthus maculosus
Pomacanthus navarchus
Pomacanthus paru
Pomacanthus rhomboides
Pomacanthus semicirculatus
Pomacanthus sexstriatus
Pygoplites diacanthus (ssp. diacanthus)
 
DaLilFishie said:
Masked Swallowtail Angelfish Genicanthus semifasciatus
Occurs in Japan, the Ryukyu, Izu and Ogasawara Islands, and the Philippines. Sexually dichromatic.
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Since posting this, I realised I have a photo of a male G. semifasciatus from Tokyo Sea Life Park - it's a poor photo but there aren't any others of males on ZooChat.
upload_2025-7-26_16-37-13.jpeg
 

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I've seen the following 31 species (17 in captivity only, 5 in both captivity and the wild, and 9 in the wild only). Those seen in the wild are in bold:

Apolemichthys arcuatus
Apolemichthys trimaculatus
Apolemichthys xanthopunctatus
Centropyge abei
Centropyge bicolor
Centropyge bispinosa
Centropyge cocosensis
Centropyge eibli
Centropyge flavissimus
Centropyge heraldi
Centropyge joculator
Centropyge loricula
Centropyge multicolor
Centropyge tibicen
Centropyge vrolikii
Centropyge woodheadi
Chaetodontoplus duboulayi
Genicanthus lamark
Genicanthus melanospilos
Genicanthus personatus
Holocanthus tricolor
Pomacanthus annularis
Pomacanthus arcuatus
Pomacanthus asfur
Pomacanthus imperator
Pomacanthus maculosus
Pomacanthus navarchus
Pomacanthus paru
Pomacanthus semicirculatus
Pomacanthus xanthometapon
Pygoplites diacanthus (P.d.diacanthus and probably P.d. flavescens too).

I've also seen in the wild (on more than one occasion) a hybrid between Centropyge eibli x cocosensis, and also a hybrid C. eibli x vrolikii.

:p

Hix
 
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Hix said:
I've also seen in the wild (on more than one occasion) a hybrid between Centropyge eibli x cocosensis, and also a hybrid C. eibli x vrolikii.
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I've had a look at your iNaturalist observations of these, those cocosensis x eibli are quite attractive little fish!

The "flavissima complex" (that is, C. flavissima, cocosensis, eibli and vrolikii) are known to extensively hybridise in the wild where they overlap, but I've not been able to find much information about these hybrids online (and what little I can find is from aquarium sites trying to sell them for big bucks, and giving them tacky trade names like "tigerpyge"). These hybrids are one factor in why these species have been suggested to be colour forms of a single species - or once seperate species that have since begun introgressing into eachother. Genetic work hasn't cleared up the picture much either - from what I recall, the complex is divided into three major genetic lineages, but those lineages do not align with our currently-defined species deliminations. Hopefully time will tell what exactly is going on with these pretty little fish :D
 
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