French or Gray Angelfish

[mjreefs]

Hi just want to confirm that this is a juvenile French angelfish right?

 

[Coralreefer1]

it is indeed a Pomacanthus Paru or French Angel. I can tell by its tail. Beautiful fish!

 

[mjreefs]

it is indeed a Pomacanthus Paru or French Angel. I can tell by its tail. Beautiful fish!

I believe the french has an outline while the gray has a stripe, correct?

 

[hncsnd204]

 

[Coralreefer1]

Yes, Gray’s have a stripe by their Caudal Peduncle and translucent tip of their tail where French Angels have yellow around its tail that looks similar to a circle.

 

[mjreefs]

Pulled the trigger and bought the li'l guy, currently in the quarantine with a multicolor angelfish and a chrysurus (chrysurus is on the other side of the divider) will post pictures once it's out and about! I don't see any aggression between the multicolor and french yet (the french is a tad smaller than the big multicolor angelfish, but the french went in the qt first).

 

[mjreefs]

One question, when does the French Angelfish start to transition from juvenile to adult coloration?

 

[ThatFishGuy]

One question, when does the French Angelfish start to transition from juvenile to adult coloration?

it really depends on how juvenile he is when you got it for a time frame on transitioning. for example when I got mine he was so juvenile you couldn't distinguish his eye from his body he was so black. Id say mine started to transition about a year maybe a little less after I bought him, his yellow stripes started to go away and his black wasn't as dark. Fast forward 3 years to the present time and he only has one yellow (almost white) stripe by his gills and is more like a pumpkin seed than a triangle.

 

[mjreefs]

it really depends on how juvenile he is when you got it for a time frame on transitioning. for example when I got mine he was so juvenile you couldn't distinguish his eye from his body he was so black. Id say mine started to transition about a year maybe a little less after I bought him, his yellow stripes started to go away and his black wasn't as dark. Fast forward 3 years to the present time and he only has one yellow (almost white) stripe by his gills and is more like a pumpkin seed than a triangle.

This is the french I have. 2” full juvenile coloration.

 

[JumboShrimp]

Any updated photos, @mjreefs ?

 

[OrionN]

If you see yellow on the back of the tail, it is a French angel. It there is no yellow at the end of the tail then it is a Grey Angel.
the OP angel seem to be a Grey angel.

 

[OrionN]

If you see yellow on the back of the tail, it is a French angel. It there is no yellow at the end of the tail then it is a Grey Angel.
the OP angel seem to be a Grey angel.

 

[mjreefs]

Any updated photos, @mjreefs ?

Yup! This is the French Angel 1 year and 4 months later, it's already in the sub-adult stage nearing the full adult colors. Definitely a showstopper! (Sorry for the bad pic)

 

[JumboShrimp]

Spectacular! I love success stories!

 

[ReefHog]

He looks happy. What size tank is he in? I've always loved the french angels but wasn't sure if my 24" x 72" 220 was large enough. I am in the planning stage of a 240 gallon 48" square build and would love to add one to that tank.

 

[flourishofmediocrity]

Where could I find info on the french angel? I am thinking about one for my 200G peninsula (not yet built)

 

[JumboShrimp]

There is not too much info out there from what I could tell-- so I just pulled the trigger on one and 'went for it.' I bought him about 4 months ago. He has all his full yellow stripes still, and is just now beginning to get a little grey in the mouth. For the first 2 months alone in quarantine he would not touch a single thing but pellets. Odd, so I called the LFS and said 'I KNOW he didn't get this big and look this good eating only pellets... what gives?!' LOL. But as soon as I put him in the display tank and he saw other fish chowing down, he got with the program. Now he rips into nori and eats frozen food of all types. Things are looking good so far. I think you would be very pleased with one.

 

[flourishofmediocrity]

Liveaquaria says I need a 250g or larger to keep one. My main DT is only 200g

 

[JumboShrimp]

Sure, those guides are useful. However what is your overall tank plan? If you need to have ‘one of every fish you see,’ and a ton of rockwork, that’s one scenario. Some people are like that; not a criticism. But if you envision minimalistic aquascape and very few other fish (meaning your French Angel is your showpiece / tank boss) I see a 200 gallon with adequate swim-room being fine with top-notch filtration. Just my opinion.

 

[Brandon3152134]

I've seen these in being at least a foot and half long in the wild, usually in groups or pairs. Very cool fish.