Acreichthys tomentosus - Aiptasia Eating Filefish aka Matted Filefish are an incredibly helpful species of filefish. They are called the Aiptasia Eating Filefish because of their propensity to eat nuisance anemones which plague most home aquariums like Aiptasia, majano anemones, and some types of hydroids. They do not require Aiptasia and will eat most aquarium foods. These interesting little filefish have the ability to change coloration and blend in with their surroundings rapidly, making it fun to watch them roam around the tank.
This species is reef safe with caution, as some individuals may nip at soft corals, zoas, SPS polyps, fleshy LPS corals, clam mantles, and/or tiny ornamental shrimp. They do well in tanks 30 gallons or larger and are peaceful toward other fish species. They are territorial with their own kind, but can be kept in pairs. It's easy to sex these fish as adults because the males have clear bristles on the caudal peduncle near the base of the tail, giving this fish its other common name of Bristletail Filefish.
Omnivorous Aiptasia Eating Filefish will eat most popular aquarium foods including a variety of frozen foods and Easy Reefs DKI pellets and Masstick. Feeding 0.8mm DKI pellets, Reef nutrition C1, C2, Hikari Mysis, PE Calanus. Current size: approximately 1" please allow for variation in size.
This species is naturally a poor swimmer, so ensure their safety by covering wavemakers/overflows and make sure the flow isn't too fast for them. We recommend using an acclimation box to introduce them to the new tank. Use caution when housing these with anemones or other corals with a strong sting.
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