Tang Lipstick - Small

Lipstick Tangs
 

Lipstick Tangs have an elongated brownish-grey body with a yellow stripe running from their mouths up to the bottom of their eyes. With a dark stripe lining their backs and a yellow-coloured one located on their bellies, they can also change shading at will when they become stressed or excited. They have impressive tails which can develop long yellow and black streamers which make this fish one of the most beautiful species of tang.

Females are slightly smaller than fully grown males and although there have been no reports of them breeding in home aquariums they do occasionally breed in commercial captivity.

The Lipstick Tang has sharp scalpel-like spines located near its tail which are toxic and can be extremely painful so take care when attempting to handle them.

They are originally from all over the central and western Pacific region from Japan to the Great Barrier Reef and Hawaii Islands. The young ones spend their time inhabiting shallow reef areas until they get older and move out into seaward reefs and lagoons. They can be seen in small groups at depths down to 90 meters but usually, stay around the 10-30 meter mark.

Tank Recommendations for the Lipstick Tang
The smallest tank size for these fish is 680 liters as they are constantly moving around and need plenty of space to do that. Make sure the tank has lots of strong water movement which will help with oxygenation. Due to their energetic behavior, a well-fitted aquarium lid is essential as it is possible they can swim themselves over the top. These tangs spend their time in sunlight areas in the wild so make sure you have good enough lighting which will also help promote algae growth which they can graze upon.

Suitable Tank Buddies
The Lipstick Tang is semi-aggressive, but it will behave quite peacefully to other non-tang species. Only attempt to keep more than one together if you own an extremely large tank. House them with peaceful friendly species to create a great community environment.

Usually Compatible
Tangs will do fine with live corals, crustaceans, and invertebrates. Other great species of fish to include are Damselfish, Filefish, and Eels. Hogfish, Blennies, and Boxfish will get along great with the Lipstick Tang too. Other wonderful options could include Angelfish, Batfish, and Pufferfish.

Sometime Compatible
Take care when trying to keep them with species such as Rays, Cardinalfish, and Butterflyfish. Batfish should also have a close eye kept on them.

Rarely Compatible
It is not advised to keep Sharks in the same as the Lipstick Tang as they will most likely see it as food. Docile shy creatures such as Pipefish and Seahorses may be too frightened to come out and eat in the presence of big tangs like this as well.

Feeding your Lipstick Tang
This species is herbivorous and in the wild will feed on benthic algae so try to mimic this as much as possible by providing them with flakes and frozen formulas that contain a variety of algae and spirulina. Lots of live rock with plentiful algae growth will be appreciated by them as well. Some aquarists have reported success by feeding them pre-boiled green vegetables such as spinach and broccoli.