The Banggai Cardinalfish is a silver fish with bold black bars and white-spotted fins.
Endemic to a small range in Indonesia, wild populations are threatened by overcollection, so buying captive-bred stock is the more ethical and hardier choice.
Captive-bred fish adapt readily and ship far better than wild ones.
These are mouthbrooders: the male incubates eggs and fry in his mouth, making them one of the more readily bred marine fish at home.
Slow-moving and peaceful, they hover in the open and add contrast to a reef.
Housing
A cycled 110L (30 gal) tank suits a pair; larger groups need more space and many sight-line breaks to prevent bullying.
Keep salinity 1.024-1.026, temperature 23-27°C (74-80°F), pH 8.1-8.4, and nitrate low.
Long-spined urchins or branching corals give fry natural shelter.
A tight lid is advisable.
Stable water and ample structure reduce in-group aggression and give this slow, deliberate fish the calm environment it prefers in order to thrive and even breed.
Diet
The Banggai is a carnivore that can be a slow, picky eater.
Offer enriched frozen mysis and brine shrimp, copepods, and small marine pellets, fed once or twice daily.
Vitamin-soaked foods improve condition and breeding success.
Because they feed deliberately, make sure faster tankmates do not strip the food before they eat.
Target-feeding shy individuals helps.
A varied meaty diet keeps them in good weight, which is important for successful mouthbrooding.
Health
Captive-bred Banggai are reasonably hardy, but the species is prone to a specific Iridovirus and to stress-related disease, especially in poorly acclimated wild fish.
Buying captive-bred and quarantining new arrivals greatly reduces risk.
Watch for slow feeding, emaciation, rapid breathing, or white spots.
Keep nitrate low and parameters stable, and avoid crowding, which causes chronic stress.
Well-fed, uncrowded fish in clean water generally stay healthy through their lifespan.
Temperament
Banggai are peaceful and reef-safe toward other species but can be aggressive among themselves.
As juveniles mature in a group they pair off and harass the remaining fish, so keep a single individual or an established male-female pair.
They hover slowly in the open, often near branching cover, and pose no threat to corals or most invertebrates.
With careful stocking they are calm fish whose unusual breeding behaviour rewards attentive keepers.
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate
Intermediate