''Centropyge'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

, marine angelfish belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Pomacanthidae Marine angelfish are perciform fish of the family Pomacanthidae. They are found on shallow reefs in the tropical Atlantic, Indian, and mostly western Pacific Oceans. The family contains seven genera and about 86 species. They should not be co ...

found in the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

, Indian and

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. These species do not exceed 15 cm in

length Length is a measure of distance. In the International System of Quantities, length is a quantity with Dimension (physical quantity), dimension distance. In most systems of measurement a Base unit (measurement), base unit for length is chosen, ...

and live in haremic structures with one dominant male and multiple females.

Taxonomy

''Centropyge'' is a

paraphyletic Paraphyly is a taxonomic term describing a grouping that consists of the grouping's last common ancestor and some but not all of its descendant lineages. The grouping is said to be paraphyletic ''with respect to'' the excluded subgroups. In co ...

genus. This is because '' Genicanthus'' and the

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage that includes organisms with mixed evolutionary origin but does not include their most recent common ancestor. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as Homoplasy, homoplasies ...

genus ''

Apolemichthys ''Apolemichthys'' is a genus of marine angelfishes in the family (biology), family Pomacanthidae. Species Fishbase still has ''Apolemichthys armitagei'' listed as a species within this genus but notes that it is a Hybridisation (biology), hyb ...

'' are nested within ''Centropyge''. ''Centropyge'' includes 3

subgenera In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

and several species complexes. The subgenus ''Xiphypops'' only comprises all species within the ''C. acanthops'' complex, which include ''C. acanthops'', '' C. argi'', '' C. aurantonota'', '' C. resplendens''. Subgenus '' Paracentropyge'' comprises '' C. boylei'', '' C. multifasciata'', and '' C. venusta''. These two subgenera are

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

and there is support for their elevation to genus status. All other species currently fall under the nominate subgenus ''Centropyge'', which is not monophyletic. Different studies have designated different species complexes within ''Centropyge'', based on differing definitions of the term 'species complex'.

Biology

Although it is difficult to distinguish the sexes, females are often shorter and more round finned. Like many other

reef fish Coral reef fish are fish which live amongst or in close relation to coral reefs. Coral reefs form complex ecosystems with tremendous biodiversity. Among the myriad inhabitants, the fish stand out as colourful and interesting to watch. Hundreds ...

and all marine angelfish, the species in this genus are protogynous hermaphrodites, meaning that they start their adult lives as females and the dominant individual in a group can change to a male within days. A reversal of this sex change is possible if the social status of the individual changes, it is however a process that requires much more time.Hioki, S. & Suzuki, K. (1996): Sex changing from male to female on the way of protogynous process in three ''Centropyge'' angelfishes (Pomacanthidae: Teleostei). ''Bulletin of the Institute of Oceanic Research and Development, Tokai University, 17: 27–34.'' Uniquely amongst protogynous fish, males of at least one species of ''Centropyge'' ('' C. ferrugata'') are capable of reversing sex change and changing back into females.

In aquaria

This genus prefer matured

reef tanks A reef aquarium or reef tank is a marine aquarium that prominently displays live corals and other marine invertebrates as well as fish that play a role in maintaining the tropical coral reef environment. A reef aquarium requires appropriately in ...

due to the usually high water quality and the often used "live rock". In nature most species feed on

algae Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthesis, photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular ...

sponges Sponges or sea sponges are primarily marine invertebrates of the animal phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), a basal clade and a sister taxon of the diploblasts. They are sessile filter feeders that are bound to the seabed, and ar ...

and small benthic

invertebrates Invertebrates are animals that neither develop nor retain a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''spine'' or ''backbone''), which evolved from the notochord. It is a paraphyletic grouping including all animals excluding the chordate subphylum ...

. Having an abundance of well cured live rock will help to supplement their diet.Thomasser, A
Reef Safari! Keeping Multibarred Angelfish.
''WetWebMedia.'' This is also in the interest of the

aquarist An aquarist is a person who manages aquariums, either professionally or as a hobby. They typically care for aquatic animals, including fish and marine invertebrates. Some may care for aquatic mammals. Aquarists often work at public aquariums. They ...

, as underfed ''Centropyge'' angels may nip at

coral Corals are colonial marine invertebrates within the subphylum Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important Coral ...

s and sessile invertebrates.Hauter, S. & Hauter, D. (2016)
Reef Tank Safe Angelfish.
''Saltaquarium.'' Dwarf angels can be quite shy initially, hiding in corals, caves and crevices but become more outgoing when they have established their territory - if they are kept with appropriate tank mates and in appropriately sized tanks.Fenner, R

''WetWebMedia.''

Species

There are currently 35 recognized species in this genus:

References

{{Authority control Pomacanthidae Marine fish genera Taxa named by Johann Jakob Kaup