Swissguard Basslet

[edit] Overview

The spectacular color pattern of this crevice-dweller makes it a welcome addition to the less-aggressive fish community. Its cryptic nature makes it difficult to spot (and catch) in the wild, making it a prized species among reef aquarists.

[edit] Feeding

Carnivore. Feed meaty foods daily.

[edit] Aquarium Compatibility

A proficient predator, it will eat crustaceans and tiny fish tankmates (e.g., small gobies). It is not aggressive toward non-relatives (it may squabble over a favorite hiding place). It may be picked on by more aggressive substrate-bound fishes (dottybacks, hawkfishes, large damselfishes) causing the fish to hide most of the time. A pair can be kept in a small tank. Although difficult to sex, try getting a small and larger individual and add them simultaneously.

[edit] Breeding/Propagation

Egg scatterers that produce pelagic eggs, often in midwater mating rituals. Both eggs and larvae that drift with plankton in the water column and settle back onto a reef at about the time of metamorphosis. These are among the most challenging types of marine fishes to propagate in captivity.

[edit] Notes

Extremely adept at hiding to avoid fish-eating predators, the Swissguard Basslet will spend more time in the open if the tank is kept in a quiet location of the home. Do not be ­surprised if you do not see it for a week or so (leave it alone and allow it to properly acclimate). It will spend much of its time hovering at the entrance to its den, ready to dart out and snap up passing food. It may leap from an open aquarium if startled.

Category: Species