Name The Mystery Tang

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TheTodd

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I got this at my LFS. Nobody there was sure what it was, but the owner thought it could be a juvenile Lavender Tang. The other employee insisted that it is a Palini Tang juvie.

Anyone know for sure? It is almost pure white with faint yellow on the fins. I may need to get pictures after it's out of the bag.

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White yellow tang - my noob guess.

But if it has a arch on the tail looks like it does in the one pic - it is disimilar then, and maybe a hybrid???

Ghost Tang
~~~
This is the white Yellow Tang

There is Casper and now Powder. Below Casper's color changes. (5 years old now)

this is interesting, changing colors from white.
https://reefbuilders.com/2015/01/13/casper-white-tang-undergone-radical-transformation/

White again!
https://reefbuilders.com/2016/05/04/casper-the-white-tang/

Even though I don't really now, it is fun to play along!
 
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I've got a couple people between here and another forum that have probably narrowed it down to either a juvenile Ctenochaetus Striatus ( Striped Tang)
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or Strigosus (Kole Tang)
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Either way, I am told that it should be darker, so we shall see what a better diet will do for it.

It is a Bristletooh, so odds are it will go in my reef, as I have plans for other Tangs in my 240g.
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No matter which kind - it will be great to see it get more comfortable in your tank and since have been looking There are so many varieties, I didn't even know about! And they can change color as they mature. That always makes things more complicated too! Can't wait to see.
 
At this point, it's just going to be interesting to see how it changes. The only thing that has me worried is that apparently it should not be this pale/white. It is not pale from stress, as I watched it two days at the LFS. They said they've had it for six weeks, and it's looked that way all along, so who knows what's going on? Hopefully it does okay with me and we get a definitive answer eventually.


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How big is it? Koles get the yellow around the eye fairly young so if this is a larger fish, it might not be a pure Kole but a hybrid.
 
I believe it should have the yellow eyes by then so possibly it's a hybrid? Does the LFS have any idea where in the world it came from? That could help narrow down the possible fish involved.
 
Here are new shots. It is very timid and dives for the rocks when I get close. It darkened up to a reddish brown with just a hint of yellow on the dorsal fin. No yellow or blue around the eye though.
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Definitely Ctenochaetus cyanocheilus. Closely related to Kole tangs and Tomini tangs, but it's less popular in the aquarium industry.

Max size is about 6 and a half inches, so it's on the smaller side, as far as tangs go.

It's also known as the short-tailed Tang, or the bluelip Tang (the blue is pretty apparent in the first picture you posted)

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Istrom out of left field for the double play on this one. I think you hit the nail on the head. Never heard that name before but it looks spot on.

Thanks :) I'm just glad to help!

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That could be it. I thought we had an ID on another website and it was for a larger Bristletooh. Had I known, I would have added it to my 60g reef not my 240g FOWLR.


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