🐠 Keyhole Angelfish (Centropyge tibicen)
A Dark Blue-Black Body With an Egg-Shaped White "Keyhole" Bar • The Largest Centropyge Species • A Hardy, Understated Showpiece
 
📋 The Keyhole Angelfish, also known as the Melas or Tibicen Angelfish, has a deep dark blue-to-blackish body with a distinctive egg-shaped white "keyhole" bar across the mid-body, and yellow accents on the pelvic and lower anal fins. It's understated compared with many flashier dwarf angelfish, but the pattern is unmistakable once you know what to look for.
It comes from a wide range across the Indo-Pacific, from Christmas Island and Fiji to southern Japan and Lord Howe Island, living alone or in harems of 3 to 7 individuals among mixed coral and rubble reefs. Every Keyhole Angelfish we ship is feeding well.
As the largest species in the entire Centropyge genus, it's worth planning tank size around from the start. It's reef safe with caution, and may nip at stony and soft corals, sessile invertebrates, and clam mantles, which varies by individual specimen, and a diet supplemented with plenty of natural algae growth helps reduce this risk. It generally gets along with other pygmy angelfish only in larger tanks, with aggression more likely in smaller systems. It reaches up to 19cm, so plan on at least 280L.
 
💡 Highlights
🎨 Distinctive White "Keyhole" Bar: Understated but unmistakable dark blue-black pattern
📏 Largest Centropyge Species: Worth planning tank size around
⚠️ Reef Safe With Caution: May nip at corals, invertebrates, and clam mantles
👫 Naturally Forms Harems: Groups of 3-7 in the wild
🧠 Beginner Friendly: Hardy and adaptable overall