ZEBRASOMA DESJARDINII

Scientific name: Zebrasoma desjardinii.

Common name: Surgeon Vela.

Origin: The geographic range extends from the Red Sea and East Africa to India, Java and Cocos-Keeling Islands.

Habitat: It’s a specie associated with coral reefs in the Indian Ocean.

Morphology: Body oval. Coloration can vary from individual to individual, depending on age. In general, on the body stripe vertical clear and dark and white points on the head. The fins caudal and anal have several yellow lines that begin horizontal and go back vertical in the back part. Has 4 spines dorsal. How all the fishes surgeon, has spines extractable to each side of the peduncle discharge; it supposes that they use them to defend of other fishes. They can arrive until 32 cm. The male are bigger that the females.

Maintenance: It recommends aquarium big, with an intense illumination because it can develop the colony of sufficient seaweeds of which feeds . Besides it requires big quantity of alive rock with sufficient hideouts. It’s advisable to use gravel, and no sand, also go carefully with the continuous exhibition or prolonged to the compounds to copper with these fishes. The spines have beneficial microbes that live in his internal system that can be affected by the pollution with the metal.

Behaviour: Sociable, little aggressive, tolerates to fishes of the same character and of smaller size, but if it finds congeners of the same sex, will tend to compete for space and for sexual command with the females.

Alimentation: In the nature feed of marine algae, to the aquarium will accept food of vegetal origin as much as artemia and mysis frozen, as well as food dissected.

Reproduction: It does not know in captivity. In his natural habitat are oviparous and the put of eggs is performed so much in couple, as a community. The spawning succeed around the full moon, being subjected to the periodicity of the lunar cycle.