Lyretail Anthias (Male)

The Lyretail Anthias is often called the social butterfly of marine aquariums due to its lively nature and bright coloration, which encourages more timid fish to come out of hiding. Also referred to as the Scalefin, the Lyretail Anthias displays varying shades of deep red in males, while females tend to exhibit a more orange hue.

This species thrives when kept in a group within a dedicated aquarium of at least 125 gallons. While males can be housed singly, they also do well with multiple females. The Lyretail Anthias generally occupies the middle water column but benefits from having several hiding spots available.

Like other Anthias species, the Lyretail Anthias is hermaphroditicif a dominant male dies, the largest female in the group will often transition to become the new male. Once settled in an aquarium, they do best on a varied diet of frozen mysis shrimp, enriched frozen brine shrimp, and eventually high-quality flake foods offered in multiple small feedings throughout the day. A refugium cultivating copepods and amphipods is also beneficial, providing a constant supply of live food for this energetic planktivore, such as the EMA Baby Brine Shrimp available on our website.