Acanthurus coeruleus Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Blue tang surgeonfish

Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL

Classification	Actinopterygii \| Perciformes \| Acanthuridae \| Acanthurinae
Synonyms	Teuthis coeruleus, Acanthurus brevis, Acanthurus broussonnetii, ... more
Common names	Blue tang, Blur tang, Blue Tang, ... more

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AquaMaps Data sources: GBIF OBIS

Main reference

Robins, C.R. and G.C. Ray. 1986. (Ref. 7251)
Other references | Biblio | Coordinator : Randall, John E. | Collaborators

Size / Weight / Age

Max length : 39.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 36453); common length : 25.0 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 5217)

Environment

Reef-associated; marine; depth range 2 - 40 m (Ref. 7345), usually 2 - 18 m (Ref. 27115)

Climate / Range

Tropical; 24°C - 26°C (Ref. 27115); 42°N - 15°S, 100°W - 4°W (Ref. 55165)

Western Atlantic: New York, USA and Bermuda to the Gulf of Mexico and Brazil. Eastern Atlantic: Ascension Island (Ref. 7345).
Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Introductions

Short description

Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 26 - 28; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 24 - 26. A deep-bodied surgeonfish (body depth 1.7 in SL) with a conspicuous yellow caudal spine. Has the most distinctive coloration of all western Atlantic surgeonfishes (Ref. 26938).

Inhabits coral reefs, inshore grassy or rocky areas. Forms small groups (Ref. 26235). Mainly diurnal. Feeds entirely on algae (Ref. 5521). At Fernando de Noronha Archipelago in southwestern Atlantic, juveniles hold cleaning stations together with the doctorfish (Acanthurus chirurgus) and sergeant major (Abudefduf saxatilis) and graze algae as well as pick molted skin and parasites from green turtles (Chelonia mydas). This behavior is preceded by a characteristic inspection usually followed by feeding nips on the turtles’ skin (head, limbs, and tail), as well as on the carapace. The most inspected and cleaned body parts are the flippers (Ref. 51385). The spine on both sides of the caudal peduncle may inflict painful wounds (Ref. 5217). Marketed fresh.


IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 57073)	Threat to humans
Not Evaluated	Traumatogenic (Ref. 4690)

Human uses
Fisheries: minor commercial; aquarium: commercial; bait: occasionally


More information
Countries FAO areas Ecosystems Occurrences Introductions Ecology Diet Food items Food consumption Ration	Common names Synonyms Metabolism Predators Ecotoxicology Reproduction Maturity Spawning Eggs Egg development	Age/Size Growth Length-weight Length-length Length-frequencies Morphometrics Morphology Larvae Larval dynamics Recruitment	Other references Biblio Aquaculture Aquaculture profile Strains Genetics Allele frequencies Heritability Diseases Processing	Collaborators Pictures Stamps Sounds Ciguatera Speed Swim. type Gill area Otoliths Brains Vision

Tools
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Internet sources

Estimation of some characteristics with mathematical models

Resilience (Ref. 69278)

Medium, minimum population doubling time 1.4 - 4.4 years (K=0.11-0.50)


Vulnerability (Ref. 59153)	Price category (Ref. 80766)
High vulnerability (59 of 100)	Medium

Entered by Luna, Susan M.

Modified by Kesner-Reyes, Kathleen

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