''Acanthurus nigrofuscus'', also known as the lavender tang, brown tang, or spot-cheeked surgeonfish, is a tang from the Indo-Pacific and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

. It commonly makes its way into the aquarium trade. It grows to 21 cm in length. Recently, a huge bacterium discovered in its intestine, ''

Epulopiscium fishelsoni "''Candidatus'' Epulonipiscium" is a genus of Gram-positive bacteria that have a symbiotic relationship with surgeonfish. These bacteria are known for their unusually large size, many ranging from 200–700 μm in length. Until the discovery of ...

'', has been found to grow as large as 600 by 80 μm, a little smaller than a printed hyphen, which controls the pH of its host's gut, thereby influencing its host's ability to digest food and absorb nutrients.

Diet

The lavender tang is an herbivore that grazes primarily on benthic algae. In captivity, they will also feed on animal matter such as brine shrimp and mysis shrimp.

References

External links

* Acanthuridae Acanthurus Fish of Asia Fish of Palau Fish described in 1775 Taxa named by Peter Forsskål {{Acanthuridae-stub