Blue Tang facts: the Dory fish | Animal Fact Files

Blue tangs were made widely popular after the release of Finding Nemo. These relatively rare in the wild fish have many names including palette surgeonfish, regal blue tangs, blue surgeonfish, and more! Blue tangs travel in loose groups and are found on coral reefs of the Indo-Pacific. They help a reef ecosystem stay healthy by eating the algae that might otherwise choke out coral and sponges. Blue tangs are broadcast spawners and their larvae hatch before their heart even begin beating!

Scientific Name: Paracanthurus hepatus
Range: Indo-Pacific reefs and surrounding waters
Size: up to a foot (30.5cm)
Diet: algae and zooplankton
Lifespan: 30+ years in the wild (much shorter in captivity)

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[jamesd]

One thing I know about surgeonfish is that they have blades on their sides which they use for self-defense. I feel like that would have been a great plot tool in Finding Nemo.

[larry]

Let's be honest with ourselves


We all called this fish "Dory" when we were kids

[ShelbyOnSafari]

That’s so cool about the oil in the egg to help it float! Such a great video showcasing a beautiful fish! 💚🤙

[Col]

They're pretty cool, and I love the coloring.
Thanks!

[erikm]

Imagine if ‘Finding Nemo’ had been a freshwater story. Like, what if Dory had been written as a neon tetra, a guppy or like, a black molly? And Nemo not a clownfish… Then, the “surge” in sales of these fairly common, captive-bred species wouldn’t have been such an issue, as it potentially is with a larger, more sensitive saltwater fish—such as the blue tangs. Families would have seen the movies, loved the guppy or tetra, and bought them all out at the stores (where they’re pretty common anyway)…

Now if he’d been written as a girl, or Dory were “cast” (ya like what I did there) as a black molly, or even a sail-fin or balloon molly… hmm. Kinda has a ring to it. ‘Finding Molly’, lol—too many rave/drug-related jokes possible with that one…”what are you doing?!”… ”I’m finding Molly! Tonight!” Ok where? “I don’t know—She’s a brackish bitch! Or so I’m told. I just gave up the (bath) salt!” (Wink wink)

[idkanymore]

So you can’t eat blue tangs, and they have venomous spines. So they are both poisonous and venomous.

[jadenl]

Great video!😃 I always wondered what type of fish Dory was!🤩

[Schelbig]

My favorite type of tangs are yellow tang, purple tang, and powder blue tang I’d hope to see in a future video someday

[marvalice]

it is sad that they are becoming common aquarium fish because they do very poorly in captivity. in the wild they wonder huge distances in just a few days, so being in such a small area is quite stressful fore they :(
by comparison, clownfish make great aquarium fish because they are small, have few needs, and are used to very little room, as even wild clownfish can spend their whole lives in an area roughly the size of a large aquarium.

[peoplehistoricallyovercomi]

I love it and it's awesome I love it it's awesome ‼️💪🏽🐧🐙🐋🐠🐧

[Cantfindaname]

*_Not a true fact about the Blue Tang._*