Bodacious Bodianus Atrolumbus
The Palebar Hogfish is a rare fish for a few reasons. One is that no matter where you are, it has only two common names: Palebar and Gold Saddle. Almost everyfish you can think of has a half dozen names or variations on this name. The second reason is that while it is a common fish within its range, its range is small and somewhat remote. Bodianus atrolumbus as it is known in scientific circles can be found on deep, rock and coral reefs of Madagascar, Reunion and Mascarene Islands in the southern west Indian Ocean.
Palebar Hogs will change color over the course of their lives with the juveniles bearing more than a passing resemblence to a fish known as the Banana Tuskfish (Bodianus perdito). Both have mostly yellow body with a white stripe with a dark spot behind the dorsal fin, though the Palebar has a longer stripe that nearly extends through its entire body vs the white stripe on the Banana Tusk which usually doesn't extend past the midline of the fish. Regardless, there was a time in history where this similarity had people misidentifying the Palebar Hog as the Banana Tusk. As an adult Bodianus atrolumbus mostly loses this white bar, and the tail half of the fish turns a rose color, although it does retain the dark “saddle”. Final stage adults are wildly beautiful, with the gold of the head featuring lighter spots of iridescent gold within it. The adult coloration is just as stunning, if not more, than the juvenile.
The biggest specimen on record is fourteen and a half inches long, but they are more commonly seen as adults in the 10-to-12-inch range. While this may seem big for an aquarium fish, there are many Hogfish that get much larger. While the Pale Bar Hogfish has been seen in markets as a food fish, and is reportedly delicious, it could be that its diminutive size keeps it off more menus. In regard to captivity, and it being a fish that can get a foot long or better, it will still need a large fish tank, and hobbyists should think about 150 gallons as a minimum size for the grow out of this fish, with bigger being better. It is a predator that likes large meals and isn't necessarily a gracious eater and so filtration will also need to be robust. They will appreciate extensive rockwork, and this rock should be very stable. This is a strong fish, and it will push into any crevice it can while hunting, potentially destabilizing rocks that haven't been property fixed together.
In the wild, they eat hard shelled invertebrates like snails, urchins, crabs and gastropods like mollusks and scallops. As a result, some shelled food like GAMMA cockle in shell should be included in Bodianus atrolumbus diet. They will need this for digestive reasons and to help maintain their aggressive teeth. They are easy to feed and should start accepting pellet foods like those from Nutramar without much cajoling. Their diet should also include thawed, marine based meaty foods like silversides, krill, chopped fish and small, head on shrimp. Overfeeding these fish is easy, they don't need to be fed everyday if you are feeding them large meals.
As a result of this diet, they can be challenging to keep in reef aquariums. While they are extremely unlikely to actively bother corals of any type, they will actively hunt (and relish) animals that are naturally in their diet like hermit crabs, urchins, snails, etc. This makes keeping any kind of cleanup crew alive for a useful period of time a challenge. Pale Bar Hogs are obviously a direct and dire threat to clams, do not house them together unless you hate your clam. They are otherwise generally good tankmates and can be kept with other strong swimming fish. They aren't likely to be overly aggressive except with other Bodianus genus fish (or fish that look very similar.) This being said, they are opportunist predators and just because they like shellfish, doesn't mean smaller fish are off the menu. If they can eat it, they probably will try.
Predator fish aren't for everyone, but for those of you with large enough tanks with the right kind of tankmates and a penchant for the most beautiful, rare fish, there isn't much that competes with a Pale Bar Hogfish. Head to your Local Fish Store and tell them Quality Marine has one waiting for you right now!