The Sunrise Dottyback, scientifically known as Pseudochromis flavivertex, is a colorful and compact marine fish native to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. It is recognized by its yellow dorsal stripe extending from the snout toward the tail, contrasting with a blue to bluish body and pale lower region.
In its natural habitat, P. flavivertex is reef associated and commonly occurs around small rocks, coral heads, and sandy-bottom reef areas at depths of approximately 2–30 meters. FishBase reports a maximum total length of 7.2 cm, approximately 2.8 inches.
This specimen is captive bred/tank raised and maintained at Pacific East Aquaculture in dedicated systems separate from our wild-collected fish. Our captive-bred and tank-raised saltwater fish are carefully observed and maintained under professional husbandry protocols prior to sale, without the routine conditioning and proactive treatment protocols used for wild-collected specimens.
Sunrise Dottybacks are hardy aquarium fish that adapt readily to prepared foods. They are generally considered moderately aggressive, especially when defending a preferred cave or area of rockwork, so providing numerous hiding places is important. ORA notes that they can be housed with gobies, blennies, and other small reef fishes when adequate shelter is available.
Care Guide
Scientific Name: Pseudochromis flavivertex Rüppell, 1835
Common Name: Sunrise Dottyback
Family: Pseudochromidae
Availability: Captive Bred / Tank Raised
Natural Distribution: Red Sea and Gulf of Aden
Care Level: Easy
Temperament: Semi-aggressive / moderately aggressive
Reef Compatibility: Reef compatible
Minimum Aquarium Size: 30 gallons recommended
Maximum Size: Approximately 2.8 inches (7.2 cm total length)
Diet: Carnivorous; readily accepts prepared marine foods
Temperature: Approximately 75–82°F
Specific Gravity: 1.023–1.026
pH: 8.1–8.4
Aquarium Requirements:
Provide substantial rockwork with caves, crevices, and sheltered areas where the fish can establish a territory. Sunrise Dottybacks naturally associate with small rocks and coral heads, and adequate hiding places help reduce territorial stress in captivity.
Temperament:
Sunrise Dottybacks are generally moderately aggressive and can become territorial, particularly toward other dottybacks or similarly shaped fishes. They can nevertheless make good community reef inhabitants when housed with appropriately sized tankmates and provided with sufficient space and rockwork.
Reef Compatibility:
Generally reef compatible and not considered a coral predator. As with other small carnivorous dottybacks, some caution is appropriate with exceptionally small ornamental crustaceans.
Diet and Feeding:
Feed a varied diet of appropriately sized meaty marine foods including mysis shrimp, enriched brine shrimp, finely chopped marine foods, quality marine pellets, and other frozen or dry preparations. ORA reports that captive Sunrise Dottybacks readily accept most prepared frozen and dry aquarium foods.
