About Orange Dottyback
Electric-orange dottyback — small, vibrant, and useful for controlling bristleworm and pyramid snail populations. Aggressive for its size: don't pair with similar small peaceful fish. Add last to the tank.
Pseudochromis aldabraensis, the orange dottyback, neon dottyback or Arabian dottyback, is a species of ray-finned fish from the family Pseudochromidae, the dottybacks. It is commonly kept in marine aquariums.
Notes from the editors
What it looks like. Vivid electric orange body, sometimes with subtle blue accents. Small but high-impact in the tank.
In your tank. Useful for controlling bristleworm populations and pyramid snails. Aggressive for its size — don't pair with similar small peaceful fish (gobies, firefish, basslets). Add last to the stocking order.
Care notes. Hardy, reef-safe, and beginner-friendly with appropriate tankmate selection. Tank-bred specimens dramatically more peaceful than wild-caught.
Sourcing and feeding. Captive-bred increasingly available (ORA, Sustainable Aquatics) and preferred for temperament. Wild-collected widely available. ($30–80). Carnivore — pellets, mysis, brine.
Care info is a starting point, not a guarantee. Individual specimens, water chemistry, and tankmate dynamics vary. Verify against multiple sources and adjust to what you observe. See our terms & disclaimers.
Related fish
Sources & attribution
- Taxonomy and accepted name from the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS AphiaID 218333).
- Description content adapted from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo: (c) Julien Renoult, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC-BY (via iNaturalist or Wikimedia Commons).