Does anyone have a Siganus doliatus? Show a picture if you do :)
 

I'm just curious if anyone has a Siganus doliatus in their tank? (Common names include: Two barred rabbitfish, penciled rabbitfish, stenciled rabbitfish, and possibly blue-lined rabbitfish).

I've been looking for one for a king's age but all I've been able to find are the similar Siganus virgatus. Not that these aren't nice fish too (I have one), but, they're different.

I'm just jonesing for some pictures. I've been googling for pictures and that sort of suffices but what I'd really like to see are pictures of one in a Canreefer's tank. So if you have one, please show off his (or her) picture(s) here in this thread! :)

To give you an idea what a doliatus looks like, take a read of the reefkeeping.com article at http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...hcs3/index.php and search on doliatus. There is also a picture of virgatus in the same article.

Here's the virgatus in my tank from when I first got him:
http://members.shaw.ca/hobiesailor/a...s_doliatus.jpg
(I need an updated shot of this guy. He's doubled in size in 7 months, and the yellow and the blues are much more striking now.)

The main difference is that virgatus has blue spots instead of blue stripes in behind the brown bars on the head. The doliatus has vertical striping that extends all the way to the caudal fin (the "tail") whereas the virgatus has spots that reduce in density as they go towards the back.

Tony, your metaphors bring me pleasure.

<3 <3 <3

PS: RC doesn't allow hotlinking.

Oh nuts! Rats, they are the best pictures I could find that show off how to tell the difference. Now I'm gonna have to look for some different ones....

I had a Siganus doliatus in my 230g. It ate all the pesky feather dusters which was wonderful. Later on it moved onto my zoos, that wasn't so wonderful. It got along well with my one spot foxface, but when the 230g came down, it went on to another tank. I'm looking for photos, but am only able to find fish-shaped blurs!

I'll take a fish shaped blur (come on, look at the picture of my virgatus, it aint potm material :neutral: ). I've put in word at all the major retailers, local and mail-order, to be on the lookout for one, and not one, not one in twelve months! I've seen several virgatus that were mis-ID'd but no bona-fide doliatus. At this point I just want to see some evidence that this fish really does exist and really does show up north of the 49th once in a while... Please post the pictures! :)

Sorry, your SOL. I've gone through all of my photos from the 230g, and I don't have anything that I can post. My "blur" photo is horrid, so bad you can't even tell what kind of fish it is.

i've got a pair of these guys....they are cool too

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...us_puellus.jpg

Those are actually Siganus puellus. :) (Also called the blue-lined rabbitfish..) Nice fish!!! Mind you I like just about all the yellow/blue rabbits, very nice fish.

I have a Virgatus but last time I was at J&L (in the Spring) they had a Doliatus which they referred to as a Scribbled Rabbitfish (pretty sure this is the same fish you are referring to). I wanted to buy it but they wouldn't sell it since it was in one of the coral tanks making it too hard to catch. You might want to try J&L as they also list the Doliatus on their web site.
http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s...ategory_ID=142

They are one of the places I have a standing request in. There hasn't been a doliatus, however, since at least August 2006 (I check the site every day :lol:). I'm not 100% convinced that the doliatus back then was really doliatus as many sites do mistake virgatus for doliatus. This week they listed doliatus but I when I saw the pictures I knew they were virgatus. I told them of it and they corrected the page.

Not that there's anything wrong with virgatus, like I said, I have one. :) I just don't need 2 of the same. :lol:

So .. uh .. does anyone actually have pictures of a doliatus?

Just for you Tony:

http://fishbase.org/Photos/Thumbnail...ry.php?ID=4623

and

http://fishbase.org/Summary/speciesS...sname=doliatus

Thanks, but I've seen those! :) I want to see Canreefers pictures! ;)

(Believe me - in 12 months of waiting for this fish to arrive at one of the 6 stores I've asked to watch out for one for me - I've learned to be VERY obsessive compulsive about it! Probably not a day doesn't go by where I don't google this fish.)

...and here I thought I was bad when I'm waiting on fish, clams, or corals. I have to say I think you take the proverbial cake!

http://i195.photobucket.com/albums/z...k/Doliatus.jpg

I can ask my friend if he wants to part with one, but I highly doubt it. They're his super deluxe prize fishes.

albert always comes through with the goods, lol.

So they DO exist!! Darn, there goes my conspiracy theory out the window ... ;) Thanks for the picture! :cool:

Updated pic of my S. virgatus:
http://members.shaw.ca/hobiesailor/a...27/rabbit1.jpg

I thought it was a good comparison shot of the dots on the back, compared to the "blue zebra stripes" of the doliatus. My hunt for doliatus continues for now ...

And another whole year goes by and not one, not one, not one Siganus doliatus anywhere. :neutral: <Sigh ...> Did I mention .. not one? Come on retailers! This is silly.

Anyone want to show pictures of theirs? Come on, there has to be someone out there with this fish.

I want to see more photos of a doliatus! Everytime I see rabbitfish I think of your hunt Tony. Your making me want one, or two!

Thanks :) But I was still sorta hoping to see ones in people's tanks. Looking at US retailer sites just pours salt into the wound because this fish is available on a weekly basis down there. You can sort of tell by the price even ($40) that this shouldn't be a particularly rare or hard to find fish.

Seems silly to consider ordering an otherwise commonplace fish from the U.S. but it seems that is the only way it would ever happen. There's just something about our supply chain here I guess. Maybe it's a fairly localized area this fish comes from? And our wholesalers just don't have working relationships with any of the exporters from that area... I'm just guessing. But there has to be an explanation .. I've been looking for this fish for, well, literally, YEARS now. You'd think one of our retailers would have seen one in this time! :neutral:

Wow, I didn't realize this was such a rare fish. I think I might have just gotten one since it is a doliatus. Shy guy so far, won't really let me get a good look at him. He just swims into the rocks when I walk to my tank but I know he swims around when i am not close by because I see him out as I am walking over. Oh well, maybe its just a "first few days" kind of thing, and it will be less shy after a week or so.

It's not really a rare fish. It's just that I've asked several retailers to watch out for one but I think they either forget, or just don't care. I can sort of understand, if it's only a $40 fish why should they spend hours trying to track one down..

Some retailers I've spoken to, well, either there's a language barrier or they just don't care enough about what the fish really is, for it to be a meaningful conversation. For example one store I asked said "Yes, of course we can get you a foxface." .. "Yeah, see. um .. the thing is .. it's not a foxface? It's a penciled rabbitfish." "Ya ya ya! Foxface!" :lol:

Please try to snap a picture of yours if you can. Would love to see him :)

Hey Tony I believe I saw two a couple weeks ago at J&L . Didnt take a close look but at a glance they had more lines then my S Virgatus.
Chris

Ocean Aquatics says on their website there is no problem getting one?

I've asked Wendell too... several times. I've come to the conclusion that it's basically pointless to ask anyone to look out for one .. nothing ever comes of it ... and only just ask if they are in stock at the moment.

Nobody has any in their tank to take pictures of? :(

My only options are for a Siganus virgatus I could bring a couple of these in hoping that they are actually a doliatus.
Kevin

Thanks Kev - we can talk next time I'm by. :)

Hey Tony... I did put you on the livestock waitlist at J&L for one. The waitlist is a new thing... since before it was just kinda like: "whoever can remember whats his face that wanted the so and so". But now we have a running list of all livestock people are waiting for, and we actually check the list after every shipment!

I asked Rene if she ever sees the doliatus on order lists, and she says rarely. I will ask her about trying to bring one in if she sees it. I did have a real good look at the virgatus J&L has in right now... but they are pretty small and its hard to tell. The lines on their sides look pretty broken though.

I hope this makes you feel a bit better! :)

-Diana

Just for Tony......

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/a...s/DSC_1597.jpg

http://i196.photobucket.com/albums/a...s/DSC_1609.jpg

She is about 3 1/2 and maybe 8 inches or so. Maybe its a he....dont know!

Scott

Ooooh, gorgeous!! Thanks :)

And Diana - thanks :)

Cool fish. Aren't these venomous?

Yep all Rabbitfish are venomous. I got nailed by a Foxface once and it does really hurt!

i just got a blue lined rabbit fish the other day. been wanting one for a long time, didn't want the regular yellow one or the one spot

When I get home I will try to get a pic of mine. He/she is about 4 1/2 inches and is a happy inhabitant of my aggressive tank. :biggrin:

:biggrin:As promised plus a video.:biggrin:
http://s263.photobucket.com/albums/i...t=100_1554.jpg

http://s263.photobucket.com/albums/i...t=100_1552.jpg

http://s263.photobucket.com/albums/i...t=100_1555.flv

Awesome !!! Beautiful fish. Thanks!! :)