CreatureData

Blue tang

Acanthurus coeruleus Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Status not recordedbony fish

The blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus) is a species in the family Acanthuridae, order Acanthuriformes.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the blue tang

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the blue tang live?

Not recorded

Is the blue tang endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the blue tang classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classTeleostei
  4. orderAcanthuriformes
  5. familyAcanthuridae
  6. genusAcanthurus
  7. SpeciesAcanthurus coeruleus Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Synonyms Acanthurus brevis, Acanthurus broussonnetii, Acanthurus caeruleus, Acanthurus coerulus, Acanthurus heliodes, Acanthurus helioides, Acanthurus violaceus, Acronurus caeruleatus, Hepatus caeruleus, Hepatus pawnee, Teuthis coeruleus, Teuthis helioides

Other names and names in other languages (52)
  • Atlantic blue tangEnglish
  • Blue barberEnglish
  • Blue doctorEnglish
  • Blue doctorfishEnglish
  • Blue surgeonfishEnglish
  • Blue tang surgeonfishEnglish
  • Caribbean blue tangEnglish
  • Yellow barberEnglish
  • Yellow doctorfishEnglish
  • peix cirurgià blau del CaribCatalan
  • 蓝刺尾鱼Chinese
  • bodlok modrýCzech
  • Blå kirurgfiskDanish
  • Blauer DoktorfischGerman
  • DoctorSpanish
  • Sinine kirurgkalaEstonian
  • SinivälskäriFinnish
  • Chirurgien BleuFrench
  • Sous-géHaitian Creole
  • Pesce chirurgo bluItalian
  • Mėlynasis jūrų chirurgasLithuanian
  • Caribische doktersvisDutch
  • KleinvissiePapiamento
  • Pokolec TurkusowyPolish
  • BarbeiroPortuguese
  • Синий хирургRussian
  • 藍刺尾魚Chinese
  • 黃刺尾魚Chinese
  • 黄刺尾鱼Chinese
  • Spätblauer DoktorfischGerman
  • BarberoSpanish
  • barbero azulSpanish
  • CirujanoSpanish
  • cirujano azulSpanish
  • Doctor azulSpanish
  • MédicoSpanish
  • NavajeroSpanish
  • NavajónSpanish
  • Navajón AzulSpanish
  • Sangrador AzulSpanish
  • Chirurgien bayolleFrench
  • Poisson-chirurgien bleuFrench
  • Kleinfeshi blouPapiamento
  • Acara-únaPortuguese
  • Acaraúna-azulPortuguese
  • Acaraúna-pretaPortuguese
  • Barbeiro-azulPortuguese
  • Cirugião-azulPortuguese
  • Cirurgião-azulPortuguese
  • Peixe-cirurgiãoPortuguese
  • Peixe-doutorPortuguese
  • хирург синийRussian

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the blue tang

Other species in the same genus Acanthurus.

Clown tang

Acanthurus lineatus

AcanthuridaeNo free photo yet

Convictfish

Acanthurus triostegus

AcanthuridaeNo free photo yet

Palani

Acanthurus dussumieri

AcanthuridaeNo free photo yet

Sohal

Acanthurus sohal

AcanthuridaeNo free photo yet

Redspot tang

Acanthurus achilles

AcanthuridaeNo free photo yet

CompareBlue tang vs Blue surgeonfishBlue tang vs Clown tangBlue tang vs ConvictfishBlue tang vs Palani

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

What kind of animal is the blue tang?

The blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus) belongs to the family Acanthuridae in the order Acanthuriformes.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-tang

MLA

“Blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-tang.

BibTeX
@misc{blue_tang_2026,
  title = {Blue tang (Acanthurus coeruleus)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/blue-tang},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}