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Orbiculate Batfish
Batfish

Orbiculate Batfish

Platax orbicularis

A large, disc-shaped Indo-Pacific batfish that reaches a genuine 50–60 cm and is taller than it is long, so retailers recommend nothing smaller than roughly 700–1,360 L with real vertical swimming room. Sold in a reddish-brown, black-spotted juvenile 'dead leaf' camouflage that gradually turns silvery-grey with black bars as an adult — either stage is not reef safe, since it eats soft corals, anemones and other sessile invertebrates as it grows. It's one of the hardier batfish and a fairly willing eater once settled, but this is a lifetime commitment to a fish that outgrows almost every home reef tank.

Temperament
Peaceful
Max size
23.6"
Min tank
360 gal
Reef-safe
Not reef safe
Diet
Omnivore
Zone
Mid-water, Open water
Keep just one per tank — two will fight.
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Tankmates

How Orbiculate Batfish gets on with the rest of the reef, checked pair by pair by the same engine as the live pre-flight.

Best kept apart

A real clash — aggression, predation or a same-genus fight.

Pinnate BatfishOrbiculate Batfish and Pinnate Batfish are the same genus (Platax) and will fight — keep only one.Blue-Leg Hermit CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Blue-Leg Hermit Crab is on the menu.Trochus SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Trochus Snail is on the menu.Astrea SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Astrea Snail is on the menu.Cerith SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Cerith Snail is on the menu.Nassarius SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Nassarius Snail is on the menu.Nerite SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Nerite Snail is on the menu.Mexican Turbo SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Mexican Turbo Snail is on the menu.Bumble Bee SnailOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Bumble Bee Snail is on the menu.Fighting ConchOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Fighting Conch is on the menu.Scarlet Reef Hermit CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Scarlet Reef Hermit Crab is on the menu.Zebra Hermit CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Zebra Hermit Crab is on the menu.Halloween Hermit CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Halloween Hermit Crab is on the menu.Emerald CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Emerald Crab is on the menu.Sally Lightfoot CrabOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Sally Lightfoot Crab is on the menu.Banded Serpent StarOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Banded Serpent Star is on the menu.Sand-Sifting StarfishOrbiculate Batfish hunts small cleanup-crew inverts — your Sand-Sifting Starfish is on the menu.Skunk Cleaner ShrimpOrbiculate Batfish hunts ornamental shrimp — your Skunk Cleaner Shrimp is on the menu.Fire ShrimpOrbiculate Batfish hunts ornamental shrimp — your Fire Shrimp is on the menu.Peppermint ShrimpOrbiculate Batfish hunts ornamental shrimp — your Peppermint Shrimp is on the menu.