Pseudanthias ventralis (female)

Pseudanthias ventralis, commonly known as the Longfin anthias, is probably the most desired Pseudanthias species. And we can't say this is strange. P. ventralis stays small, so you don't need a huge tank to keep them, and they have the most intense purple, yellow, blue and red you can get on such a small fish! The only downside is that they come from deep waters and thus not cheap and hard to acclimate to a regular tank.

Like all anthias, it's an active fish, but it can be shy in the beginning. It's best kept in a group/school of at least 4-6 fishes. When buying a school you don't need to worry about sex ratios because these fish are hermaphroditic. This means the most dominant fish will automatically turn into the male when there is no other male around.

Keeping this fish in larger numbers will definitely make it shine. Do make sure they can eat multiple times a day though, because in nature they feed on zooplankton the entire day, and are not build for one meal a day!