AnimalsCoral Reef
Blue tang Fun facts for kids
Paracanthurus hepatus
The blue tang lives on coral reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans and eats tiny sea animals and algae.
- Where it lives
- on coral reefs in the Indian and Pacific Oceans
- What it eats
- tiny sea animals and algae
- How big it is
- about as big as a plate
Fun facts about the blue tang
The ones Sammy likes best. She tells them in the game, too.
It has a sharp spine on each side of its tail, like a doctor's tiny knife, so it is called a surgeonfish.
Baby blue tangs are mostly yellow, and they turn bright blue as they grow up.
Sometimes it lies on its side and stays very still, as if it is playing dead.
When it gets scared, it dives into a crack in the coral and squeezes itself in tight.
It swims by flapping its side fins, like rowing a boat, not by wagging its tail.
It can make its blue lighter or darker, and it often turns paler at night while it rests.
Its body is flat and oval, like a pancake standing on its edge.
The black mark on its side looks like a painter's palette for mixing paints.
Riddle
Can a friend guess it?
Read the clues to someone, one at a time, without saying the animal. How many clues do they need? Fewer is better, just like in the game.
I live on warm coral reefs and swim around all day with my group.
When I get scared, I dive into a crack in the coral and squeeze in tight.
I swim by flapping my side fins, like rowing a boat, not by wagging my tail.
I have a sharp spine on each side of my tail, like a doctor's tiny knife.
I'm bright blue with a yellow tail, and a forgetful fish like me helps look for Nemo.
Sammy might be thinking of a blue tang.
In Thought Zoo, Sammy picks an animal and you ask her yes-or-no questions to find it. You'll find the blue tang in the Coral Reef adventure.
Play the Coral ReefComing to iPad, iPhone and Android on 12 January 2027
