The royal gramma is really an excellent fish for a marine aquarium, including a reef tank. Very hardy, colorful and interesting to watch, this fish’s coloration consists of purple to dark blue in the front half of the body, bright yellow in the rear, and a black lighting strike through the eye. This is a fish that is always remembered after the first time it is seen.

The royal gramma does well with fairly peaceful fish that cannot eat it. This fish will stake out one or more holes in the rockwork of the tank, and defend that territory with great vigor. While it is always best to keep just one royal gramma in a tank, multiple fish can be kept if the tank is large enough and there are plenty of hiding places – at least twice as many as there are fish. This fish will aggressively attack any other similar fish such as basslets. The royal gramma will breed in the aquarium, with the male being the larger fish.

Feeding the royal gramma is not a problem, as it will eat almost any kind of meaty food such as brine shrimp, Mysis shrimp or chopped up pieces of fish, clam or shrimp. The fish will pop out of its hiding place to feed, quickly darting back to its den.