Yellow-Banded Basslet (Lipogramma Haberi)
The Yellow-Banded Basslet (Lipogramma Haberi) is recently identified deep water species that is indigenous to the southern coast of Curaçao and probably Bonaire, and St Eustatius in the Caribbean.
The Yellow-Banded Basslet has previously been believed to be the juvenile form of the Hourglass Basslet (Lipogramma levinsoni) which would extend its probable range throughout the Caribbean and West Atlantic to Dominica, San Salvador, Jamaica, and the Netherlands Antilles.
The Yellow-Banded Basslet is a small, peaceful, demersal basslet that is encountered alone and often in pairs hovering among the small rocky rubble that is found on the gradual slopes of the deep outer reefs at depths from 498 to over 760 feet.
Like the Hourglass Basslet, the Yellow-Banded Basslet is collected by deep diving submersibles and will quickly disappear into the rubble on the slopes when approached.
Yellow-Banded Basslet (Lipogramma Haberi)
The Yellow-Banded Basslet is similar in appearance to the Hourglass Basslet (Lipogramma levinsoni) however it is smaller in overall size and has thicker bands. Lipogramma Haberi has a yellowish to white body color with three wide, dusky brown vertical bars running over its head and body in the same pattern as Lipogramma levinsoni however, the rear bar is much lighter than the other two bars.
Because they are collected by submersibles at the same depths as Banded Basslets (from 300 to 500 feet), the Yellow-Banded Basslet requires pristine water quality and a dimly lit tank with an aquarium chiller to maintain their optimal 67⁰F temperature requirements. They are best housed alone or in pairs in a mature reef tank of at least 20 gallon capacity with a finely crushed coral or sandy substrate, plenty of live rock arranged into crevices, caves, and ledges for them to hide among, and sufficient swimming area.
Yellow-Banded Basslets are completely reef safe and will not disturb corals, decorative clams, or most other reef inhabitants. They are peaceful, extremely shy, and will shelter above their cave or crevice most of the time.
Although peaceful tankmates like Chromis or Dartfish can be housed with them, because of their small size, they are best enjoyed as a single species. They should never be kept with aggressive tankmates.
Yellow-Banded Basslets have never been bred in an aquarium environment.
In their natural habitat, Yellow-Banded Basslets are small carnivores that feed primarily on zooplankton and tiny microorganisms. In an aquarium environment, they will accept small micron sized foods like baby brine shrimp, LRS Reef Frenzy Nano, PE Calanus, Brightwell Aquatics Zooplanktos
Because of the rarity of the species, the depths that it frequents, and its recent reidentification; the Yellow-Banded Basslet (Lipogramma Haberi) is not yet available for sale to tropical fish keeping enthusiasts.
Because Lipogramma Haberi are collected by marine submersibles at depths to over 500 feet which is
beyond the limits of scuba and most rebreather divers, and decompressed in the same fashion as the Golden Basslet (Liopropoma abberans); rare tropical fish keeping connoisseurs can expect to pay a five figure selling price for this species.
Yellow-Banded Basslet (Lipogramma Haberi)
Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons
Aquarium Type: Reef or FOLR
Care Level: Moderate
Temperament: Peaceful
Aquarium Hardiness: Hardy
Water Conditions: 68°F, dKH 8 – 12°, pH 8.0 – 8.5, sg 1.020-1.026
Max size: 1.31″
Color Form: White, Black, Brown, Blue, Orange
Diet: Carnivore
Compatibility: Reef OK
Origin: Indigenous to Curaçao
Family: Grammatidae
Lifespan: Unknown
Aquarist Experience Level: Intermediate/Expert
