Black Cap Basslet

[detroit_fan]

just curious if anyone has had this species? think i would have any problems putting it in a 55 gal w/ kole tang, yellow tang, 2 orange skunk clown, 2 perc clowns, 1 royal gramma. Thanks for any info

 

[andywg]

According to Reef Fishes Volume 2: the blackcap basslet (Gramma melacara) becomes an aggressive defendor of its territory, and is the same genus as the royal gramma (Gramma loreto). I would exepct plenty of territorial disputes and a fair amount of aggression between the two in a tank your size.

Others may have different experiences though.

 

[Siamese Fighter05]

Lots of reports of it being very aggresive to tankmates.

I think you need to sort your tank stocking out before adding more fish though

Tangs in a 55 not a good idea

2 different species of clownfish will fight for territory as they grow

 

[hyrookin]

there will be problems with the royal gramma,
possibly with the other fish as well once he acclimates and stakes his territory,
as it may be too much with the tangs.

 

[JJ1234567]

acccording to marine fishes, a pocket expert guide: "a large male can become quite aggressive once established in the aquarium community, being espeically fervent about its favorite cave (ok i paraphrased)" It also mentions that being from deeper waters they tend to adjust better to more subdued lighting.


But that aside, I would say you are more than fully stocked right now. A kole tang gets to be almost 8 inches in lengh and requires 75 gallons (read minimum) when fully grown. The yellow tang also requires 75 gallons (read minimum). Two different species of clowns kept singlely may not fight in a 4 foot or longer tank. Two pairs kept in less than 6 feet will fight. Not enough territory to make the females happy and comfortable. The gramma and the basslet are the same subspecies and occupy the same places in the reef/tank. There will be a problem there. All and all i think you should not add another fish at this point, but you should re-evaluate what your doing and where your going with your stocking options.

 

[detroit_fan]

thank you for all the opinions. i definately don't want any problems with my gramma, so the basslet will be a no go!

depending on what you read i have found several references to kole and yellow tangs being ok in a 50gal or larger, but don't worry i won't put in any more. i am also planning on moving into a new house within 1-2 years, and will upgrade to about a 100-150 gal. as for the clowns, both pairs are really young, (only about 1- 1.5 inches each) and were introduced together so i figured it's worth a shot. the skunks live in a long tentacle anemone and the percs are on the other side of the tank by the filter box(flat sides).

i also want to add that i have 50 lbs of fiji and fiji branch live rock, and also run a 75 gal wet dry so i do have good filtration imo.

once again thanks for all your opinons i really appreciate the advice,

Jason

 

[JJ1234567]

really its not so much your filtration. There will be territory issues with the clowns as they age. As for the tangs Yellows I have seen listed as 50 gallons rarely. The problem is that most tangs are straight line swimmers, so you really do no justice keeping them in less than a 5-6ft long tank. But hey, your fish, your money.