Fish Ideas

weezawoo

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Im sure everyone hates these kind of threads as there is so many choices :D

I have looked through alot of different fish and come up with a few I like the look of. The only thing is I am finding it hard to get decent reliable info so think it is best to go to the people who have kept/keep these fish and know their stuff :D

Almost definates:
pair clown fish
chalk goby (although other colours are possible i.e blue cheek)
flame angel

options:
Multibarred angel (possibly not reef safe?)
Longfin Anthias (fragile)
Royal Gramma (tempermental?)
Longnose Butterflyfish (hard to feed?)
Green Chromis (need big shoal to stop fighting?)
Cross Damsel (PITA?)
Fire Goby
Powder Blue Tang
Regal Tang (I know they need big tanks but been told I have a big enough and enough litres)
Yellow Tang
Bangaii Cardinals (boring?)
flasher wrasse
Orchid Dottyback (hit and miss?)

Bits in brackets are the main bits I seem to have found that could be no nos in regards to that fish. Mainly questions as to if this is right? Also aware of ich problems being higher in tangs, I plan on keeping an eye on this and right on it! Only time I had it in my freshwater tank is when I had to take in a clown loach, ich was gone in a matter of days so seems ok to treat! Correct me if I am wrong!

If there are any others I should take a look at that are colourful, nice additions would be great!

Also having to look at CUC and still can't decide on definates or a final list of options!
 
Im sure everyone hates these kind of threads as there is so many choices :D

I have looked through alot of different fish and come up with a few I like the look of. The only thing is I am finding it hard to get decent reliable info so think it is best to go to the people who have kept/keep these fish and know their stuff :D

Almost definates:
pair clown fish
chalk goby (although other colours are possible i.e blue cheek)
flame angel

options:
Multibarred angel (possibly not reef safe?)
Longfin Anthias (fragile)
Royal Gramma (tempermental?) they shuold be fine added nearer the end of stocking
Longnose Butterflyfish (hard to feed?)
Green Chromis (need big shoal to stop fighting?) yep :sad:
Cross Damsel (PITA?)
Fire Goby very easy
Powder Blue Tang
Regal Tang (I know they need big tanks but been told I have a big enough and enough litres) need about 400 litres
Yellow Tang 55g minimum
Bangaii Cardinals (boring?) nope, just elegant swimmers :good:
flasher wrasse stunning fish should go well in your stocking
Orchid Dottyback (hit and miss?)

Bits in brackets are the main bits I seem to have found that could be no nos in regards to that fish. Mainly questions as to if this is right? Also aware of ich problems being higher in tangs, I plan on keeping an eye on this and right on it! Only time I had it in my freshwater tank is when I had to take in a clown loach, ich was gone in a matter of days so seems ok to treat! Correct me if I am wrong!

If there are any others I should take a look at that are colourful, nice additions would be great!

Also having to look at CUC and still can't decide on definates or a final list of options! hermits, turbo snails, snails for sand
 
Sorry forgot to mention tank size haha :) it will end up being around 550l total volume with the sump!!

I heard tangs should be the final ones added, so if I did the royal gramma before that it should be fine?

I really dislike snails lol, but know I need some so its the smaller ones for me! Defo want halloween hermits, they showed me some in the lfs and they are so cute! Love the blue legged hermits but heard they are a little nastier than reds. I looked at a few then was told of so many more I should look at haha! Then saw yours and it gets so hard. Looked at some in lfs but most of theirs is out back so it is a little hard to just watch them if you know what I mean!

Want some shrimps but not sure on which ones.

:D
 
Sorry forgot to mention tank size haha :) it will end up being around 550l total volume with the sump!!

I heard tangs should be the final ones added, so if I did the royal gramma before that it should be fine? in a tank that size it will be fine.

I really dislike snails same here lol, but know I need some so its the smaller ones for me! Defo want halloween hermits, they showed me some in the lfs and they are so cute! Love the blue legged hermits but heard they are a little nastier than reds. I looked at a few then was told of so many more I should look at haha! Then saw yours and it gets so hard. Looked at some in lfs but most of theirs is out back so it is a little hard to just watch them if you know what i mean halloweens should be fine with you if you dont get a conch, so i gotta go blue legs instead

Want some shrimps but not sure on which ones. cleaner, sexy, fire, peppermint

:D

Then saw yours and it gets so hard

:blink: This is a family forum remember :lol:
 
Love the blue legged hermits but heard they are a little nastier than reds.

What are "reds"? "Blue leg" hermits (Clibanarius tricolor) are sometimes considered to be bit more aggressive than their redder/browner counterparts, namely C. digueti and C. erythropus, but I suspect those differences may flip flop depending on the environment. Generally a small Clibanarius is a small Clibanarius; they're the most peaceful group of hermits I have seen, probably due to their relatively small expected size and proportionally small claws. You have to create a pretty bad or strange situation to make one of them fly of the handle and go on a rampage. I have heard of it happening, but always in a mixed species environment - which is an easy enough situation to avoid. All three of those Clibanarius species stay quite a bit smaller on average than the solid red-colored Paguristes cadenati. The small Clibanarius IME are also more snail-safe than Ciliopagurus strigatus (I presume this is what you mean by "haloween hermit", but the orange form of Calcinus elegans also goes by that name in the trade). At any rate, as long as you don't mix hermit species and don't add really small snails, any of those hermits will probably be alright.
 
Gramma's only really become temperamental when they are kept in small tanks and with too many tank mates of similar size. I would add the tangs all at the same time otherwise they are likely to fight with each other when adding one after another and can hurt each other easily with their scalpels
 
Then saw yours and it gets so hard

:blink: This is a family forum remember :lol:

LOL :hyper: Brilliant :fun:

Ok i'm retyping what i bloody already wrote, as my stupid phone deleted my original reply!!:no: HUMPH! :angry: :-(

Angels are great fish, but they often come with the arguable question and challenge of, are they reef safe? Well this comes down to a number of things and there are curtainly, in my opinion, ways to counter this behaviour. First thing to remember is each fish, like with most animals, is different, forget the species for a second - i'm talking each about fish has its on personality and therefore its own habbits and functions. What one might do, another may not! So some of it is down to luck in some respects. Some poeple own angels that have never touched a coral in their life, others have angels that snack on anything fleshy!
Secondly, species. Each species has its own natural innate behaviours, this can cause curtain species to be known as coral eaters, and others as reef safers! :fun:
So lets look at the third, final factor and most important! why? Well Angels are wild creatures, and in general a species that has not yet been bred successfully in captivity. In the wild these Angel fish will eat by grazing regulary all day to feed their hunger. Therefore Angels behaviour is innately programmed to nibble at food, and constantly eat. When placed in an aquarium the fish is suddenly made to eat once a day with no grazing foods. Makes for a confused Angel LOL! So they look else where to substain their appitites! :huh: yep! your coral!! :angry:

So how can we try to stop this behaviour? Well i dont suggest letting algae overrun your tank in order to feed them! But what is beneficial to these fish (dwarf or regular) is a regular supply of dried seaweed clipped to the side of the tank! YUM! :fun: Also some dried mouldable food that can be fixed to a rock to allow grazing on the rock all day. The angels diet consists of algae, sponge and meat. They should be offered both. A good food to provide them is oceans nutricion Angel Formula. :good:

Angels should be housed in larger sided aquariums (yours is fine!) and provided with lots of live rock to hide behind as well as to pick from. :) They are generally quite peaceful but can certainly hold their own against a tank bully. They appreciate space for swimming too. In general terms they require very good water quality.

So.. your choice! The FLAME ANGEL! Well.. brilliant choice! Colourful, and robust and probably the most hardy of the dwarf angels! The Flame angel will fit nicely in your tank, and be a fantastic addition, they are not normally a big issue for coral nipping and take well to aquarium life (still offer seaweed and food you can mould on your rock!). Only downside - the price. I'm hoping your aware that this fish costs about £70 in the UK.

And your considering the MULTIBAR ANGEL. Sorry to shoot you down here but a number of things concern me regarding this! First - major coral nibblers, this is one of the dwarfs that tend to snack regularly even with regular feedings! Second issue is that theres a 'only one dwarf angel per tank' rule, as they will often fight to death. I'd say leave this one out!

Tangs are next on my topic list! Beautiful and magnificant.. and evil!! :lol: Tangs are great fish and in a tank your size you could house certain species. Tangs are best kept as individuals, and cross matching species should be kept at a minimium. Tangs are bullys. They like to be top dog and they're usually big enough to kick most fishes asses! They tend to not challenge bigger fish. They need lots of swimming space as they spend most of their time swimming! like Dorys says "just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming swimming!!" :D

So whats on your list! YELLOW TANG - one of the best. BRIGHT YELLOW, what other fish can be so sunny and happy looking! NONE! :good: Would fit in your tank, remember he likes to swim! Yellow Tangs can be naughty with other fish and bullying, especially other Tangs with yellow on them! Eats mysis, and other meaty foods, also an algae grazer so will snack on that dried seaweed!! Tangs are grazers too! One of your last to add!

The POWDER BLUE TANG or the Dory substitute as i like to think of them as! Again, great fish, needs swimming space and eats meaty foods such as mysis and brine. Would fit in your tank no problem, not known overly for bullying but as with most tangs, they can. Again one the last fish you add, i'd add before the yellow tang though.

Lastly REGAL TANG hmm the issues is, they get MASSIVE and really they need a 6 foot tank as min and a lot of space to swim. I cant remember you specs, but i think it's a lil too small! :( Pretty peaceful though, tends to follow other fish around and can annoy them. Very prone to white spot. If your specs fit add him whenever. The very small tend to die very quick!!

all tangs are prone to white spot. common mistake - its easy to deal with it. its a PAIN! You can treat in a hospital tank, but the main tank takes weeks for the parasites to die, and no fish can be allowed in during this time. Or get a cleaner wrasse or neon goby to control numbers.

wow this is taking forever!! lol

ROYAL GRAMMA - never had an issue with aggressiveness. They have their terroritory and will stand their ground to protect it but ultimately once terroritorys have been agreed, they mind their own. I wouldn't say it mattered when you add them but some would disagree. They eat meaty foods, and are very hardy. Completely reef safe. They live in the grooves of the live rock, and when scared they hide in their groove. They are brightly coloured but tend to just float near their hole, darting around occassionly at feeding. For the reason i think they're a bit boring i put them as amber. Your choice really! they are very nice colours though and completely appreciate why they are so popular!

ORCHID DOTTYBACK exactly the same as Royal Gramma, slightly different species. Most are more shy than the Royal. Same issues, as above, same benefits/care needs. YOU MUST ONLY KEEP ONE (dotty or royal)

Chromis / Damsels - if you provide a ton of space then cool, but they are very very aggressive and will bully anything it can get away with, especially the clowns. Suited to your size tank no problem.

GREEN CHROMIS- i've only recently appreciated how cool these fish are, but only when shoalling! Aggressive by nature, but if kept in a group, they are aggressive only to each other. They should be kept in groups of 5 upwards and when purchased they should been in a tank together, swimming together. Do not buy independantly of each other as there are storys of them killing each other to become pack leader! They are harmless to inverts and corals, and eat meaty foods. Provide rock for them to hide in if scared.

DAMSEL CROSS very aggressive and go a horrible beige when adult. Would advise against it. Most damsels end up at being returned after a few months. They have a rep for biting hands that are put in 'their' tank. They eat meaty foods, and dont require much space. If an aquarium isnt over crowded then there is a chance this damsel could be kept agression free but its a HUGE risk as most are.

BANGAAII CARDINALS known to many as boring (**COUGH** SEFFIE!!!) but as put by fishy 55599 'elegant swimmers!' They bob all over the place, and have a wierd fasination with anemones!! They are meat eaters, and dont require much. They like good water quality and are very placid and peaceful. :good: They are funny to watch and although they dont move much, their presence is always known! Not a fish that hides thats fo sho! suited to your tank.

FLASHER WRASSE- wrasse, a beautiful fish but WITH CAUTION. 2 issues with wrasse. one, they jump, as in yes, they jump out the water and onto your floor where you discover them a week later when the smell kicks in! :D two, they can eat urchins, shellfish and some other inverts (just watch out) Flashers, however tend to leave these alone with a good feeding routine. Should fit in your tank nicely and have no special requirements like other type of wrasse. They are very peaceful.

Ok, i'm out of time, sorry! will do the last 2 tomorrow! :blink: Sorry this last bit was a bit rushed. Took me ages and i need to go out. Any q's then ask, i'll be back tomorrow to finish. Hope that helps!! ;)
 
Then saw yours and it gets so hard

:blink: This is a family forum remember :lol:

LOL :hyper: Brilliant :fun:

Thanks :lol:

Ok i'm retyping what i bloody already wrote, as my stupid phone deleted my original reply!!:no: HUMPH! :angry: :-(

Angels are great fish, but they often come with the arguable question and challenge of, are they reef safe? Well this comes down to a number of things and there are curtainly, in my opinion, ways to counter this behaviour. First thing to remember is each fish, like with most animals, is different, forget the species for a second - i'm talking each about fish has its on personality and therefore its own habbits and functions. What one might do, another may not! So some of it is down to luck in some respects. Some poeple own angels that have never touched a coral in their life, others have angels that snack on anything fleshy!
Secondly, species. Each species has its own natural innate behaviours, this can cause curtain species to be known as coral eaters, and others as reef safers! :fun:
So lets look at the third, final factor and most important! why? Well Angels are wild creatures, and in general a species that has not yet been bred successfully in captivity. In the wild these Angel fish will eat by grazing regulary all day to feed their hunger. Therefore Angels behaviour is innately programmed to nibble at food, and constantly eat. When placed in an aquarium the fish is suddenly made to eat once a day with no grazing foods. Makes for a confused Angel LOL! So they look else where to substain their appitites! :huh: yep! your coral!! :angry:

So how can we try to stop this behaviour? Well i dont suggest letting algae overrun your tank in order to feed them! But what is beneficial to these fish (dwarf or regular) is a regular supply of dried seaweed clipped to the side of the tank! YUM! :fun: Also some dried mouldable food that can be fixed to a rock to allow grazing on the rock all day. The angels diet consists of algae, sponge and meat. They should be offered both. A good food to provide them is oceans nutricion Angel Formula. :good:

Angels should be housed in larger sided aquariums (yours is fine!) and provided with lots of live rock to hide behind as well as to pick from. :) They are generally quite peaceful but can certainly hold their own against a tank bully. They appreciate space for swimming too. In general terms they require very good water quality.

So.. your choice! The FLAME ANGEL! Well.. brilliant choice! Colourful, and robust and probably the most hardy of the dwarf angels! The Flame angel will fit nicely in your tank, and be a fantastic addition, they are not normally a big issue for coral nipping and take well to aquarium life (still offer seaweed and food you can mould on your rock!). Only downside - the price. I'm hoping your aware that this fish costs about £70 in the UK.

And your considering the MULTIBAR ANGEL. Sorry to shoot you down here but a number of things concern me regarding this! First - major coral nibblers, this is one of the dwarfs that tend to snack regularly even with regular feedings! Second issue is that theres a 'only one dwarf angel per tank' rule, as they will often fight to death. I'd say leave this one out!

Tangs are next on my topic list! Beautiful and magnificant.. and evil!! :lol: Tangs are great fish and in a tank your size you could house certain species. Tangs are best kept as individuals, and cross matching species should be kept at a minimium. Tangs are bullys. They like to be top dog and they're usually big enough to kick most fishes asses! They tend to not challenge bigger fish. They need lots of swimming space as they spend most of their time swimming! like Dorys says "just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming swimming!!" :D

So whats on your list! YELLOW TANG - one of the best. BRIGHT YELLOW, what other fish can be so sunny and happy looking! NONE! :good: Would fit in your tank, remember he likes to swim! Yellow Tangs can be naughty with other fish and bullying, especially other Tangs with yellow on them! Eats mysis, and other meaty foods, also an algae grazer so will snack on that dried seaweed!! Tangs are grazers too! One of your last to add!

The POWDER BLUE TANG or the Dory substitute as i like to think of them as! Again, great fish, needs swimming space and eats meaty foods such as mysis and brine. Would fit in your tank no problem, not known overly for bullying but as with most tangs, they can. Again one the last fish you add, i'd add before the yellow tang though.

Lastly REGAL TANG hmm the issues is, they get MASSIVE and really they need a 6 foot tank as min and a lot of space to swim. I cant remember you specs, but i think it's a lil too small! :( Pretty peaceful though, tends to follow other fish around and can annoy them. Very prone to white spot. If your specs fit add him whenever. The very small tend to die very quick!!

all tangs are prone to white spot. common mistake - its easy to deal with it. its a PAIN! You can treat in a hospital tank, but the main tank takes weeks for the parasites to die, and no fish can be allowed in during this time. Or get a cleaner wrasse or neon goby to control numbers.

wow this is taking forever!! lol

ROYAL GRAMMA - never had an issue with aggressiveness. They have their terroritory and will stand their ground to protect it but ultimately once terroritorys have been agreed, they mind their own. I wouldn't say it mattered when you add them but some would disagree. They eat meaty foods, and are very hardy. Completely reef safe. They live in the grooves of the live rock, and when scared they hide in their groove. They are brightly coloured but tend to just float near their hole, darting around occassionly at feeding. For the reason i think they're a bit boring i put them as amber. Your choice really! they are very nice colours though and completely appreciate why they are so popular!

ORCHID DOTTYBACK exactly the same as Royal Gramma, slightly different species. Most are more shy than the Royal. Same issues, as above, same benefits/care needs. YOU MUST ONLY KEEP ONE (dotty or royal)

Chromis / Damsels - if you provide a ton of space then cool, but they are very very aggressive and will bully anything it can get away with, especially the clowns. Suited to your size tank no problem.

GREEN CHROMIS- i've only recently appreciated how cool these fish are, but only when shoalling! Aggressive by nature, but if kept in a group, they are aggressive only to each other. They should be kept in groups of 5 upwards and when purchased they should been in a tank together, swimming together. Do not buy independantly of each other as there are storys of them killing each other to become pack leader! They are harmless to inverts and corals, and eat meaty foods. Provide rock for them to hide in if scared.

DAMSEL CROSS very aggressive and go a horrible beige when adult. Would advise against it. Most damsels end up at being returned after a few months. They have a rep for biting hands that are put in 'their' tank. They eat meaty foods, and dont require much space. If an aquarium isnt over crowded then there is a chance this damsel could be kept agression free but its a HUGE risk as most are.

BANGAAII CARDINALS known to many as boring (**COUGH** SEFFIE!!!) but as put by fishy 55599 'elegant swimmers!' They bob all over the place, and have a wierd fasination with anemones!! They are meat eaters, and dont require much. They like good water quality and are very placid and peaceful. :good: They are funny to watch and although they dont move much, their presence is always known! Not a fish that hides thats fo sho! suited to your tank.

FLASHER WRASSE- wrasse, a beautiful fish but WITH CAUTION. 2 issues with wrasse. one, they jump, as in yes, they jump out the water and onto your floor where you discover them a week later when the smell kicks in! :D two, they can eat urchins, shellfish and some other inverts (just watch out) Flashers, however tend to leave these alone with a good feeding routine. Should fit in your tank nicely and have no special requirements like other type of wrasse. They are very peaceful.

Ok, i'm out of time, sorry! will do the last 2 tomorrow! :blink: Sorry this last bit was a bit rushed. Took me ages and i need to go out. Any q's then ask, i'll be back tomorrow to finish. Hope that helps!! ;)

i feel sorry that you had to write that out in the first place, but to do it a second time! :blink: id have gave up :look:
 
I've been waiting around a lot today on trains and things!! Lol :lol: You can tell I was bored - hope it helps!
 
Guess I'm just an immensely great person then!!! Lol :lol:
 
Lol!! Cos I was being kind and helping out a salty brother!! Lol!! Come on fishy!!
 
Wow thank you for that reply! And on your phone too... must have taken you ages!!!

OK few things I am responding as I read through lol!


With the angels I remember my lfs mentioning about something you stick to the edge of the tank for them to snack on daily. He also said he would be able to hold the fish for around 4 weeks to check his temperment and QT them. This could help a little in getting the right fish. I will steer clear of the multibar, the list isn't a list of everything I want in there its what is best from it! Price wise doesn't bother me, I am taking my time with stocking etc and would save the money, makes buying him much more exciting :D the Chalk goby is £65 in my lfs!

Are there any other dwarf angels that you would reccomend over the Flame?

Tank is a 6footer but 18inches wide. My lfs are very knowledgeable and are known for being reliable. He thinks a regal would be in this but if others think it really is not a good idea that is ok! Regals are stunning and if it meant reducing the amount of other fish down to have one I would lol! Also wanted to be childish and have nemo and dory :blush: I also read they need 100gplus, my tank is a little over this so wanted some 2nd advice :D

I can understand why you wouldn't be fond of the royal gramma from the description. The colours on them are lovely and it might be quite interesting to watch them defend their little groove :D I might watch them in the lfs for a bit or look on youtube! Understand about only a dotty or royal. On google images the dotty looks very purply but people say they are more pinker. Will take a good look at these if they have them in at my lfs. I have plenty of time to have a look!

I saw chromis and think they are lovely in a shoal. Are there any other shoaling fish you would recommend instead? They were my choice for a shoal as would like a nice shoal in the tank. The other fish were mainly just 1s or pairs in the case of the clowns.

Damsel cross is off the list!! thanks!

The bangaii's are just a very interesting looking fish, and tbh I don't think I need every fish in my tank to be fast swimmers and darting around all over the place, might be nice to have some 'elegant' swimmers

I plan to get some glass sliders for the top of tank as I am going to need to suspend my halides, I don't want an open top because of things like sprays etc. This should stop the jumping problems.

+++++++

It most definately does help and I apreciate it a lot!!! I have saved all the bits on my comp for reference! You just might be my go to guy now for any fish advice :D

So I finish typing to see this!!!

Lol!! Cos I was being kind and helping out a salty brother!! Lol!! Come on fishy!!

:angry:

Haha!

*cough SISTER cough*

Thanks fishy :good:
 

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