187 Gallon Fish List- Please Help

[gofor100]

Hey Guys,

So my new tank (60"L X 30"W X 24"T), which will be a mixed reef, will be arriving in about a month, and since I can't do anything but wait at this point, I figured I might as well start finalizing a fish list... :beer:

So here are the fish that are not negotiable and need to go in the tank either because of my wife's or my preferences:

> Blue Chin Triggerfish (Xanthichthys auromarginatus)*- my wife loves triggerfish and this is the smallest reefsafe one
> Moorish Idol (Zancius cornutus)*- this is by far my favorite fish, and although I'm aware that it is difficult to keep, I intend to only select one that is already eating and am confident I can be successful.
> Longnose Butterflyfish (Forcipiger flavissimus)- can't beat the odd look of this fish along with it's nice splash of yellow; kept these before in a mixed reef with no problems, so those that say "no butterflies in a reef" don't have to waste your time on talking me out of this one.
> Starry Blenny (Salaris ramosus)- this is one of the fish that I already have in my 60 gallon, but even if I didn't already have one, it would be hard for me to set up a tank without one... their personalities are GREAT!
> Yellow Wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus)- another fish that I already have, but will keep in the transfer.
> Firefish goby (Nemateleotris magnifica)- the last fish I'll be keeping from my current tank.

All of the other fish below are interchangeable if needed, but I would prefer to put in several of them:

> Powder Blue Tang (Acanthurus leucosternon)- love this fish, but fear it's aggressive nature. Do you think it would be fine with my dimensions, high water flow and an open aquascape? Also, don't want to put too many larger fish in the tank... so not sure if this would be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
> Regal Angelfish (Pygoplites diacanthus)- always have loved this fish, but fear for any acans in the tank (worst case I have a frag tank I can move the LPS to in case it has a taste for them). Also, same comment as the "too many large fish in the tank..."
> Bellus/Ornate Angel (Genicanthus bellus)- a recent fish on my radar if the Regal doesn't fit into my plans/tank. Plus they get stay slightly smaller than the Regal if space is an issue.
> Flame Angel (Centropyge loricula) or Coral Beauty (Centropyge bisponosa)- love these fish and will probably put one of these in there. I know they have a reputation for nipping at SPS, but I haven't had issues since I typically purchase when they are small and keep them well fed.
> Black Ocellaris Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris)- will only get these if I decide to get an anemone, but these may be off the list.
> Yellowtail Damselfish (Chrysiptera parasema)- this isn't the nasty type; have had them before and they're fine
> Flame Hawkfish (Neocirrhites armatus)- another personality fish with nice colors
> Green Mandarin Dragonet (Synchiropus splendidus)- beautiful fish that I haven't kept yet, but will have a refugium in the sump that will hopefully provide it with enough natural food.
> Sleeper Gold Head Goby (Valenciennea strigata)- cool to watch eat through the sand, and I'll be using CaribSea Special Grade Reef Sand, so it the sand should be heavy enough to not create a sandstorm when this guy starts digging around for food. Open to other suggestions for a sandsifter if there are "better" ones out there...
> Radiant Wrasse (Halichoeres iridis)- nice color, active swimmer, and may look at other wrasses from the "Halichoeres" family. Suggestions are welcome...
> Anthias- open to suggestions on this, unless with the other fish I've mentioned it will be too crowded.

Keep in mind, I'm not looking to add ALL of these fish, but these are the fish that I'm interested in, so I will narrow down the list depending on what everyone's thoughts are as far as suitability/compatability and not overcrowding the tank.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Chad

 

[gofor100]

Anyone?

-Chad

 

[clowntriggerfis]

Getting them all would not be a good idea.What type reef tank?Will there be inverts?Triggers usualy aernt reefd safe even the ones that are "reef safe" I think morish a
idols areant reef safe but could be wrong.And have heard regals are zoa and sometimes LPS asasians.

 

[small alien]

Anyone?

-Chad

Hi Chad. I think you're asking a lot if you want people to analyze all the possible interelationships of all those fish. What if you told us the two things you're most concerned about NOT working and we can comment. Sounds like great dimensions for a tank. Good luck.

 

[gofor100]

Thanks for the feedback.

I'm not concerned about inverts like shrimp and crabs. I will be keeping clams sps and lps if that helps.

As far as concerns... Mainly since Ive never set up a larger tank I need some help narrowing the list to a reasonable group that can incorporate the "necessary" fish. Also if anyone has any more suggestions then that could help.

Hope this helps.

Thanks.

Chad

 

[Reefnub]

Everything seems fine imo because you're already aware of the possible problems. Just be ready to remove fishes if they start nipping. I think everything will be fine.

 

[clowntriggerfis]

Hey Guys,

So my new tank (60"L X 30"W X 24"T), which will be a mixed reef, will be arriving in about a month, and since I can't do anything but wait at this point, I figured I might as well start finalizing a fish list... :beer:

So here are the fish that are not negotiable and need to go in the tank either because of my wife's or my preferences:

> Blue Chin Triggerfish (Xanthichthys auromarginatus)*- my wife loves triggerfish and this is the smallest reefsafe one
Your LPS,shrimp,crabs and possibly clams and other corals but it depends on your specific fish.
> Moorish Idol (Zancius cornutus)*- this is by far my favorite fish, and although I'm aware that it is difficult to keep, I intend to only select one that is already eating and am confident I can be successful.
I think the will atack LPS and zoas but not 100% sure.
> Longnose Butterflyfish (Forcipiger flavissimus)- can't beat the odd look of this fish along with it's nice splash of yellow; kept these before in a mixed reef with no problems, so those that say "no butterflies in a reef" don't have to waste your time on talking me out of this one.
Long nose from what I have heard are the best butterflys for reefs.
> Starry Blenny (Salaris ramosus)- this is one of the fish that I already have in my 60 gallon, but even if I didn't already have one, it would be hard for me to set up a tank without one... their personalities are GREAT!
> Yellow Wrasse (Halichoeres chrysus)- another fish that I already have, but will keep in the transfer.
> Firefish goby (Nemateleotris magnifica)- the last fish I'll be keeping from my current tank.
I have heard of fire fish being very timid so make sure nothing isharrasing it.

All of the other fish below are interchangeable if needed, but I would prefer to put in several of them:

> Powder Blue Tang (Acanthurus leucosternon)- love this fish, but fear it's aggressive nature. Do you think it would be fine with my dimensions, high water flow and an open aquascape? Also, don't want to put too many larger fish in the tank... so not sure if this would be the straw that breaks the camel's back.
I would not do one because of your de=minsions and they are very agressive and are ich magnets make sure if you do get one he is the last fish.
> Regal Angelfish (Pygoplites diacanthus)- always have loved this fish, but fear for any acans in the tank (worst case I have a frag tank I can move the LPS to in case it has a taste for them). Also, same comment as the "too many large fish in the tank..."Very difficult to get eating I would look at the "Regal angel primer" and they may attack LPS and clams.
> Bellus/Ornate Angel (Genicanthus bellus)- a recent fish on my radar if the Regal doesn't fit into my plans/tank. Plus they get stay slightly smaller than the Regal if space is an issue.
> Flame Angel (Centropyge loricula) or Coral Beauty (Centropyge bisponosa)- love these fish and will probably put one of these in there. I know they have a reputation for nipping at SPS, but I haven't had issues since I typically purchase when they are small and keep them well fed.
Dwarf angels in a reef are risky but many people are sucessful and they are most likely to attack LPS.
> Black Ocellaris Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris)- will only get these if I decide to get an anemone, but these may be off the list.
I like clowns but they can be very teritorial but do not know much specificly about that clown.
> Yellowtail Damselfish (Chrysiptera parasema)- this isn't the nasty type; have had them before and they're fine
I would just be safe and not get them.
> Flame Hawkfish (Neocirrhites armatus)- another personality fish with nice colors
They are very cool but I am pretty sure they eat small shrimp and crabs.
> Green Mandarin Dragonet (Synchiropus splendidus)- beautiful fish that I haven't kept yet, but will have a refugium in the sump that will hopefully provide it with enough natural food.
Difficult to care for and they require mature tanks.
> Sleeper Gold Head Goby (Valenciennea strigata)- cool to watch eat through the sand, and I'll be using CaribSea Special Grade Reef Sand, so it the sand should be heavy enough to not create a sandstorm when this guy starts digging around for food. Open to other suggestions for a sandsifter if there are "better" ones out there...
> Radiant Wrasse (Halichoeres iridis)- nice color, active swimmer, and may look at other wrasses from the "Halichoeres" family. Suggestions are welcome...
> Anthias- open to suggestions on this, unless with the other fish I've mentioned it will be too crowded.
Anthias need to eat several times aday and can be picky eaters.

Keep in mind, I'm not looking to add ALL of these fish, but these are the fish that I'm interested in, so I will narrow down the list depending on what everyone's thoughts are as far as suitability/compatability and not overcrowding the tank.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Chad

The ones I have left blank I do not know much about.

 

[gofor100]

Everything seems fine imo because you're already aware of the possible problems. Just be ready to remove fishes if they start nipping. I think everything will be fine.

Thanks for the support

It definitely helps to know that I'm at least on the right track.

Fish tend to be a bigger priority to me then corals (just slightly), so I might be willing to risk a few different types of corals to keep some sweet looking fish.

Having said that though, I might leave the Regal off of the list for now, and replace it with the Bellus Angel (known to be better reef citizens).

I'll do some thinking and post an updated list of what I'm thinking of keeping.

Thanks,

Chad

 

[gofor100]

The ones I have left blank I do not know much about.

Thanks for the feedback!

Yeah, I'm aware of the risks with the Trigger (although I haven't heard that clams are on their menu), but I won't be keeping that much of a CUC anyways, just some snails (nassarius and astrea), and maybe a tuxedo urchin (and whoever eats that with all of those spines deserves the meal). I've found that this usually works well for my tanks since I maintain a pretty high flow and will have awesome surface skimming (with two 5 1/2" X 12" overflows) with the new tank.

The Moorish Idol falls under the "as long as it's fat and healthy I don't care what it eats" category

I'm not too concerned about the PBT getting ich, since all of my fish will be going into a treated quarantine tank for at least 4 weeks, but I might take your advice since I don't want anything picking on my precious MI... plus the Bellus Angel may satisfy my "blue fish" category.

We'll see how this list evolves though... thanks again for the input!

-Chad

 

[gofor100]

Alright... so here's an updated list:

Definitely Getting

> Blue Chin Trigger
> Moorish Idol
> Longnose Butterflyfish
> Starry Blenny
> Yellow Wrasse
> Firefish Goby
> Bellus/Ornate Angel (female)

These would fill in a variety of characteristics that I'm looking for in a group of fish... the trigger, Firefish and Longnose B-fly fills the unique looking fish (and, as for the trigger, will be "my wife's" fish), the Idol (for reasons stated before) is simply a must-have for me, the Starry blenny fills the personality category, the yellow wrasse and Longnose both give me some yellow, and the Bellus Angel gets me some blue in there.

Seriously Considering

Now, what I'm lacking (and want), and what I think the following fish can provide are: 1) Vibrant Red, 2) Orange, 3) maybe some more Blue, 4) Smaller to Medium fish that can fill in the nooks and crannies of the tank where the bigger fish don't occupy.

> Flame Angel (gets me the red)
> Flame Hawkfish (some more red)
> Harlequin Tuskfish (gets me orange and another interesting looking fish, but not sure if it's size will be a problem)
> Powder Blue Tang (still considering some more blue, but if it comes down to adding this or the Harlequin- as far as space goes- then I'll side with the Harlequin)
> Green Mandarin (another interesting fish with pretty design and colors)
> Sleeper Gold Head Goby (something that'll occupy the sandbed)

Might Be Considering

Looking for any other fish that add "depth" to the tank (I don't want a tank with 100% fish that look the same and act the same)...

> Some Anthias (I want some smaller dither fish occupying as a group- maybe Flame Anthias?- but if my tank is already too full with fish, then these may be left out of this tank)
> Some other Wrasses (Radiant and/or Melanarus and any other suggestions?)
> Black Ocellaris Clowns (still deciding on whether to get an anemone)
> Any other blue fish out there I'm missing?

Bottomline though is that I don't want fish that will outgrow the tank or be cramped, so feel free to provide any comments/suggestions on my revised list with this in mind too.

Thanks,

Chad

 

[Reefnub]

I would pick the Powder over the tuskfish but that's just me. I rather have a school of anthias than the flame angel but im a bit bias, i'm a anthias lover. For red colored anthias that aren't too big I would suggest resplendent and male maldive lyretail anthias. If you want more blue, add a single/pair of watanabe angel? Some hate damsels or chromis but those are also options for more blue colors.

 

[rssjsb]

I'm worried about your firefish in that crew. Can you keep a smaller tank for him?

Beyond that, I would skip the powder blue and definitely the tuskfish. Five feet of tank isn't really enough for them, especially given the trigger and idol. I think the tang would terrorize your more peaceful fish in a tank that size. I've got a 185 that's basically the same dimensions as your tank would have if tipped on its side - 60 x 24 x 30.

It seems like a lot of water, but it fills up faster than you'd think.

 

[gofor100]

I would pick the Powder over the tuskfish but that's just me. I rather have a school of anthias than the flame angel but im a bit bias, i'm a anthias lover. For red colored anthias that aren't too big I would suggest resplendent and male maldive lyretail anthias. If you want more blue, add a single/pair of watanabe angel? Some hate damsels or chromis but those are also options for more blue colors.

Tempted to do Anthias, but I'm not sure I have enough room to get the effect I'm looking for (since if I go with Anthias, I would like them to school/shoal, but fear that if I get too few they will just disperse and swim independently). I might just get a few Halichoeres wrasses (some different kinds), which are pretty active swimmers and add a nice splash of different colors to the tank.

Was also thinking of the different angels, but I think I like the look of the Bellus Angel. Also, I don't mind damsels (as long as they play nice), and from what I've read, the Yellowtail damsels that I listed in the first post are the most well behaved... so they might still be in the running.

Thanks for your input!

-Chad

 

[gofor100]

I'm worried about your firefish in that crew. Can you keep a smaller tank for him?

Beyond that, I would skip the powder blue and definitely the tuskfish. Five feet of tank isn't really enough for them, especially given the trigger and idol. I think the tang would terrorize your more peaceful fish in a tank that size. I've got a 185 that's basically the same dimensions as your tank would have if tipped on its side - 60 x 24 x 30.

It seems like a lot of water, but it fills up faster than you'd think.

Yeah... I was thinking about it, and I might find him a new home. I'd hate to see him get bullied and hide/starve. I'll have to see about possibly re-homing him before the livestock is moved over.

Also, I don't disagree with your "the tank is big, but not THAT big" comment...

It's harder than I thought to figure out how many is too many with a tank 3 times the size of my current largest tank (the 60 gallon). I'm definitely not one to cram a whole bunch of fish in the tank, so this thread is helping me get some perspective on what the final list may look like.

Anymore input is definitely appreciated.

Thanks again,

Chad

 

[inigomontoya]

Like the list and I have or would like to have all those as well. I also passed on the PBT because I figure they are too aggressive for my tank. A great way to accomplish some of your goals is a school of maldives lyretail anthias. Get 5-7 with a male and you have that red from the male and striking orange in the females. Even a few will schoal. I had 3 carberryi and had brook hit the tank, could only catch one for QT before the other two died. After getting everything back together I bought several scissortail gobies for an inexpensive schoal. The anthia actually shoals with the gobies when they are out. Very social. The dithering makes a difference too- brings out the fish who were always hiding before.
I actually have an order out for a bellus angel as well with my lfs neat reef-safe angel.

 

[clowntriggerfis]

Tusks will eat every invert in the tank but I dont think they eat coral. Flame angels are most orange when not from hawaii.

 

[gofor100]

Tusks will eat every invert in the tank but I dont think they eat coral. Flame angels are most orange when not from hawaii.

Yeah... I'm fine with a CUC member getting eaten every now and then if it means keeping that fish. They don't eat corals or clams, so that's "reef-safe" enough for me. I've actually had my eye on them for quite a while, but forgot to put it on my initial list.

I guess the Flame Angels my LFS gets are all from Hawaii then because they all seem to have a bright red, and then where their black stripes are, they get a brilliant orange (not sure if this is characteristic of Hawaiian specimens). Beautiful fish nonetheless.

Thanks,

Chad

 

[gofor100]

Like the list and I have or would like to have all those as well. I also passed on the PBT because I figure they are too aggressive for my tank. A great way to accomplish some of your goals is a school of maldives lyretail anthias. Get 5-7 with a male and you have that red from the male and striking orange in the females. Even a few will schoal. I had 3 carberryi and had brook hit the tank, could only catch one for QT before the other two died. After getting everything back together I bought several scissortail gobies for an inexpensive schoal. The anthia actually shoals with the gobies when they are out. Very social. The dithering makes a difference too- brings out the fish who were always hiding before.
I actually have an order out for a bellus angel as well with my lfs neat reef-safe angel.

Yeah, the PBT might be out... how are Purple Tangs in comparison? I know they are known for being aggressive, but are they as bad as a PBT?

I'll definitely consider the lyretail anthias... they definitely look awesome in the tanks I've seen them in. Do you have any pics of yours?

Thanks,

Chad

 

[clowntriggerfis]

I think purple tangs are less agresive then powder blues.

 

[inigomontoya]

anthias

anthias

Here are the anthias, with some friends