2 tangs. 1 dies. Can I replace it?

[b_newman]

I have a yellow and a pb tang that were added to a 120g at the same time. If I remove the powder blue tang, can I replace it with a pacific blue of about the same size, or will the yellow tang kill it? All other fish in the reef tank are peaceful

 

[Moorish_Idol]

No...I wouldn't for two reasons.

1. Your PB and yellow get along fine because they had no developed territories when you added at the same time. Now they have developed territories, and know where each others are. So there are no territories to fight over. If you add the hippo tang, and he gets into the yellow tangs territory, then there will be fighting.

2. A hippo tang will get too big for a 120 gallon tank because it's only a 4ft tank. They can grow over a foot long.

So, I would say no, I'm not saying that it can't work, but it probably won't work. I wanted a pacific blue tang for my 90, but it just gets way too big. And I've heard they're really fast growers! I'll be putting a PB and a yellow in my tank also, setting it up right now!

 

[b_newman]

I HOPED that since the yellow tang is much more passive than the powder blue, it would be happy about the trade. Fighting over established territories is what I'd expect, but I wonder how much. If they didn't get along eventually, would the yellow tang just chase the regal blue away until it starves, or would they fight until death?

 

[Moorish_Idol]

I really can't say....all fish are different the way they behave. The fighting could last for a week or it can last forever. You could try it, but you'd need to have a back up plan if the YT rips it apart. IMO I wouldn't put a pacific blue tang in a 4 foot tank.