Alligator pipefish

[Squidhead9]

I am redoing my tank after a tank crash, and am going with all very passive and non agressive fish so that I can have a few different things. My tank is a mixed reef. I plan on starting with an alligator pipefish. I know there are some issues with it, but I've seen threads on this forum where folks have had pipefish in a mixed reef.

The only survivors from my crash are three cleaner shrimp, a very shy and retiring blue tang (Dory) and a quiet juvenile orange shoulder tang.

Any suggestions on getting the pipefish acclimated and adjusted. Any thoughts on how to do this.

 

[spw4949]

IMO, it will be tough to keep pipefish long term with the tangs. they are aggressive feeders & the pipefish will not last long term.....I would either lose the tangs or forget the pipes......my .02, hope it helps.

 

[namxas]

'gator pipes are found in lagoon-type grassbeds in the wild, and i think for a mixed reef you'd be better off going with flagfins (Doryhamphus sp.) or dragon-fraced (Corythoicthys sp.) due to the tankmates, current, and temp. requirements.

if you go with DF's, i recommend not keeping any "stinging" corals such as Euphyllia sp. and Plerogyra sp.

i've kept D. janssi (Janss' pipefish) very successfully in a mixed reef at a temp of 77*F. a bonus was they decided to set up a cleaning station and groomed their tankmates.

 

[Squidhead9]

Are the Janss pipefish more hardy in the mixed reef environment. I was under the impression the alligator pipefish was the most likely to be able to survive in a low competition reef environment.

 

[namxas]

as mentioned, 'gators aren't reef fish. and i also think the swimming habits of tangs would put them off their food.

flagfins, OTOH are reef fish, and will do fine in a reef setup. if you can't find Janss', you could do bandeds (D. dactyliophorus) or blue-stripes (D. excisus), but if you go with the latter, you MUST get a M-F pair or harem as males will fight to the death.

also, altho they're pretty, and i have seen some around lately, i'd shy away from yellow-banded (D. pessuliferus) and multibanded (D. multilineatus) as they tend to fail to thrive.