Bandit Angel

[myerst2]

Hello all. Wondering if anyone has had success keeping a bandit angel? A few questions that are in the know with these fish.
How long did you keep the fish, or currently keeping this fish?
How big was the fish when you got him?
What are you feeding the fish?
Do you feed the fish sponges?
What temperature did you keep the tank?

Any other information would be greatly appreciated.

Here is a pick of a bandit for those who don't know what a bandit looks like. Its the white fish with a horizontal black stripe. The other angel we could only dream of obtaining. Tim

 

[gasman059]

One of my close friends had one in his 375 no luck just withered away after several months even providing him with some sponges.

 

[philter4]

I have one that I collected in HI last year. When I cought him he was in the 4 1/2 inch range and he has grown a bit. He is great, eating everything and active, not shy at all. I don't feed sponges, I feed mysis, other frozen, flake and pellets. I also collect shrimp from the sargassum weed and flame scallops which I split open and give to the tank at least several times a week. The bandit eats it all, though it is less interested in the flake, usually taking the first one then ignoring the rest. It is most fond of the scallops eating them agressivly.

I also have a trio of rock beauties that are fine, I collected them also, as juv's and they have grown up to really nice young adults, one is male, it is bigger and has trailing dorsal and upper tail rays, the other two are smaller and don't like each other, one holding 1/3rd the tank the other 2/3rds. The reason I tell you about these is they are sponge eaters in the wild as well, and they have been together for several years. I think the difficulty with the bandit is getting it on other foods, and once that has happened I think people with them do really well. I live in S FL so my tank has a chiller and no heater, but the temp is in the high 70's, usually 78-79.

Good luck, I love the deeper water reef fish, so those are the ones I look for when I dive and they tend to do well once established.

 

[myerst2]

thanks for the input. I'm Thinking of making my tank a Hawaiian tank. I have a crosshatch, meletremus eel, Tinker's Butterfly, Black Tang (that really doesn't count). Keep the info coming. Thanks, Tim

 

[triggerfish1976]

As you know I recently picked up a 3" Bandit directly from the collector and its doing great so far. It eats everything I feed the tank including pellets, flake, mysis, arctipods, angel formula and the infamous gel food.

If you're going to feed sponge don't use wild Atlantic sponge. Pacific angels can sometimes have a hard time digesting it and some species of sponge is even toxic in large amounts.

BTW - That female Personatus in that pic is sweet. A male/female pair of those fish is my holy grail.

 

[Hormigaquatica]

We have a pair of them at work that eats pretty much anything. The male is a little more picky than the female- he prefers flake to anything else actually. Otherwise, the female has no problem taking mysis, brine, mussels, nori, pellets, or flake.

We've had them for several months, and the only time there was an issue was when the tank they were in got above 83F; they got lethargic and lost interest in feeding. Now that the temperature issue has been taken care of and it can be maintained under 81, theyve done wonderfully.

As far as size, the male is roughly 5"; the female is a little smaller, maybe 4". Theyve proven to be really strong fish; I think its largely a matter of getting them collected by someone who takes their time and does things properly, and a shop that is equally willing to baby them until theyre well established.

And... I want that Personatus.. lol

 

[lilfishy123]

Off topic, but could we see a full tank shot? I would love to see your tank.

 

[ccampbell57]

Tim - funny you posted this. After the loss of my Goldflake, I found a collector in HI that has a healthy Bandit that I might take off his hands.

There is also a nice healthy one at NYAquatics that I am debating on.

Where are you getting yours from?

 

[triggerfish1976]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12735013#post12735013 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Hormigaquatica
We have a pair of them at work that eats pretty much anything. The male is a little more picky than the female- he prefers flake to anything else actually. Otherwise, the female has no problem taking mysis, brine, mussels, nori, pellets, or flake.

We've had them for several months, and the only time there was an issue was when the tank they were in got above 83F; they got lethargic and lost interest in feeding. Now that the temperature issue has been taken care of and it can be maintained under 81, theyve done wonderfully.

As far as size, the male is roughly 5"; the female is a little smaller, maybe 4". Theyve proven to be really strong fish; I think its largely a matter of getting them collected by someone who takes their time and does things properly, and a shop that is equally willing to baby them until theyre well established.

And... I want that Personatus.. lol

I came this close to buying those off of you guys.

 

[Hormigaquatica]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12735643#post12735643 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by triggerfish1976
I came this close to buying those off of you guys.

Theyre super sexy- lol. I would love to take them home, but have to be content with seeing them in the shop daily. I spend more time in front of that reef than my own anyhow

 

[zemuron114]

triggerfish - good find! im waiting for the drop this year and hopefully more juvies will come out and play

 

[lawboy888]

reefsafe? i think temp is the biggest issue for these guys, after that food

 

[Pyotale]

If at all possible, spend the extra time and money to find a bandit that's been in captivity for a few weeks and is eating. IME these fish can have very difficult times adapting to aquarium foods and often times will pick and nip at foods but die within a couple weeks to several months. Another issue I have seen is shipping. As if it isn't stressful on all fish, this one in particular seems to be a very poor shipper. If you can get one that's been in captivity and eating for a few weeks your chances for success with this fish will greatly increase I believe. If that isn't an option, find a good supplier that will cater to the delicate collection and shipping nature of this species.

 

[myerst2]

Trigger, your contact is probably the same as mine. Who's going to bite? What happened with the Goldflake? I had one and then it mysterously died. He was eating great, wasn't thin, and then poof dead. i think it was something internal. Regards, Tim