Clown Trigger - Reef Safe?

hanas

Premium Member
I'm asking this question for a friend, who is currently w/out a computer. She was considering adding a juvenile clown trigger (1"-2") to her 90G reef, but first wanted to make sure it wouldn't destroy everything. The tank has brain coral, mushroom, a few different types of zoos, featherduster, torch coral and a starfish that a flame angel has developed a taste for already, and a cleaner shrimp. I told her the cleaner shrimp would probably not make it with the trigger, but what about the corals or the shrimp? do triggers eat corals??
 
Might be a problem. Triggers in general are agressive and love to eat invertabrates. Generally, they are not reef safe. The shrimp, starfish, and any clean up crew (snails/hermit crabs) will become food. It will probably pick on the angel too. Also, juvenile triggers do not fare well in aquariums and 90 gal is small for this fish. I would avoid it.
 
I saw reef tanks with LPS and SPS with Clown Triggers , but I also saw Clown Triggers eating their tank mates and/or putting 5" of sand on what used to be your Bubble Coral.

There are many species of fish you might take a risk to put in a reef tank, this is one of the more risky ones.
 
never know

never know

you never know what they will eat. They may be a perfect citizen for years than eat all your fish. Triggers chew on corals and rock to keep their teeth sharp. Would he eat a live coral vs dead one?? who knows?? I don't think they would bother soft corals. They will bother any and all fish at some point. They would love any crabs and shrimp in the tank as well.
 
I doubt that it will have any interest in eating coral for food. It may, however, chew them up just to destroy/play with them.

I seriously doubt that it will leave the coral alone, so why it goes after it is really of no consequence.

There are about half a dozen good choices for reef safe triggers like crosshatch, sargassum, bluethroat.... and mostly reefsafe triggers like niger, pink tail, black durgeon.
 
I've never actually heard of a clown trigger messing with corals, however what I have heard is that they will seem to be perfectly fine, but some day you will wake up in the morning to find that its the "last fish standing." I guess they can go a little postal, so to speak.

jds
 
Clown trigger is on the farthest end of the spectrum when talking reef safe. If it were to only attack inverts but leave corals alone, there would be ALOT more people with these in their reef. I love clown triggers myself, but not enough to give up my reef for.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6924017#post6924017 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bureau13
I've never actually heard of a clown trigger messing with corals, however what I have heard is that they will seem to be perfectly fine, but some day you will wake up in the morning to find that its the "last fish standing." I guess they can go a little postal, so to speak.

I have personally witnessed them eating corals, anemones, and other fish. I don't trust them with anything, even if they've seemed stable for years.

Dave
 
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