Flame Hawk Tough Enough?

[The Saltwater Kid]

Okay, I want to know if a Flame Hawk Fish will be tough enough to hold his own against a Flameback Angel? I added the Angel to my tank a week ago. I know that general rule of thumb is that an Angel should be the last fish added because of how territorial they are but after consulting with my trusted LFS we thought that a Flame Hawk would be able to successfully hold his own so I bought one and added him late Wednesday night so really Thursday was his first full day in the tank and I did notice the Angel picking on him yesterday evening...nothing too vicious, just chasing him around a little and then the Angel would lose interest and go back to grazing on the rocks. Should I be worried about the Flame Hawk? He is so cute with those puppy dog eyes but if he's going to be miserable maybe I should take him back. I known it's only been a day and I figured I'd give them 3 days or so together and see if after the initial introduction the Angel will leave him alone or he'll stand up to the Angel and they'll form some sort of truce.

 

[theclearblue]

Since there haven't been any other responses yet, I'd make sure that the angel isn't keeping the hawk from feeding as your first priority.

Stress from fighting can cause a quick downturn in a fish's health. If things don't get better quick I'd pull the hawk and take it back.

Not that it helps too much, but my arc-eye hawk became much more comfortable and less aggressive/defensive once it found its' "spot" in the tank.

 

[BangkokMatt]

My Flame Angel is always being dominant to to my Flame Hawk. The Hawk is dismissive but doesn't really care. Just moves to the next rock

 

[edtsui]

I have the same combination in my tank. My flamehawk is kind of stupid though but in an endearing kind of way. I can practically pet him when it's feeding time. Probably the only fish I can lure into my hand and snatch out of the tank if necessary.

To answer your question, my flameback is a jerk and so was the flame angel that it replaced so I basically just replaced one ruthless dictator with another. The only real concern you should have is if your angel is chasing it all over the tank. My flameback just sort of charges in to scare the flamehawk from it's perch then goes about his business.

My philosophy more or less is if everybody is eating like a maniac, it's all good.

 

[The Saltwater Kid]

Both fish are roughly the same size (about 3"). The Flame Hawk is eating. The Angel doesn't chase him all over the tank, just when he happens to notice him perched on a rock somewhere and is bored then he lights into him and will chase him in a couple of circles before losing interest.

 

[flameangel88]

If the hawk has no body marks and eating normal then I don't think you need to worry and just keep a close eye for the next couple of days. But if the hawk starts to eat less and goes into hiding then you need to worry.

 

[The Saltwater Kid]

Well, the Hawk is a new fish (yesterday was his first full day in the tank) so he does hide at times to get away from the Angel but doesn't stay hidden.