In the process of setting up a big reef tank and hammering out my fish list. I don't want aggressive fish or anything that I know for sure will threaten corals. I personally think the Bannerfish is a gorgeous fish and would love to have a small schoal. There's alot of disagreement as to whether these are reef safe or not. I think the problem is the two different kinds. Heniochus Acuminatus, or the Longfin Bannerfish, is reported by all sources to be a reef terror. But online sources and a few LFS disagree on Heniochus Diphreutes, or the Schooling Bannerfish, which some sources say are reef safe. Since they look almost identical I'm betting that alot of the confusion could be misidentification. I just thought I would see if anyone had any personal experience. Thanks for the input.
Heniochus(Bannerfish) Reef Safe?
- Thread starter dossfj
- Start date
sfboarders
New member
Don't get it. Especially if you have brain corals. I had the Acuminatus (non reef safe) and it nipped everything when I was on vacation. I kept it well fed and it never nipped but when I left for a week it destructed $200 worth of corals. It was my first fish and I loved it so much I had to part with it. 
jd474
New member
H. diphreutes is a bit of an enigma to me. I see them pick at some corals, and totally leave other similar species alone, both SPS and LPS. I have kept about 20, and probably wouldn't put them in another reef tank if it were mine, and I had nicer corals (esp. meaty LPS), but I guess it depends what you are keeping, and how good you are at catching them.
As far as a group goes, I'll say our adults can be pretty aggressive towards each other. Sometimes to the point if one comes out of the tank for any reason, it generally won't be accepted back in. Again, these are full grown adults. I haven't had any juvis in awhile, and most people claim they are not aggressive at all at that age towards each other.
Here is part of our school (13 total, mostly H. acuminatus). They are large, and neat to watch, but def. towards the bottom of my favorite fish list.
As far as a group goes, I'll say our adults can be pretty aggressive towards each other. Sometimes to the point if one comes out of the tank for any reason, it generally won't be accepted back in. Again, these are full grown adults. I haven't had any juvis in awhile, and most people claim they are not aggressive at all at that age towards each other.
Here is part of our school (13 total, mostly H. acuminatus). They are large, and neat to watch, but def. towards the bottom of my favorite fish list.
Monkeyfish
Active member
jd - Wow. That's one heck of a tank!
