reverendmaynard
New member
I posted this in the reef fishes forum, but I know it will get a lot more views here, so...
Ok, so I go to the lfs, all primed to get a foxface rabbitfish as an open water swimmer for my 125. I'd seen them there before, so I thought it would be there again. Well, it wasn't. So I ask the guy to help me pick out another similar type of fish. I explain to him that I don't have corals yet, because my tank is new, but that after I upgrade the lights and season the tank more, I will want to try corals.
So, he recommends either yellow tangs or the heniochus. I'd heard tangs don't really coexist well, though hhe say's in that size tank, 2 would be ok. Meanwhile, the heniochus is a schooling fish, so 2 would go great together. Not knowing anything about heniochus, I go with them because they look more interesting than the straight yellow of the tangs.
So, I get home, acclimate and release the fish, then get on the net to see what I can find out about them. This is when I learn that there are two almost identicle fish, one (diphreutes) a schooling, reef safe planktavore and the other (acuminatus) a solitary invertibrate eater. Supposedly the way to tell them apart is that the diphreutes' rear black stripe ends at the bottom corner of the anal fin while the acuminatus' stripe ends further up, near the tale. However, acuminatus' stripes can vary.
So I'm encouraged, since the anal fin is neatly bisected by the black stripe and the two fish do seem to be pretty buddy-buddy, with the smaller quickly seeking out the bigger if their forays for food get them seperated. However, it's the forays for food that have me concerned. They swim around, hunting the rock work and sand, picking constantly. I've seen them nip the "fingers" of my anthelia polyps several times already, infuriatingly spitting out the tip they just bit off! Seems like odd behavior for a planktavore, no?
Does anyone out there have any experience with either of these fishes to help me make the decision to bring them back or not?
Ok, so I go to the lfs, all primed to get a foxface rabbitfish as an open water swimmer for my 125. I'd seen them there before, so I thought it would be there again. Well, it wasn't. So I ask the guy to help me pick out another similar type of fish. I explain to him that I don't have corals yet, because my tank is new, but that after I upgrade the lights and season the tank more, I will want to try corals.
So, he recommends either yellow tangs or the heniochus. I'd heard tangs don't really coexist well, though hhe say's in that size tank, 2 would be ok. Meanwhile, the heniochus is a schooling fish, so 2 would go great together. Not knowing anything about heniochus, I go with them because they look more interesting than the straight yellow of the tangs.
So, I get home, acclimate and release the fish, then get on the net to see what I can find out about them. This is when I learn that there are two almost identicle fish, one (diphreutes) a schooling, reef safe planktavore and the other (acuminatus) a solitary invertibrate eater. Supposedly the way to tell them apart is that the diphreutes' rear black stripe ends at the bottom corner of the anal fin while the acuminatus' stripe ends further up, near the tale. However, acuminatus' stripes can vary.
So I'm encouraged, since the anal fin is neatly bisected by the black stripe and the two fish do seem to be pretty buddy-buddy, with the smaller quickly seeking out the bigger if their forays for food get them seperated. However, it's the forays for food that have me concerned. They swim around, hunting the rock work and sand, picking constantly. I've seen them nip the "fingers" of my anthelia polyps several times already, infuriatingly spitting out the tip they just bit off! Seems like odd behavior for a planktavore, no?
Does anyone out there have any experience with either of these fishes to help me make the decision to bring them back or not?
