How many orchid dottybacks in a 50G?

[velvetelvis]

As my new SW system is still being built, I have a lot of time to debate ideas for the display. I was going to go with clownfish and BTAs, but then I thought of doing an orchid dottyback biotope, with colorful soft corals, a LR structure with lots of nooks and crannies, and a pair (or more if possible) of the orchids. I have a mental image of a group (or a pair, at least) darting in and out of LR covered with xenia and softies, like diving footage I've seen from the Red Sea. I think it could be beautiful.

I swore off dottybacks in a community tank in the past, due to aggression issues with other small fish, but that wouldn't be an issue in a single-species setup (unless, of course, they didn't get along with each other). The tank is a custom 50G, 24" x 24" x 20".

First question: could multiple orchid dottybacks get along in this setting? Second--and I realize this is subjective: as small, cryptic, but still active fish, are they interesting/entertaining enough to be the focal point of a species tank?

 

[alexrex20]

If you're doing more than one dottyback in a 50g, it needs to be a mated pair or a whole colony.

 

[velvetelvis]

How big of a colony? A harem with one male and multiple females, or a mixed group?

 

[alexrex20]

You won't be able to sex them. Your best bet is to start big, and remove the exiles until the group has stabilized. I'm just not sure that 50g is big enough.

 

[Bret61081]

Look around to find a breeder. If you can get a bunch smaller and they grow up togther youd have a better chance. There used to be a local breeder here and he used to pair the smaller ones up as pairs and sell them. Id start with 5 and let them fight it out to see who lives. Prolly will eventually end up with 2 pairs would be my guess

 

[small alien]

Look around to find a breeder. If you can get a bunch smaller and they grow up togther youd have a better chance. There used to be a local breeder here and he used to pair the smaller ones up as pairs and sell them. Id start with 5 and let them fight it out to see who lives. Prolly will eventually end up with 2 pairs would be my guess

Seriously? Is that what your mom did with your brothers and sisters? :frog:

I would go with one or a known pair. Especially in your sized tank.

 

[velvetelvis]

I would go with one or a known pair. Especially in your sized tank.

I had the feeling that might be the case. I keep thinking of a 50 as a good-sized tank since most of my SW setups have been in the 29-34G range, but it's still a pretty modest size. Especially for territorial fish. So if I decide on this display, a pair it is.

Which brings me to my next question: honestly, would a tank with just a bunch of beautiful corals and a pair of orchid dottybacks be a little boring? I had an orchid dottyback for a couple of weeks a while back, but she died (hid too thoroughly in a rock that I'd removed from the tank for about 45 minutes, and suffocated before I realized what had happened ) before I really had a chance to observe her for very long. It's a lot of space to expend on two small, cryptic fish unless they're pretty entertaining to watch.

 

[alexrex20]

For most people, they just want to see a "Nemo" in an anemone and some corals, and maybe some flashy active fish like a $3 yellow-tail damsel. So to them, your ideal tank may be a bit boring. But who cares? If that's what you want, that's what you want.

One of my favorite tanks is my 55gal African cichlid tank which is built around a breeding pair of Neolamprologus savoryi. They're pretty bland in the color department, but more than make up for it in personality and paternal behavior. There is no light on this tank, and that bewilders most people. They say, "The point of the fish tank is to be the focal point of the room." I tell them, "No, the point of the fish tank is to recreate their natural environment to the best of my ability."

To each his own.

For me personally, a tank built around a pair of orchid dottybacks would be pretty cool.

 

[OodleyBoodely]

If you go with a pair, there is no reason not to have other fish, too. Orchids are not that aggressive, certainly not as most dottybacks go, especially if you get captive bred. Other peaceful, but not too passive, species could fill in and complement the orchids. I kept an orchid on several occassions in a 55 community reef with no aggression from the orchids at all. They were always the perfect resident for me.

 

[velvetelvis]

For most people, they just want to see a "Nemo" in an anemone and some corals, and maybe some flashy active fish like a $3 yellow-tail damsel. So to them, your ideal tank may be a bit boring. But who cares? If that's what you want, that's what you want.

One of my favorite tanks is my 55gal African cichlid tank which is built around a breeding pair of Neolamprologus savoryi. They're pretty bland in the color department, but more than make up for it in personality and paternal behavior. There is no light on this tank, and that bewilders most people. They say, "The point of the fish tank is to be the focal point of the room." I tell them, "No, the point of the fish tank is to recreate their natural environment to the best of my ability."

To each his own.

For me personally, a tank built around a pair of orchid dottybacks would be pretty cool.

Nice fish! I've kept cichlids from all 3 lakes, but the Tanganyikans were always my favorites. Have you ever seen the National Geographic special on Lake Tanganyika? I found the whole show on YouTube a while back...it's amazing to see them in their natural habitat, especially for a biotope fan like me.

 

[velvetelvis]

If you go with a pair, there is no reason not to have other fish, too. Orchids are not that aggressive, certainly not as most dottybacks go, especially if you get captive bred. Other peaceful, but not too passive, species could fill in and complement the orchids. I kept an orchid on several occassions in a 55 community reef with no aggression from the orchids at all. They were always the perfect resident for me.

That's good to know...thanks.

After admiring the current TOTM and other setups on the NPS forum, I'm really leaning towards the orchid dottyback biotope. Non-photosynthetic corals like Dendronephthya are beyond my skill level, but I could substitute photosynthetic Stereonephthya and Litophyton. I like the idea of doing something a little different.