I need help deciding on a fish

H

hollyclyff

New member
I have a 30 gallon tank (36" long) that has been set up for 11 weeks now. It currently has about 40lbs live rock, some assorted snails and crabs and various hitchhikers. It has two Koralia 1s and a Reef Octopus skimmer. In the next week I should be moving a yellow watchman goby into the tank from quarantine. I have plans to also get a pair of ocellaris. But I can't decide on a fourth fish. I don't want constant fighting and I don't want my ywg to be too intimidated to come out. I would like something other than orange or yellow - maybe purple or blue. I'd like to keep price to $50 or less. I had considered a royal gramma or fridmani pseudochromis, but would either of these be too aggressive? I'd also like to be able to have shrimp, so I don't want a fish that will likely kill my shrimp. Oh, and I also plan to have corals, so I can't have anything that will bother those either. Suggestions?
 
Well you pair of clowns, once mature will be very aggressive as they like to control about 25 gallons of tank.
 
hollyclyff said:
Will the clowns pick on the goby then? Would it be better to get only one clown?
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They possibly will NOT pick on the goby unless it tries to have a home near whatever the clowns pick as their home. Clowns are always most interesting as a pair but even a single ones can be aggressive but less so than as a pair.
 
Hey there, this is very similar to my setup. I have a 28g cube and the first fish I added was a YWG. After a few weeks I added an anemone and a pair of Onyx clowns, and a few weeks later a fire goby (or red firefish,Nemateleotris magnifica). I had them for almost six months now and the clowns don't mess with anybody, both the fire goby and YWG come out often. One thing though, I got the clowns very small as they were bred here in town.
 
Luiz Rocha said:
Hey there, this is very similar to my setup. I have a 28g cube and the first fish I added was a YWG. After a few weeks I added an anemone and a pair of Onyx clowns, and a few weeks later a fire goby (or red firefish,Nemateleotris magnifica). I had them for almost six months now and the clowns don't mess with anybody, both the fire goby and YWG come out often. One thing though, I got the clowns very small as they were bred here in town.
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Are the clowns sexually mature and breeding?
 
Well, I don't know what to get then. The ywg is already here and he's just a cutie patootie, so he's a given. My husband really likes the clowns, but if they are going to be a problem, then maybe I won't get them at all. I was led to believe that if the ywg was put in first and given time to establish himself and the clowns were put in while they were young and small, then there shouldn't be a problem there. Anyone else have any input or suggestions for my tank? What would you put with a ywg in a 30 long?
 
hollyclyff said:
Well, I don't know what to get then. The ywg is already here and he's just a cutie patootie, so he's a given. My husband really likes the clowns, but if they are going to be a problem, then maybe I won't get them at all. I was led to believe that if the ywg was put in first and given time to establish himself and the clowns were put in while they were young and small, then there shouldn't be a problem there. Anyone else have any input or suggestions for my tank? What would you put with a ywg in a 30 long?
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The ywg is not a problem. There are LOTS of interesting small fish you could add. A pair of Kaudern's Cardinal
(Pterapogon kauderni) would be fun but they must be a pair and not two of the same sex. Another cardinal would be Spotted Cardinalfish (Sphaeramia nematoptera). Almost any dartfish would be terrific. If you are not planning on shrimp a pair of red hawkfish (Flame Hawkfish
(Neocirrhitus armatus) ) is extremely interesting as they tend to interact with the aquarist. Or a pair of flasher wrasses would also be good.
 
Well, I mentioned not getting a clown to my husband and he was not at all happy about that. Uggh. He really, really wants one. But then again he also fell in love with a moray eel at the lfs that we are definitely not getting! Cardinals don't really appeal to me at all. I do like the wrasses though and had considered them before, but I'd have to convince the husband. The hawkfish are nice too, but I did want to have shrimp. At least a pistol shrimp for my goby.

If I did go with flasher wrasses, would a pair be better or could I do just one and then some other kind of fish? If I did a pair, how do you pair them or do you need to buy them already paired?
 
To echo what Steve has been saying....

In my 58 (( 36" long )) I have a mated pair of pink skunks. I have multiple dwarf angels in there, and when a new one was introduce I had more issues from the clowns then from the existing angel.
 
IMO I don't think a flame hawk will mess with a pistol shrimp. I have a small flame hawk, 2 medium fire shrimp and 1 large cleaner shrimp with no problems. Just add the flame hawk after the shrimp.

The flame hawk may pester the YWG enough and steal any food near by.
 
reef_doug said:
IMO I don't think a flame hawk will mess with a pistol shrimp. I have a small flame hawk, 2 medium fire shrimp and 1 large cleaner shrimp with no problems. Just add the flame hawk after the shrimp.

The flame hawk may pester the YWG enough and steal any food near by.
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I agree with doug.
 
The flame hawk may pester the YWG enough and steal any food near by.
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I don't want that. I don't want anybody picking on my little yellow dude.

So, which wrasse would you suggest specifically? And what else might I put with a wrasse and the ywg? How would a purple firefish be? Or a neon goby? Or anything else? And just to be clear - you all are saying I probably shouldn't get even one ocellaris, right?
 
Oh dang! Now I'm just confused! Is it just a crapshoot then as to whether they will be aggressive or not? What else do you have in your 29g? I wouldn't really care except that my husband really wants a clown. And since he and our daughter have only previously picked out fish that we can't possibly have in our tank (tangs, eels, lionfish, etc.) I thought that I could at least accommodate him with a clown or two. I got the fish I really wanted (the ywg).
 
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