Anyone have a tank with or every toyed with the idea of having a tank with 5 or 6 different types of hardy butterfly fish?
Just Butterflies
- Thread starter Absint Reefer
- Start date
I'm sort of going that way with my 90. I have a saddleback, and am planning on an Auriga and copperband. I so love the butterflies but this is a reef tank so I'm very careful with my choices. So far all my LPS except a candy cane and torch have had to be removed from the reef but so far so good with SPS, leathers and zoas.
DamnPepShrimp
Moved On
Yeah, that was a cool tank, until everything started dying. I think a butterfly tank would be cool, but with so many other options, I'd rather have a good mix of fish including butterflies amoung many other fish. Unless you have one of your 26 tanks that needs filling lol.
I have a 55gl with just a small tusk in it might just have to do it
what do you think of
3 pyramid butterflies
1 small tusk
1 facula
1 raccoon
3 heniochus
obviously I'm not adding them at the same time probably over a year or two and the tank is already 2 years old with protein skimmer and fluval 405. This tank is right at the foot of my bed so I wanted some active fish that are unique. What do you think?
what do you think of
3 pyramid butterflies
1 small tusk
1 facula
1 raccoon
3 heniochus
obviously I'm not adding them at the same time probably over a year or two and the tank is already 2 years old with protein skimmer and fluval 405. This tank is right at the foot of my bed so I wanted some active fish that are unique. What do you think?
DamnPepShrimp
Moved On
In a 55g? I think that would be too much fish! 10 decent sized fish in a 55 is overstock IMO.
10 fish would be pushing it maybe no on the heniochus
can anyone else think of any hardy butterflies besides copperband or longnose
can anyone else think of any hardy butterflies besides copperband or longnose
ejrabekoff
New member
Auriga are good. Pakistani are hardy.
Auriga's and racoons are supposed to be A-list in terms of being consistantly durable/hardy. Heniochus are also in this A-list..but the majority of them in my LFS all have some ich spots on them.
I've kept a blackback and a punctacto..and both were hardy as heck and first to eat.
Heard that kleins are hardy (but ugly) and the indian vagabond is supposedly hardy too.
So thats 6 Butters for u to choose from.
I've kept a blackback and a punctacto..and both were hardy as heck and first to eat.
Heard that kleins are hardy (but ugly) and the indian vagabond is supposedly hardy too.
So thats 6 Butters for u to choose from.
julianp
New member
I saw a tank like this at my LFS last week. It was a custom sized very long, narrow, short tank filled with butterflies and looked amazing. I'd guess dimensions were maybe 72" long, 14" wide and 18" tall. It had only a small amount of tonga branch rock and some plants. Looked pretty cool.
DamnPepShrimp
Moved On
Threadfin butterflies are supposed to be very hardy as well. Raccoon, golden masked (semilarvatus) and saddle-back are some other hardy butterflies, but most get too big for a 55g.
axia55
Premium Member
I have a Kleins in my tank and it is far from ugly! On top of that, it gets along with everything and ate like a pig from day one. Highly recommended!
On other note, I really want to get a Pakistani for a 90g that I am setting up. I hear conflicting reports on their hardiness. Has anyone kept them?
On other note, I really want to get a Pakistani for a 90g that I am setting up. I hear conflicting reports on their hardiness. Has anyone kept them?
now that their are so many to choose from I think I need a bigger tank. The golden masked are beautiful but I've never actually seen one in a hobbyist tank so I just assumed they were delicate. thanks for all the suggestions!
ejrabekoff
New member
The following species of butterflies are hardy, and would make a good choice
Atlantic long nosed
Black and white
Threadfin
Doubleband
Burgess's
Collare
Wrougth iron
Indian OCean vagabond
Saddled
ScytheSickle
Red Sea Racoon
Racoon
Black band
Marten's
White faced
Lemon
Red back
Dot dash
Latticed
Reef
Masked
Tinker's
Pacific double saddled
Teardrop
Pearlscale
Big long nosed
Yellow long nosed
Bannerfish
El barbero
Eye spot.
This could be an interesting tank.
Atlantic long nosed
Black and white
Threadfin
Doubleband
Burgess's
Collare
Wrougth iron
Indian OCean vagabond
Saddled
ScytheSickle
Red Sea Racoon
Racoon
Black band
Marten's
White faced
Lemon
Red back
Dot dash
Latticed
Reef
Masked
Tinker's
Pacific double saddled
Teardrop
Pearlscale
Big long nosed
Yellow long nosed
Bannerfish
El barbero
Eye spot.
This could be an interesting tank.
Fischer's Angel
New member
I once had a setup with 8 different species in it. It takes a little experience to figure out which ones to add in what order as there definitely are differences in their level of aggression,but if you have enough room and a lot of rockwork which you are willing to rearrange each time you add a new one, you can keep quite a few different without fights breaking out.
The following species were kept together for over three years without incident in a 120 gallon tank:
1) Heniochus Diphreutes
2) Chaetadon Miliaris
3) Forcipiger Flavissimus
4) Chaetadon Lunula
5) Chaetadon Unimaculatus
6) Chaetadon Fremblii
7) Chaetadon Kleinii
8) Chaetadon Auriga
All the butterflies were caught by me here in Hawaii and were hand selected for similarity in size to avoid bullying. They were quarantined for 2 weeks prior to introduction to insure good health,and to allow each one to learn to take "aquarium foods" as some are slow to learn,especially the Unimaculatus.
Once each specimen has learned to eat CONFIDENTLY, it is added to the population at night after rockwork has been rearranged to give each newbie a good chance to be accepted.
All 8 butterflies lived for three years at which time I felt they were getting too big for the tank and were released back into the ocean,except for the Fremblii which died when it got sucked into my overflow and wasn't found until too late,and the Heniochus which was such a mellow fish that I kept him - He eventually became my longest lived fish at over 7 years,and only died when I had a power outage.
The following species were kept together for over three years without incident in a 120 gallon tank:
1) Heniochus Diphreutes
2) Chaetadon Miliaris
3) Forcipiger Flavissimus
4) Chaetadon Lunula
5) Chaetadon Unimaculatus
6) Chaetadon Fremblii
7) Chaetadon Kleinii
8) Chaetadon Auriga
All the butterflies were caught by me here in Hawaii and were hand selected for similarity in size to avoid bullying. They were quarantined for 2 weeks prior to introduction to insure good health,and to allow each one to learn to take "aquarium foods" as some are slow to learn,especially the Unimaculatus.
Once each specimen has learned to eat CONFIDENTLY, it is added to the population at night after rockwork has been rearranged to give each newbie a good chance to be accepted.
All 8 butterflies lived for three years at which time I felt they were getting too big for the tank and were released back into the ocean,except for the Fremblii which died when it got sucked into my overflow and wasn't found until too late,and the Heniochus which was such a mellow fish that I kept him - He eventually became my longest lived fish at over 7 years,and only died when I had a power outage.
JustinReef
New member
Not that it matters but its Chaet O don not Chaet A don...
Plus, releasing them back to the wild was quite a bad idea...Especially after training them as you mentioned.
Plus, releasing them back to the wild was quite a bad idea...Especially after training them as you mentioned.
Fischer's Angel
New member
Have you nothing better to do than criticize? This is Absint Reefer's thread,not mine and your spell checking and opinion of my releasing fish back to where I got them do nothing to help answer Absint Reefer's question.
Please be a POSITIVE and helpful person,this is supposed to be a FUN hobby!
Please be a POSITIVE and helpful person,this is supposed to be a FUN hobby!
JustinReef
New member
Hey if your going to use scientific names, spell them right. I think your a little sensitive...I said it really was not a big deal. Maybe the common names would be easier to spell?
As for releasing fish back to the wild, no its not part of the original thread but since its been brought up and is a very bad idea, why can I not mention it??? You can't post in a public forum and then tell people how YOU want them to reply. Besides, there was nothing NEGATIVE about the post and it is very helpful. It will remind anyone who is thinking of releasing captive fish back into the wild that they should not...For very obvious reasons.
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