Looking for 60 gal cube stocking opinions

[ptbmaniac]

I am back in the planning stages of a tank after a move cost me my 65 gallon. It will be a while before I can get started again,but due to some space restrictions I am looking at a 60 gal cube. Nothing is set in stone yet. I am just looking for opinions on some fish.

MUST HAVES
Clowns X2(Ocellaris or Percs)
Firefish X1
Tailspot Blenny X1,
Yellowhead Jawfish x1

That is 5 fish all relativey small. Now I would be happy with just those,but a couple other fish I like are,
Yasha Goby(My fave is the YWG,but based on some research I don't think it would work in this setup. Opinons?)
Benggai Cardinal
I have seen 60 gal cubes with a lot more fish than that,but I don't agree with it. If I go with this setup should I stick with just the 5 or could I go with 1 or both of the other 2? It would be a reef tank with mostly softies,lps,and zoa's,
and whatever sump I could fit in the stand.

 

[SoloChromis]

I am back in the planning stages of a tank after a move cost me my 65 gallon. It will be a while before I can get started again,but due to some space restrictions I am looking at a 60 gal cube. Nothing is set in stone yet. I am just looking for opinions on some fish.

MUST HAVES
Clowns X2(Ocellaris or Percs)
Firefish X1
Tailspot Blenny X1,
Yellowhead Jawfish x1

That is 5 fish all relativey small. Now I would be happy with just those,but a couple other fish I like are,
Yasha Goby(My fave is the YWG,but based on some research I don't think it would work in this setup. Opinons?)
Benggai Cardinal
I have seen 60 gal cubes with a lot more fish than that,but I don't agree with it. If I go with this setup should I stick with just the 5 or could I go with 1 or both of the other 2? It would be a reef tank with mostly softies,lps,and zoa's,
and whatever sump I could fit in the stand.

You'd be fine adding the bangaii and yasha (or even the YWG if you like it that much better). Good luck :fish2:

 

[rssjsb]

I'm not sure either goby is going to be compatible with the jawfish in this footprint. Maybe someone with some hands-on experience will come along.

I just know that when I was asking around about adding a jawfish in my 185 that already contained a YWG I was told that it could be a problem. And that was a 5' x 2' tank. with a deepish sand bed.

 

[ptbmaniac]

Issues with the goby and the jawfish is what I'm afraid of! I absolutely love yellow watchman, but they have a bit of an attitude and mixing them with the attitude of a jawfish especially in a cube could be trouble! But the Yasha is a little more laid back and I have seen plenty of 60 gallon cubes that have a yasha and a yellowhead jawfish together with no reported issue,but of course that doesn't make it right.

 

[ThRoewer]

Pair of clowns (Ocellaris or Percs) - ideal for this tank

Tailspot Blenny - no objections

Firefish - skittish and rather boring fish - I like their color but would probably prefer a more interesting fish. It may also interfere with the jawfish.

Yellowhead Jawfish - get 2 or 3! It's really fun to watch them steal each other's "door-stones"

Yasha Goby - may or may not work with the jawfish, depending on how you structure the tank. If you go with them I would get a pair (males have a black spot on the base of their pelvic fin) and team them up with a randalli pistol shrimp (or a pair of them if you can find one). This group will be quite fun to watch.
If you go with yellow watchman gobies (I would keep them also as pair: two small or one small and one bigger gets you a pair) pair them with a larger pistol shrimp like tigers for example. Though those may be tough with the jawfish.

Benggai Cardinal - alone, like all cardinals, a rather boring fish. A pair would be possible, but females can be rough with the males.
They also like to squabble with clowns if there is an anemone (or even a flowerpot) in the tank. If you want cardinals I would rather suggest a small group of pajamas or similar.

 

[Genera]

Maybe a mated pair of captive bred Whitespotted Pygmy Filefish (Rudarius Ercodes)? Max out at 3in. ORA kept a group of these in a tank with stony and soft corals and didn't see any nipping suggesting safeness with those corals. These fish are great! Lots of personality and eat readily. If you get them from ORA (I believe this is the only place to get captive bred ones), since they feed their filefish pellets, they should probably accept pellets. In the wild they live in colder water around 55-65°F, but ORA keeps and breeds them in 75-80°F water and they are doing extremely well.

 

[rssjsb]

Yellowhead Jawfish - get 2 or 3! It's really fun to watch them steal each other's "door-stones"

I think their territories are about 2x2, so I wouldn't put more than one in a 60 gallon cube unless they're a mated pair or a couple of small juveniles that could form a mated pair.

 

[ptbmaniac]

Pair of clowns (Ocellaris or Percs) - ideal for this tank

Tailspot Blenny - no objections

Firefish - skittish and rather boring fish - I like their color but would probably prefer a more interesting fish. It may also interfere with the jawfish.

Yellowhead Jawfish - get 2 or 3! It's really fun to watch them steal each other's "door-stones"

Yasha Goby - may or may not work with the jawfish, depending on how you structure the tank. If you go with them I would get a pair (males have a black spot on the base of their pelvic fin) and team them up with a randalli pistol shrimp (or a pair of them if you can find one). This group will be quite fun to watch.
If you go with yellow watchman gobies (I would keep them also as pair: two small or one small and one bigger gets you a pair) pair them with a larger pistol shrimp like tigers for example. Though those may be tough with the jawfish.

Benggai Cardinal - alone, like all cardinals, a rather boring fish. A pair would be possible, but females can be rough with the males.
They also like to squabble with clowns if there is an anemone (or even a flowerpot) in the tank. If you want cardinals I would rather suggest a small group of pajamas or similar.

In no way do I find the firefish boring! I absolutely love them even if they don't do much! I really don't mind small colorful fish that just hover or even hide a lot! I like peaceful fish and the science of marine tanks!
You are right about the jawfish! I have seen a jawfish only tank with like 5-6 jawfish in it and it was a very entertaining tank! But I do think that a 60 cube might be a little small for multiple jawfish unless it was a mated pair,but that would knock out something else and 1 jawfish is enough entertainment and trouble!
As for cardinals,I like the diamond encrusted look of the benggai cardinals! They are a boring fish,but so pretty! I really don't like the look of pajama cardinals. I know I am in the minority on that,but they just don't do anything for me. Cardinals are not a must though.
I know clowns can get feisty especially when guarding their territory! But to me a tropical marine tank is just incomplete without a pair of clowns! If I had to I would do a tank with just a pair of clowns! They are very entertaining and they each have their own personalities!

 

[Tzwizzle]

IMO you don't have any active fish. You could go for a peaceful wrasse or chromis to add movement to your tank.

 

[ptbmaniac]

What about a yellow assessor instead of the cardinal? They are pretty active!