My Planned FOWLR Fish List

[countryboy86]

i have a 135 gallon tank 72x18x24 and will be a FOWLR running a corallife 220g skimmer, fluval FX5, no sump, 100lbs dry rock and 20-35 lbs live rock, crushed coral,no live sand. Fish i would like are: Picasso Trigger, Dogface Puffer, Yellow Tang, Blue Hippo Tang, Jeweled Moray Eel, Cow Fish, a couple Cleaner Shrimp. Let me know how this will be. Hopefully im able.

 

[Dragon moray ki]

I would skip the cow fish be ause they can poison your tank and the blue tang might get too big. Besides that I think your good.

 

[countryboy86]

I would skip the cow fish be ause they can poison your tank and the blue tang might get too big. Besides that I think your good.

"Poison" you say? Might i ask how can they do that? And blue tang too big for a 135 huh ok well if i where to maybe change to a purple tang or other box fish would that be a better choice?

 

[randomfishguy85]

cowfish are known to release a toxin through thier skin when they die. this toxin can kill all of your fish. I believe all cow/box fish are capable of this. Im not sure how long cleaner shrimp would last with a trigger and puffer. I would personally go for the sand over the crushed coral. Crushed coral traps detritus and will be rough on the eels skin. I personally feel the tank is big enough for the blue tang but the consensus here is that they belong in a 8 ft tank. If it were my tank i would do the puffer, tangs, trigger, eel, and add some damsels for movement and to help clean up scraps. you can also try to add some hermits to help clean up. my puffer doesnt touch them, so maybe yours wont.

 

[nanoreefer1000]

i have a 135 gallon tank 72x18x24 and will be a FOWLR running a corallife 220g skimmer, fluval FX5, no sump, 100lbs dry rock and 20-35 lbs live rock, crushed coral,no live sand. Fish i would like are: Picasso Trigger, Dogface Puffer, Yellow Tang, Blue Hippo Tang, Jeweled Moray Eel, Cow Fish, a couple Cleaner Shrimp. Let me know how this will be. Hopefully im able.

That seems like a lot of fish for a 135 gallon tank, I can see some fish/inverts possibly getting picking on.

 

[mattsilvester]

Seems like too many fish, and there may be interspecies compatability issues.

Assuming 65% of their natural (wild) sizes, these fish will be:
Picasso Trigger - 8"
Dogface Puffer - 8"
Yellow Tang - 5"
Blue Hippo Tang - 8"
Jeweled Moray Eel - 16"*
Cow Fish - 12"

1. Thats a total of 57" of terrotial large bodied fish (*say 50" if you make allowance for the moray's snake like shape). Approximatelt double what I woul recommend for a 135.
2. The cowfish will get too big. You should aime for no more than 9" expected adult size (moray is an exception).
3. Trigger / puffer may nip (bite) the moray hence may not be the best combo.

 

[sandwi54]

Seems like too many fish, and there may be interspecies compatability issues.

Assuming 65% of their natural (wild) sizes, these fish will be:
Picasso Trigger - 8"
Dogface Puffer - 8"
Yellow Tang - 5"
Blue Hippo Tang - 8"
Jeweled Moray Eel - 16"*
Cow Fish - 12"

1. Thats a total of 57" of terrotial large bodied fish (*say 50" if you make allowance for the moray's snake like shape). Approximatelt double what I woul recommend for a 135.
2. The cowfish will get too big. You should aime for no more than 9" expected adult size (moray is an exception).
3. Trigger / puffer may nip (bite) the moray hence may not be the best combo.

I agree. Having six large fish in a 135g, of which four are carnivores who generate lots of bioload, will just make this hobby unenjoyable unless you don't mind the frequent large water changes. I would say reduce that list by half, i.e., having only three large fish, and adding a few smaller fish like small wrasses, will be much more ideal. This way you will still get to have three show pieces and don't have to go crazy about maintaining the water quality.

 

[countryboy86]

ok so seems the eel is out but what about the snowflake? Though i can go without a eel alltogather my main fish i like is the picasso, dogface, yellow tang, purple tang, and the shrimp what about that mix?

 

[sandwi54]

ok so seems the eel is out but what about the snowflake? Though i can go without a eel alltogather my main fish i like is the picasso, dogface, yellow tang, purple tang, and the shrimp what about that mix?

That list looks fine to me except the 2 following concerns.

1. cleaner shrimp will most likely become an expensive meal for the puffer and trigger. Maybe not right away but will eventually.

2. there may be aggression between the yellow tang and purple tang. they are from the same genus with similar body shapes, and both are pretty territorial. if you would like to attempt that combo, get them both small and put them in at the same time, and hopefully they can get used to each other and not fight when they become adults.

Of course, if you don't have a QT, get one now and quarantine/treat every new fish.

 

[mattsilvester]

ok so seems the eel is out but what about the snowflake? Though i can go without a eel alltogather my main fish i like is the picasso, dogface, yellow tang, purple tang, and the shrimp what about that mix?

Picasso Trigger - 8"
Dogface Puffer - 8"
Yellow Tang - 5"
Purple Tang - 6"

Sounds ideal - the only thing I would caution is the shrimps. I've had cleanershrimp with a picasso in the past with no incident..... but its going to be hit and miss..... 50-50 at best.

Moray's of any kind with triggers / puffers of any kind very often lead to injured and bullied moray's. Many do it sucessfully, many do not..... I owuld be included to say not.

With those 4 fish, you could easily add a few other nice smaller (robust) pecies, and will have manageable water quality and healthy fish.

 

[countryboy86]

That list looks fine to me except the 2 following concerns.

1. cleaner shrimp will most likely become an expensive meal for the puffer and trigger. Maybe not right away but will eventually.

2. there may be aggression between the yellow tang and purple tang. they are from the same genus with similar body shapes, and both are pretty territorial. if you would like to attempt that combo, get them both small and put them in at the same time, and hopefully they can get used to each other and not fight when they become adults.

Of course, if you don't have a QT, get one now and quarantine/treat every new fish.

ok so if i want the yellow and purple tang they need to be introduced togather and small and then hope they get along. Ok i might not mix those two then might go with maybe a instead of a purple tang a clown trigger or foxface? I do have a QT its a 20 gallon i will have it running all times under my stand. And seems i wount be able to do the cleaner shrimp so poss. hermit crabs and some snails?

 

[countryboy86]

Picasso Trigger - 8"
Dogface Puffer - 8"
Yellow Tang - 5"
Purple Tang - 6"

Sounds ideal - the only thing I would caution is the shrimps. I've had cleanershrimp with a picasso in the past with no incident..... but its going to be hit and miss..... 50-50 at best.

Moray's of any kind with triggers / puffers of any kind very often lead to injured and bullied moray's. Many do it sucessfully, many do not..... I owuld be included to say not.

With those 4 fish, you could easily add a few other nice smaller (robust) pecies, and will have manageable water quality and healthy fish.

ok so you say the moray of any kind would be a bad idea so, for me seems the moray is out. Shrimps and triggers dont mix seems like a treat of the king for them so seems they are out. Good thing i asked on here before i got this list and had nothing but monday night raw in my tank lol. So say instead of the purple tang i put in a queen trigger or a foxface?

 

[humaguy]

agree with the above...bear in mind if you go sand it will cover everything...and it would take many years for rhinecanthus aculeatus to get to 8 inches...yeah, the moray will eat just about anything it can fit in its mouth including sleeping triggers...

 

[mattsilvester]

ok so you say the moray of any kind would be a bad idea so, for me seems the moray is out. Shrimps and triggers dont mix seems like a treat of the king for them so seems they are out. Good thing i asked on here before i got this list and had nothing but monday night raw in my tank lol. So say instead of the purple tang i put in a queen trigger or a foxface?

I think you'll be fine with the yellow and purple tang. I had the mix in an 8' tank with no problems - as long as they are introduced at the same time and there is good aquascaping etc. they should be fine. I owuld advise getting different sizes - different by about 0.5" - 1". I would be inclined to get a smaller yellow tang (say about 3") and introduce first, giving time to establish, then a slightly larger purple tang. The purple will outgrow the yellow anyway, so if you do it viceversa on the sizes then you'll get clash of the titans when the purple catches up.

BTW - if Mike Tyson and Ted Bundy could hybridise, a queen trigger is as about as close as a fish gets to it ..... at any size!

 

[countryboy86]

cowfish are known to release a toxin through thier skin when they die. this toxin can kill all of your fish. I believe all cow/box fish are capable of this. Im not sure how long cleaner shrimp would last with a trigger and puffer. I would personally go for the sand over the crushed coral. Crushed coral traps detritus and will be rough on the eels skin. I personally feel the tank is big enough for the blue tang but the consensus here is that they belong in a 8 ft tank. If it were my tank i would do the puffer, tangs, trigger, eel, and add some damsels for movement and to help clean up scraps. you can also try to add some hermits to help clean up. my puffer doesnt touch them, so maybe yours wont.

I didnt know that about cowfish or any box fish for that matter that sucks they shouldnt have tham availabile to my opinion since they are capabile of doing this. And blue tang should be in a 8 foot tank and not a 6 ok i understand that one sucks but i want to do this right dont need my prized fish diying off the line cause i didnt provide the right care in housing or what not. You say to mix damsels with the puffer,tangs,trigger,and eel the damsels wont "dissappear" with the eel? And for the substarte i have the fine ground crushed coral so its just about the same size as sand but not as fine.

 

[countryboy86]

I think you'll be fine with the yellow and purple tang. I had the mix in an 8' tank with no problems - as long as they are introduced at the same time and there is good aquascaping etc. they should be fine. I owuld advise getting different sizes - different by about 0.5" - 1". I would be inclined to get a smaller yellow tang (say about 3") and introduce first, giving time to establish, then a slightly larger purple tang. The purple will outgrow the yellow anyway, so if you do it viceversa on the sizes then you'll get clash of the titans when the purple catches up.

BTW - if Mike Tyson and Ted Bundy could hybridise, a queen trigger is as about as close as a fish gets to it ..... at any size!

ok queen and clown trigger out thought id ask and as usuall shot down lol just kidding i ask so i can learn what mixes what dont.

 

[humaguy]

also, queen's grow huge and do so really fast...and they can be mean, though, perhaps not as mean as a large clown or undy...

 

[mattsilvester]

I didnt know that about cowfish or any box fish for that matter that sucks they shouldnt have tham availabile to my opinion since they are capabile of doing this. And blue tang should be in a 8 foot tank and not a 6 ok i understand that one sucks but i want to do this right dont need my prized fish diying off the line cause i didnt provide the right care in housing or what not. You say to mix damsels with the puffer,tangs,trigger,and eel the damsels wont "dissappear" with the eel? And for the substarte i have the fine ground crushed coral so its just about the same size as sand but not as fine.

Personally I would have no issue with a blue hippo tang in your 6' tank - so long as it is not overstocked and well aquascaped. Personally I would consider the blue tang / yellow tang combo a better mix than the yellow / purple.

 

[sandwi54]

clown trigger, queen trigger, undulated trigger, etc. are very bad ideas for all but the largest tank, e.g., 500g or more. They are the nastiest and most aggressive fish you can ever buy, and in almost all cases lead to the entire tank of dead tank mates (after they grow up). I would advice against any of these highly territorial species unless you plan on just keeping one of them in a large, dedicated aquarium. These fish also grow very large (between 15-20") and definitely cannot fit in a 135g.

I like your original list of dogface puffer, picasso trigger, yellow tang, and purple tang, and think that will work well. I would also suggest a couple of small non-reef-safe wrasses (the halichoeres genus, one example is the christmas wrasse). These wrasses stay small (~5-6"), are elongated, and like to zip in and out of rockworks and circle around the tank. They will bring activities to the tank and complement the large fish well.

 

[mattsilvester]

..... I would also suggest a couple of small non-reef-safe wrasses (the halichoeres genus, one example is the christmas wrasse). These wrasses stay small (~5-6"), are elongated, and like to zip in and out of rockworks and circle around the tank. They will bring activities to the tank and complement the large fish well.

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