Overstocked?

P

plowro8

In Memoriam
I have a 36 Gal bowfront FOWLR that currently houses:

Blue Damsel
Flame Angel
Maroon Clown
Purple Firefish
Six Line Wrasse
High Fin Goby

I would love to get one more fish, but I am afraid of overstocking. With the current set-up, everyone is happy and healthy. Anyone have any suggestions on whether or not I should/could add another small fish?
 
How long have you had your Flame Angel and Maroon Clown and damsel? Ive seen Blue Damsels reach 4" TL The Flame will take a couple of years to mature but it can top 5" TL and I have a 6 - 7 year old female Maroon that looks like it's close to 6" TL. Remember the body mass of a fish will typically quadruple (or more) if the length doubles. Don't think about what you can squeeze in now think about the dynamics and biomass in two or three years as your existing livestock mature.
 
I plan to upgrade the aquarium to 55 (possibly larger) within the next year or so. I have had the Maroon and Damsel for about 6 months, and just got the Flame a few weeks ago. The Maroon is probably only 2 inches, Damsel about 1.5, and the Flame is biggest at about 3.
 
She's a smart cookie and has came with me to the fish stores an know how much things cost now..

In retrospect maybe I should have left her at home and not told her the prices.
 
Speaking of girlfriends/wives wanting pretty fish, my girlfriend really wants me to get a Green Mandarin. I have been told that they are very difficult to keep due to their feeding habits. I have recently stocked my tank with amphipods, but I am apprehensive to add a fish like that since I had a Scooter Blenny starve to death in my last tank.... I just couldn't get him to eat regular food, and apparently there wasn't enough pod-like stuff in the tank... Any thoughts?
 
plowro8 said:
I have recently stocked my tank with amphipods, but I am apprehensive to add a fish like that since I had a Scooter Blenny starve to death in my last tank.... I just couldn't get him to eat regular food, and apparently there wasn't enough pod-like stuff in the tank... Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

Well your apprehension is a good thing. First how big and how old is the tank? Also are there any other fish in the tank that would compete for pods such as wrasses or certain gobies? I wouldn't feel comfortable with anything under a 75 gallon. Even then I would want the tank to be well established with a healthy self sustaining pod population and a refuge area. Has it been done with less? I'm sure but if I cant keep that fish fat I wouldn't do it.
 
I had a maroon clown in a 150 gallon tank. For years, she killed every new fish I put in the tank. As existing fish died off due to age, I ended up with 3 fish in the tank. A yellow tang, hawkfish and the clown. Finally got a 300 and was able to get more fish (I added them all at once when I moved her). She settled in with the new crowd and after about a month, no more new fish without her attacking. I had her for almost 18 years.
 
Lateralus said:
Well your apprehension is a good thing. First how big and how old is the tank? Also are there any other fish in the tank that would compete for pods such as wrasses or certain gobies? I wouldn't feel comfortable with anything under a 75 gallon. Even then I would want the tank to be well established with a healthy self sustaining pod population and a refuge area. Has it been done with less? I'm sure but if I cant keep that fish fat I wouldn't do it.
Click to expand...

The tank is 36 Gal and about 13 months old...

So, will the pods reproduce in my tank? They appear to be living in the rock. I do not have a fuge or sump.
 
Sometimes folks say they're going to upgrade to a bigger tank almost never do.

From seeing your current fish list, that Maroon will eventually be the bully of the tank. They're one of the most aggressive of the clownfish species.
 
I think that tank would be depleted fairly quickly by a mandarin. They literally spend all day hunting. Add to that it has the six line to contend with.
 
i sometimes feel like my 75 isn't big enough for my mandarin, don't even waste the life of the fish by "trying", unless its eating pellets/frozen it flat out wont work. I tried one in the same size tank a couple years ago when i was a nOOb and the tank glass and substrate was literally covered in pods. A week later there was barely any visible and even with constant stocking of pods it was an uphill battle that ended in the death of the fish, all because i just had to have that pretty little fish
 
Not that it's exactly on topic, but upgrade to a 75. As far as equipment cost goes it's not a big jump, but having the extra space from front to back is REALLY worth it. Especially if you plan on keeping that Maroon clown as they can get very (very) mean.
 
I have about the same number of fish in my 60 gallon, so I would agree that your tank is "full up".
 
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