Pest Eating Fish

[Felixc395]

I am always worrying about what pest is in my tank whether it's bristle worms, sundail snails, flatworms, you name it.

I was wondering what fish if any are pest eaters or preventers tha help make your tank free from annoying little critters?

I have a 37 gallon reef so keep in mind please that the aquarium is on the smaller side. So, I'd appreciate it if you posted a pest eating fish that you know of as well as the pest that it eats (picture would be very nice too, but not needed, I can look it up myself).

Thanks!

 

[UtahReefer]

Yellow coris wrasse! They are constantly searching for pests

 

[iamwhatiam52]

My yellow coris wrass gobbles up everything but the montipora eating nudibranchs I bought him to control!!!!!

My seagrass file fish devours everything but the mojanos I bought him to control!!!

Both are great fish, but any individual fish may not eat the pests in your tank what others report that they eat. Get a fish you'll like regardless of whether it eats pests.

6 line wrasse are great fish for a small tank and are supposed to eat pyramid snails that prey on clams.

 

[jd474]

most any Halichoeres wrasse that would be compatible with your tank/tankmates.

 

[Felixc395]

Great. It seems like wrasses are very beneficial to the tank!

 

[Ben_Im]

My Sixline ate everything: bristleworms, pecked at tube worms, tiny snails, copepods, and some algae. I loved the fish but it was terrorizing some new additions.

 

[Felixc395]

Wow, that sixline sounds like it sure did the job. What type of new additions did it bother? I've heard they often bother invertebrates very easily.

 

[atreyu917]

I will never get another 12 Line, or anything like it. Awful tankmates

 

[Felixc395]

I will never get another 12 Line, or anything like it. Awful tankmates

I have heard that wrasses can be quite mean to other tankmates. But this seems to be only the smaller fish and more peaceful one's. I'm thinking of getting a six-line. I'm also debating if I should get a mandarin goby. I have a refugium, so there would be ample food for it. But I've heard the wrasses eat copepods as well. Would a wrasse out compete a mandarin for pods?

 

[iamwhatiam52]

Not only will the wrasse compete with a mandarin for pods, your tank is far too small to support a mandarin.

 

[sanchoy]

Not only will the wrasse compete with a mandarin for pods, your tank is far too small to support a mandarin.

Unless you can buy a local mandarin that truly accepts frozen. This can be done. I have kept a mandarin in my old 40 gallon for over 1.5 years before the tank upgrade. Just provide a nice healthy fuge and make sure you get one that eats frozen.

 

[atreyu917]

I had a mandarin in my 80 gallon. I'll never have one again though. I thought I had enough pods, but it still wasn't enough. I gave him away before he withered anymore.

And I don't know if these wrasses have a rhyme or reason to who they pick on. He caused my Scissortail to jump to his death, but left my firefish alone. Oh, and then he started picking on my clowns too, once the Scissortail was gone

 

[atreyu917]

Oh and caused my Smith's Blenny to hide for days.
Also a pain to get them out of your tank once they're in there