pinnatus batfish in a reef? possible disaster?

[Themilkman248]

ok so I bought a pinnatus batfish as my lfs talked me into it and said it should be fine with my corals in my reef tank, after researching it after purchasing I am only now to find out there not consider reef safe and will eat anemones and other corals, my question is how likely Is this? what can I do about it to try prevent him? and if need be could I set up a tall empty tank roughly 200 litres for the mean time if need be for him to live in he is eating, and out of my hand at that any suggestions or previous experiences would be appreciated thanks.

 

[MrTuskfish]

I haven't kept a batfish in many years; is this one of the tan-bred batfish? just curious. My only suggestion would be to do research before you buy and let your LFS guy know you think he's an idiot. (Or at least let him know he's passing lousy info around.)

 

[leveldrummer]

Take it back, tell the guy the fish is a coral eater and he gave you bad information and get your money back or apply the cost to a different fish.

 

[namxas]

and if need be could I set up a tall empty tank roughly 200 litres for the mean time if need be for him to live in

52 gals and change won't hold a pinnatus for long...assuming your fish reaches adulthood, it will need roughly 300 gals of tank.

Also, if you haven't done so, look at photos of the adult phase of this fish...they look NOTHING like the juvie coloration, and are actually a fairly drab fish, so you need to like them for what they will become.

 

[Aquatron]

Agree with above You were given very bad information and now have a fish that will die within days 99% of the time. You should do research first before buying any marine livestock as research is an important part of our hobby

 

[CedzAquAddictio]

Yeah, Man. Take him back. Shame on the LFS for misguiding you like that. No offense, but shame on you too for pruchasing that fish without researching first (slap yourself on the hand. LOL). I can say this because, it's how I started too. Almost identical experience, but my purchase was Koran Angel from my LFS that only wanted to make a sale. I felt ashamed because I knew better. I'm sure we all have slipped up in some way or another. LOL...

Honestly, the LFS is probably waiting for you to return the fish in the first place because they either mis-informed you, or were not experienced themselves. As mentioned above, not only is the fish not reef safe, but it gets VERY large. Where are you located? Shop around until you find an honest and knowledgeable LFS. If you can't find one, live aquaria is great. Also search this forum as there are very knowledgeable people here.

Last, but not least: Is this fish in a QT? If so, he'll be easy to remove. If not, have fun getting him out of your reef. LOL.
Seriously, though: Set up a QT to protect yourself and your livestock. Aside from not being reef safe, how do you know this new fish doesn't have disease or parasites?

Best of luck, and keep us posted!!!


Deja vu???

 

[Themilkman248]

he'll be rather easy to remove as he's a slow swimmer and comes to my hands when I try feed him, I do not plan on keeping him in the 52 gal for long only until I get my new larger tank set up that he can fit in, how relatively easy are they to keep alive? and yes I know research is always necessary just sometimes you cant help yourself ): I will contact the lfs today as I knew there was some reason he was so interested in selling him,

 

[Themilkman248]

I called him earlier and he said he will take him back for store credit YAY haha atleast no dead fish or corals in my tank I seen earlier today someones experience on a tank with one that has lived its whole life in a reef tank with sps and anemones, only nibbling on the anemones once? so is it possible to keep these in a large enough reef?

 

[Aquatron]

You made a good choice to return him/her

 

[leveldrummer]

You did the right thing, I know you wanted to upgrade your tank and try and keep him, but the issue with batfish is they get so TALL, at almost 2 feet from top to bottom, even a 30" tall tank could be a little cramped.

 

[HumbleFish]

I called him earlier and he said he will take him back for store credit YAY haha atleast no dead fish or corals in my tank I seen earlier today someones experience on a tank with one that has lived its whole life in a reef tank with sps and anemones, only nibbling on the anemones once? so is it possible to keep these in a large enough reef?

There's always the exception to the rule, but the odds are not in your favor. For example, I know someone who has had a Raccoon Butterfly in their fully stocked reef tank for years. No issues whatsoever. So, using that person as inspiration, I tried it twice with two different Raccoons. Both times I had to tear my reef apart to get it out.

 

[Themilkman248]

yeah I watched him nip at 2 types of coral both lps though, so i'd say a sps dominated reef would be ideal for them. and the outcome was I swapped him in today for a large rock of green gonnoporrea? sorry about the spelling, and a medium sized coral banded shrimp