Pseudanthias ignitus- adding to a group

[haydn]

Over here in the UK P.ignitus are a fairly unusual fish to find in a LFS, so when I saw 12 in one about a month ago I snapped them all up. They have proven to be model additions, feeding well and acting as 'jitter fish' for my P. evansi and making it easier for to get them onto aquarium fare. I have 2 full male Ignitus and one I think is either a very colourful female or more likely, a sub-male. They are peaceful with only occasional 'handbags'.

Now the question- the LSF phoned me and said they may have 15 more coming in and they are prepared to give me first refusal on some or all of them. I am very tempted to buy all of them and add them to my group, my tank is 2000ltr (530 US galls) and sparsely populated so it is large enough. There are no large fish in there to bully them. I hoping Ignitus (sometimes called Flame) anthias are more common in the US and you can answer the 'has anyone added two largish groups of them together like I want to' question.

I once tried it with bartletts and TBH it didn't work, the male Bartletts were just too aggressive with the much smaller new ones and wouldn't let them settle. The Ignitus, however, in comparison, seem to be a lot more laid back and much less domineering within the group.
I would be grateful for any thoughts.

I don't know if this will work but these are my Ignitus-

https://youtu.be/r7jqYkAbMCI?t=74

 

[haydn]

Judging by the lack of responses it would appear that they are unusual in the US as well. I may just have to try it and have an exit strategy worked out it I get aggression issues.

 

[nsfishguy]

I have no idea about these fish. But I would be surprised if it would cause a problem given that number of fish and so many would be added at once. Good luck whatever you decide.

 

[Tripod1404]

I have seen ignitus commonly in US, even in department stores like Petco. The issue is in US, they cost about the same with more desirable anthias like lyrettails, dispars or barletts. So not many people who have tanks large enough for many buy that specie. I assume their care is very similar to that of Dispar anthias, as they are very closely related. There are people who keep them inl large groups, you can check threads on those.

 

[MarkW64]

I'm afraid I can't answer your question from direct experience. I just have four ignitus. When I was researching, trying to decide which anthias to keep, the general sense was that ignitus and their close relative dispar were among the least aggressive and easiest to keep in a group. I saw others report adding new fish to an existing group without problems. I also read reports of multiple males in a group not causing problems. In a tank your size I would be very tempted to do what you are considering -- I look forward to reading of your experience if you go ahead!

Ignitus, or "Flame", seem uncommon here in the states at least partly due to misidentification as Dispar. Live Aquaria sells both species for similar price. I got two from LA. My other two came from my LFS, which had them labelled as Dispar, which is how they get them from their supplier -- mixed in with Dispar.

 

[haydn]

Tripod- interesting statement 'The issue is in US, they cost about the same with more desirable anthias like lyrettails, dispars or barletts' The flames (both groups) have come in significantly cheaper than any of the three you quoted, especially Bartletts, which are considerably more expensive in the UK.
as for 'desirable' beauty is in the eye of the beholder :love2:

My group is due to come into the LFS today:thumbsup: If they arrive (I've learnt not to count my fish till they arrive) I'll let you know how I get on, watch this space.................

 

[Tripod1404]

Tripod- interesting statement 'The issue is in US, they cost about the same with more desirable anthias like lyrettails, dispars or barletts' The flames (both groups) have come in significantly cheaper than any of the three you quoted, especially Bartletts, which are considerably more expensive in the UK.
as for 'desirable' beauty is in the eye of the beholder :love2:

My group is due to come into the LFS today:thumbsup: If they arrive (I've learnt not to count my fish till they arrive) I'll let you know how I get on, watch this space.................

Lol yeah with desirable I meant it in terms of import. All anthias look beautiful IMO. I also agree that most vendors and importers just name the ignitus anthias as dispar since they look extremely similar and Dispar is a better known name in US. Below are the prices for the anthias I am talking about;

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/2703/?pcatid=2703

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/48/dispar-anthias?pcatid=48&c=747+871+48

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/1128/bartletts-anthias?pcatid=1128&c=15+20+1128

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/54/?pcatid=54

 

[haydn]

Ah well! never count your anthias before they turn up The Ignitus ordered, in stock at the exporters, named on all the delivery paperwork turned out to be Red fairy anthias (P. kashiwae) lovely fish but not what I wanted. If anyone wants any I know a LFS that has a dozen of them.