Purple and Yellow Tang in a 200g System

[trebor86]

I know purple tangs can be very aggressive but i was wondering if adding a purple tang to my 200g reef tank would be a problem. Heres what i was thinking. I was already planning on adding more rock, so i was going to redo the rock work then introduce the purple tang to the tank.

Current Live Stock
Naso Tang
Blue Morpho Tang
2 Foxfaces
yellow tang
a couple wrasses
Tusk
Mandarin

DT Size: 200 Gallon
Sump: 100 Gallon, prob 50-60 gallons in it

 

[Dmorty217]

There will be some fighting but with you rearranging rock work (especially where the yellow tang call home) will curb aggression. Also I would try to get larger or smaller than the current yellow is

 

[ace_92101]

Yes, I would think so. You already have three Tangs, including a Naso and you want to add a Purple? Pushing Tang stocking levels can lead to numerous issues.

 

[trebor86]

When the tank was running at the previous owners place they had 6 more fish in the setup including a large sailfin tang. It was running for several years without a problem, so I don't think adding a purple tank will be an overstocking issue, I'm more concerned about aggression. Also to be clear I already have the purple tang in qt just not sure if I should put it in my dt.

 

[ace_92101]

You said it better than I did. From a bio load standpoint, you should be able to do it. But aggression, ick, etc should be a concern, even in a 200 gallon system.

 

[ca1ore]

Depends what you mean by 'problem'? They'll almost certainly fight initially, with some fin damage and perhaps a scrape or two. As long as the newcomer is in good shape, things will settle down to the occasional skirmish. FWIW, the best way to get a fish into good shape is to use a QT for a couple of months.