Rhinecanthus tank size / tank mates

[Pericyte]

I'm upgrading my reef tank and I'm considering using my old tank, 150 gallon for a FOWLR (I have no experience with FOWLR). I have always loved Rhinecanthus looks, and I hear they have awesome personalitie.

150 is a bit on the small size, is it too small? Do all rhinecanthus have similar temperaments and personalities? Would they be okay with a couple butterflyfish or small tangs? Can any smaller fish be kept with them?

Thanks!!

 

[cougareyes]

My 1st tank had a picasso, I had him well over 10 years, I got him at about an inch, he was a great fish. Some say they grow painfully slow, he stared in a 40 with 2 other one inch triggers, he ended up in a 180 and and maxed out at about 6-7 inches, and I feed my fish very well. He may very well be able to live a 150 his whole life.
I've also had a retangulus and a bursa, they are all 3 similar, although the smaller you start them the more social and less aggressive they seem to be. They are not overly aggressive and would live fine with smaller tangs, I have a mimic tang and he is great, other smaller tangs would be a good choice also.
The bursa is very underrated fish, I've never had one of the red sea varieties if you want to go that route.
You can obviously only have one of them, I wouldn't recommend butterflys, mainly because the rhinecanthus are very aggressive eaters, and whatever you put in there should be able to hold their own. Maybe a pygmy angel, hawkfish, I never could keep a cuc.

 

[Pericyte]

Very cool, thanks for the info. Any luck keeping any types of coral with them, or not even worth trying?

 

[brad]

Don't understand why anyone would do FOWLR. Leathers are cheap, hardy and grow fast. You should be able to keep them with any fish.

 

[cougareyes]

Don't understand why anyone would do FOWLR. Leathers are cheap, hardy and grow fast. You should be able to keep them with any fish.

That's funny, my blueline and clown triggers would devastate your leathers, or anything for that matter for a tasting or just for fun.

As far as Rhinecanthus go with corals, I doubt it; but you could try some cheap frags. The thing about that is I've seen Rhinecanthus and the more popular clown triggers put in reefs, and live happily for a couple of years. Then they mature and overnight go on a rampage and start shredding. Like I said to either taste it or just to tear **** up for fun.

 

[ironeagle2006]

My last tank a 150 FOWLR I had a Huma Huma trigger that made it his goal in life to eat anything that was coral related in nature. This fish ate Kenya Trees so freaking fast to the point he got fat. He left the CUC alone but if it was even a Xenia coral it had a life expectancy in my tank of less than 2 days. Members of my reef club gave me the stuff they wanted dead or asked to borrow this fish for cleaning out overgrown corals.