Seldom seen fishes

[technoshaman]

Currently in my large tank (300g total volume) I have a few fish that I see on average once a week:

Geometric Pygmy Hawk - Plectranthias sp (in tank 2 years)
Swissguard basslet - Lipoproma swalesi (in tank 1 year)
Elegant Dottyback - Pseudochromis elongatus (added 2 months ago)


Usually feeding time I can get them to peek out especially the pygmy anthias but I have gone as long as a month without seeing the basslet.

Just wondering if anyone else keeps any secretive / cryptic fishes in a large reef - someone I know had a yellow brotulid he saw once when releasing it into a 120 and saw it again still liveing when he broke the tank down several years later!

 

[Angel*Fish]

I have a green clown goby I see maybe once a month if that often & my high fin shrimp gobies & their shrimp moved to the back somewhere. I hear the shrimp clicking every now & then. Sometimes they live in the front for a month or so.
I thought my flame scallop had died but after 6 months it suddenly moved to the front of the tank.

The problem in my case is is not cryptic fish but mainly that my rocks don't touch the glass in the back so there's plenty of living space back there.

 

[scchase]

I have a long tentacle anemone that I can barely see and it is nearly 14" across. Sits back behind my rock stack in the back half of my tank. Also its a rare occasion to see both of my madarins in the same week.

 

[ezhoops]

I once had a curious worm fish that I would go weeks without seeing it. it was a pretty cool fish.

 

[Peter Schmiedel]

LOL
I thought I am the only one with this "passion"

Plectranthias inermis is often to see in a small tank, thats not a cryptic fish

My worse case scenario:

and this

I have a coupel (??) since 1,5 years and only 3 weeks ago I managed to see a glimps of both at the same time, and they are in a small and piecfull tank.

Other secret fish form which I have no pic are Pseudoplesiops typus and Plesiops cephalotaenia

In my main tank I keep 4 Ptereleotris grammica grammica which are to shy because of the tank mates. Did not manage to make a picture yet.

 

[technoshaman]

Peter, those are gorgeous fish thank you for sharing - my Plectranthias is likely the same species as yours and I see him the most of any of the fish I mentioned especially mealtimes.

Beloneptyerigon fasciolatum seems to be showing up more frequently in the hobby but I haven't talked to many people who have actually kept one. What size tank is he in and what is he eating? I currently have a Calloplesiops altivelis / marine betta in my large system who after 4 years is always out and about - B.fasciolatum is reported to be much more retiring.

 

[Angel*Fish]

Geometric Pygmy Hawk - LFS had one of these a couple of weeks ago for $25 - didn't know what it was until I was reading later, wish I'd got him

 

[Kinetic]

I saw a few of those a couple days ago at a LFS. Seems like they're in "season"

Are they really hawkfish? I heard they were a kinda anthia/bass maybe? kinda similar to a sunburst anthia?

 

[Angel*Fish]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7124131#post7124131 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by koden
I saw a few of those a couple days ago at a LFS. Seems like they're in "season"

Are they really hawkfish? I heard they were a kinda anthia/bass maybe? kinda similar to a sunburst anthia?

Yes I would call them anthias - but then there's been confusion about anthias vs hawk

 

[dvmsn]

I have a geometric in my 110. He hides except during feeding, but hides in reasonably predicatable spots where I can often see him. Man, that is one of my favorite fish ever.

 

[Kinetic]

do they actually dive bomb and eat hermits / shrimp too? or are they like anthias that eat planktonic foods?

 

[dvmsn]

They will eat shrimp, but seem to leave hermits alone.

 

[Kinetic]

sounds more like a hawkfish then? I'm pretty sure anthias like barlett never go for shrimp?

 

[Angel*Fish]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7125943#post7125943 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by koden
sounds more like a hawkfish then? I'm pretty sure anthias like barlett never go for shrimp?

No...but I'd bet money on it being my bicolor anthias who ate 2 yellow clown gobies. And he didn't care if they tasted bad.

 

[Kinetic]

wow anthias are really that aggressive?

 

[Peter Schmiedel]

They have no relation to Anthias at all and behave a lot like a hawkfish. Always sticking to the ground, never in the open water column. If you see the coloration you also will notice that they live in deeper warer.

To answer the shrimp question:

 

[Peter Schmiedel]

Is so cryptic living that I cant even tell what they eat. As mentioned I have never seen them in the opne, sometimes you can only see the snout with the white line in a whole and that's it.

I keep my two in 120x40x40 Centimer tank. They share the tank with some cardinals, a couple of C.potteri and a couple of Priolepsis nocturna.

The picture shown above was taken a few minuteas after relasing them to the tank and I have never seen them out in the open like this again!

 

[NexDog]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7128993#post7128993 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Peter Schmiedel


To answer the shrimp question:

Pic of the month!

 

[waterfaller1]

Tough fish to even get a pic of..Tiger Goby - Priolepis Nocturna


Here's a pic I found that shows you how pretty they are. They hang upside down in the rocks and shoot out from under to eat.

 

[Peter Schmiedel]

P.Nocturna is easy if you make them the perfect "condo": Samller tank with peacefull tabkmates, ac ave where the supporting stones are laying on fine sand where they can did a hole under it.

They you can make easy pic's like these: