So what is "Overstocked" these days ???

[SDguy]

I think "overstocked" is different for tanks with anthias, wrasses, chromis, and such, as opposed to overstocked "FO" systems.... The posts I've read in this thread are really talking about "overstocked" with respect to coral health, not some large fish only tank population. Generally, those fish in a reef setting are used to high volumes... like anthias.

 

[ryanrid]

copps tank is heavily stocked but has nutrient under control - IMO this is the pinnacle of reefing, getting the balance of fish and colourful SPS

http://reefkeeping.com/joomla/index.php/current-issue/article/76-tank-of-the-month

 

[OoNickoC]

while i definitely under stock (i have moderately large tanks) in order to see more natural fish behaviors, and because i do not like chaos, i definitely agree with albano that fish behavior is critical in determining what fish are included together.

+1

 

[mcfa2403]

I think the issue is that overstocked/understocked make the assumption that there is some imaginary "stocked" level out there. But unfortunately there are so many variables to consider that the point is relatively moot.

Is stocking level determined by water volume? If so is it the system volume or display tank volume? Then do length and width also play into this or are they species specific?

In my opinion (just an opinion) stocking should be done on a per fish basis. There are just too many factors to say that 6 of x type fish will work in x size tank. Instead it is easier to determine if a particular fish will likely thrive in the system (will it spike organics, will it fight other fish, will it eat any of the inverts, could its death crash my tank, will it have induced stress, and does the region it prefers to inhabit exist such as sand bed/depth of sand bed or live rock to pick at or hide in) or will it simply survive. Fish compatibility/survival is a probability we must calculate and it is much easier to estimate that on a per species basis rather than trying to determine if the whole systems will as that simply adds more variables to account for.

I always attempt stocking lists too but only as a blueprint, so many things can change though that what works on paper may not work 6 months down the road. Anyways all this is to say that I believe that a properly stocked tank is one that's thriving not just surviving. I don't want to leave town wondering if my system is going to crash if my protein skimmer fails. I don't want to wonder if my fish will get ill because they appear constantly stressed. There are only best practices in this hobby there are no hard truths so adding measures of over and under seems like a relatively futile exercise.

You could have a 500 gallon system with a 20 gallon display housing 50 fish and it would be "overstocked" in terms of space constraint/swim room/territorial disputes or a 125 with enough hiding space and swim room for 50 fish but too much waste and overload the biological filtration. Both tanks are "overstocked" and can complicate the idea when explaining to someone new to reef keeping. It is better to explain to someone new in terms of individual fish health and then in terms of over biological system health as the two are separate important concepts.

Getting off my soapbox I will state my OPINION (if we are being on honest this is 75% what this hobby is anyways) as this... attempting to oversimplify a complex ecosystem can lead to unforeseen consequences

 

[mcfa2403]

When it comes to trying to figure out how much you can put in your tank remember Jurassic Park, you can't spend all your time thinking if you could sometimes you have to stop and ask if you should (not the exact quote but you get the idea)

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

I think "overstocked" is different for tanks with anthias, wrasses, chromis, and such, as opposed to overstocked "FO" systems.... The posts I've read in this thread are really talking about "overstocked" with respect to coral health, not some large fish only tank population. Generally, those fish in a reef setting are used to high volumes... like anthias.

+1, there is a huge difference between overstocking small social fish and larger solitary fish. My tanks are always "overstocked" numbers wise, but the majority of my fish are small fish that don't mind being a little crowded. I've had about 20 fish in a 90g before, but the largest fish was a dwarf angel (most were anthias, chromis, and dartfish). I wouldn't put 4 tangs in that size tank though - I would call that overstocked.

 

[A_Z]

i find fish densities in the wild to be very robust. im not sure i would care to count the number of fish in these pics.

Not trying to make any parallelisms, correlations, or an arguement for or against how someone stocks their own aquarium.....just my own personal observation.

An aquarium and the vastness of the ocean are not comparable.

It depends on which "vision" of the wild you have for your tank. Yes there are dense schools of fish living over the entire area of a reef, grazing, having social interactions etc. But within the immediate vicinity of a colony of coral (almost all reef tanks mimic this) the amount of fish living in that area is far less. In a way a personal aquarium would be equal to that space. I like to think of a reef aquarium like a forest. There is life all around [you]. When roaming through or hiking in a dense jungle, the large or highlighted animals are not readily apparent. Sort of like a zoo, sometimes the animals can't be seen and sometimes they can. This is my preferred style of aquariums, it probably comes from my keeping planted aquariums. I love the lush overgrown look with a few fish living in the "thicket" so to speak.

 

[saf1]

i find fish densities in the wild to be very robust. im not sure i would care to count the number of fish in these pics.

Not trying to make any parallelisms, correlations, or an arguement for or against how someone stocks their own aquarium.....just my own personal observation.

An aquarium and the vastness of the ocean are not comparable.

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Keep in mind the ocean has many more square miles of water than our aquariums. I don't think carving out a 500 or 1,000 gallon square then counting fish would equate to much of anything.

For my aquariums I narrow it down to the fish requirements and my total water volume. Also if I run a skimmer at the time and how much surface area in live rock/sand do I have. Seems to work out so far both in regards to coral selection and live stock.