sohal or clown tang?
- Thread starter CHSUB
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MrTuskfish
Team RC
Sorry, IMO & IME, making a comment on my experience with these tangs would be meaningless with your terms. Much of the behavior of these two fish depends on the room they have and their tankmates. I think its safe to say that a Sohal, and often a Clown, will be the Alpha fish.
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Reefing Newbie
New member
I have never seen a clown tang in person to be able to observe one, but have been observing sohals for the past few months(one being at the LFS, the others in public aquarium tanks). I cannot say how well the sohal gets along with other tangs specifically in home aquariums because there isn't a tang with the sohal at the LFS. This may mean something... This sohal is a good 8-10" long with the tail and streamers included. He doesn't pick on the other fish in the tank he is in(12ft longx5ft wide frag tank). He actually likes me a lot for some reason, races me down the frag tank but doesn't do this for anyone else.
The ones(there were 5 all in separate aquariums) at the aquarium were definantly alphas. One tank was being fed and the sohal(14" long or so) got first dibs on the food, every other fish would scurry in to get scraps until he finished. These tanks were all at a public aquarium so keep that in mind.
The ones(there were 5 all in separate aquariums) at the aquarium were definantly alphas. One tank was being fed and the sohal(14" long or so) got first dibs on the food, every other fish would scurry in to get scraps until he finished. These tanks were all at a public aquarium so keep that in mind.
cromedogg33
Member
I have a clown tang in a 180 that i've had for about 18 months now that's been growing at a slow pace. I picked him up at around 4" and is not about 5" and a pig. He's in the tank with 3 other tangs/anthias/chromis/wrasses/clownfish. The only very slight signs of aggression he shows is towards a hippo tang.
He eats out of my hand is very healthy. Awesome fish too.
He eats out of my hand is very healthy. Awesome fish too.
I have a friend with a 1000 gallon tank. Both of those fish are highly aggressive even in this sized tank. I had to remove a Sohal from a FOWLR 350 gallon tank because it was killing fish. For fun. I certainly would never recommend either even in a 1000 gallon tank.
Recty
New member
CHSUB
"Certified Hobby Expert"
I only plan on getting one, maybe the clown tang; but i will have other tangs including: 3 yellows, 1 purple, 1 hippo, 1 pbt, and maybe 1 clown(added last). i had good luck with the 3 yellows, purple and hippo in a 180, now i want a pbt and a clown in a 281....or maybe just the pbt. that is why i started the thread?
Reefing Newbie
New member
This actually probably means he hates you
Hmm, never thought about that. It is more like the inquisitive perky behavior you look for in healthy fish at the LFS, he just has the room to go more than the 24" most tanks are at the LFS... It isn't a flat out race, he just paces himself to be a few inches in front of me. Who knows. If I end up getting a frag eventually I guess I will find out :worried:
I bought a sohal and a hypo tang at the same time in my last tank. Both fish where maybe three inches and were going into a tank with a couple of other already established tangs. Right off of the bat the sohal was killing the hypo. When I returned it to the LFS, they were telling me of this story that a they nic named the bloodily valentine. This wife bought her man a shoal for a present and needless to say it killed everything in the tank. I also had a hypo tank than when it hit 8 inches it became one of the most evil fishes. It had a large french angel pinned in the corner of my tank and was out to kill it. All this in a 6 foot 210.
Reefing Newbie
New member
A 6ft 210 is way too small for a sohal tang. Like Steve said they need their space! Generally speaking they get more aggressive as they grow.
davocean
Active member
Way back when I found the smallest sohal I ever saw,(like 3") thought I would try it in my 180g(6x2x2) and pretty much day one I knew it was a mistake.
It never stopped swimming, day or night, like it was on a loop.
I'm not sure it ever even slept, never saw it stop, EVER, even middle of the night I'd look and see that thing doing the loop.
It got meaner each day, and before long I gave to a guy w/ a 300g and he even said the same thing, I think he ended up donating it to our public aquarium.
Clowns are pretty much the same tang, same personality.
It never stopped swimming, day or night, like it was on a loop.
I'm not sure it ever even slept, never saw it stop, EVER, even middle of the night I'd look and see that thing doing the loop.
It got meaner each day, and before long I gave to a guy w/ a 300g and he even said the same thing, I think he ended up donating it to our public aquarium.
Clowns are pretty much the same tang, same personality.
Wolverine
Premium Member
Yep. They will often turn a 210g into a one fish tank.
Dr Colliebreath
New member
Sohals are incredibly powerful swimmers, so it isn't surprising that they are cramped and thus aggressive in any but the very largest tanks. I saw one in a very large tank that you could look down into and it was hard to believe the sohal is an ornamental fish given what a strong swimmer it was. A small burst of speed covered the entire tank.
R-nel
Member
I never had any experience with a clown tang, but a sohal on the other hand the one that I would never try again even in a larger tank. A year ago I had a sohal that killed second largest fish in my tank which was a Harlequin Tusk. I upgrade to a larger tank , after moving all my fish to the big tank Sohal being the last, that following morning it killed the tusk even though they have been together for a long time. After that it went after next largest fish, out he goes before he kills again. Such a beautiful fish but oh so deadly.
runintoluck
New member
The demeanor of the fish will depend on how big it is and in what order you added it. However, it won't stray too far from the usual of highly aggressive. That being said, my personal experience with one is that it does fine with bigger tangs such as naso and vlamingiis, but were extremely aggressive towards other genuses of tangs such as zebrasoma and of course, acanthurus itself. I was unable to add any other tang after the sohal was there, but it wasn't aggressive towards the clownfish or angelfish. The sohal was the only fish the angels never tried to pick on and the sohal itself was smaller than the angel (emperor, blueface). As you can tell, these are aggressive fish even at a small size; they are agile, quick, and very mean when they decide to go into killer mode. As mean as they are, they are very very beautiful fish, and a full grown specimen, even "full grown" in captivity with the long streamers makes it a beauty of a fish.
sanchoy
New member
Disclaimer: Both fish are notorious for being aggressive. I have owned a Sohal and he was a beast. Breaking corals while chasing other fish around. He would spaz all the time as well, one minute peaceful, then the next he will chase and bite other fish.. Sohal by far is one of the most aggressive reef fishes around.
