Success Stories with Potter's Angels

[Lacktaters]

I'm not ready to say claim "success" with my potter's angel yet, but he finally started eating this week. I have an established tank 90 gallon tank (about 3.5 years old). About 3 months ago, the owner of the LFS had a beautiful male potter's angel that he claimed was eating mysis. I should've asked for proof. Anyway, I bought the fish and brought it home. It wouldn't eat any frozen food, sheets, flakes, or pellets. It swam around my tank for 3 months occasionally picking at the rocks, but never really eating anything. I was surprised every morning to still see it swimming around the tank. A couple days ago, I decided to get rid of my yellow tang (I know I shouldn't have one in a 90 gallon tank!) so I set up the acrylic fish trap and squirted a little mysis in it. The angel went right in and ate all the mysis. I couldn't believe my eyes! I squirted a little more, and he did the same. Then I dumped some in the water and he ate like a pig.

Anyway...I just thought I would share my story. I'm very interested in hearing your stories about experiences with potter's angels.

 

[Tat2demon]

Excellent!

I got mine a couple months ago so I cant claim long term success but I have no fears of it going badly.

I found this one at an LFS that had been in for a few days and it looked great. It was picking around the tank but had not eaten for them yet. I picked up a Desjardini Sailfin and Coral Beauty at the same time.

I put it in my QT and it almost instantly started picking at some algae growing on the rocks. It only took 3 days for it to start eating frozen.

Its now in my newly upgraded 418.

I consider myself very lucky with this guy.

Video is from my old 240.

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[solitude127]

Here's mine.
I've had him/her for almost a year now and thankfully it'll eat pretty much anything from pellets to frozen foods

 

[philter4]

I have kept them for many years, the last ones I collected were in 2007 and are still in my tank, I have never had any trouble with them but there are two differences between the ones I have tried and most of the others you will hear about, first I collect all of my own fish so they have never been moved around from collector to wholesaler to retailer to your QT then DT. Mine go from the ocean to a holding tank until I fly home then into QT and finally the display, and second I have never tried to keep them by themselves. I have always kept most of my pygmy angels in pairs, trios or best case a small harem.

As most of you know I am the worst photographer on the forums but here is a pic of two of the potters I have now,

not in the photo is the largest one. He is probably the male as it is by far the most aggressive and colorful of the three. These guys feed on just about everything I put in the tank and are usually out in the open looking for food if they see any movement in the room where the tank is.

 

[Tat2demon]

Very nice. Ive never seen one with so much blue in it.

 

[Tat2demon]

first I collect all of my own fish

You have no idea how jealous I am of you. :lol:

 

[rssjsb]

These fish have a hard time acclimating, but after that are quite hardy, I think. So if yours is eating and not losing weight, you're probably good.

Mine will eat pellets and sometimes flake food, and grazes on algae all day. He will not eat any frozen food I routinely feed the tank, though - mysis, shrimp, squid, scallops, prawn roe, cyclopeeze. He was at the LFS for about a month before I picked him up.

 

[LargeAngels]

I havent caught my own but most of mine came directly from the diver. All of mine where first qt'd and I keep all of my pairs at 70-74 and no higher.

 

[rssjsb]

LargeAngels, why do you keep them so cool? We just got back from diving off Kona and saw these guys everywhere. The water temp there ranges from 75 in the winter to about 82 in the summer. Do they do better in a closed system at cooler temps? I'm asking because I'm genuinely curious. I've heard others say that they keep their systems cooler than what we think of as "normal" reef temps but I've never been sure why.

 

[alexrex20]

You have no idea how jealous I am of you. :lol:

you mean there are no coral reefs in South Dakota?

 

[LargeAngels]

rssjsb:

I keep many deeper water fish like bandit angels.

 

[rssjsb]

rssjsb:

I keep many deeper water fish like bandit angels.

Gotcha. Thanks - I misunderstood your response.

 

[Gill_bucket]

How do your potters do with your corals?

 

[revaltion131]

I had a Potter's that was doing well for over a year. S/he would have kept going but I royally screwed up a tank move and lost it during the process. I got it from Vivid Aquariums (shipped to me in Ohio, at the time). It was eating formula 1 pellets on the second day I had it, though it took several months for it to show interest in any sort of veggie food. Never bothered corals at all, but I have been very lucky with Centropyge angels and corals.