Suggestions? Fish stock for a 40 gal

Kizzy911

New member
I have a 40 gal breeder with a 25 gallon sump.
As of right now this is what I have in my QT:
-3 blue green chromis
- 1 orange spotted goby
- 1 sapphire damsel

Inverts in my main display:
- large pistol shrimp
-cleaner shrimp
-Astrea snails
-hermits

What I'm thinking of adding:
- 1 royal gramma
-2 clown fishes
-a wrasse ?
-mandarin

I don't know too much about other fishes, I would like some suggestions on other fishes that are colorful and that I can add in a 40gal.

Tell me what's wrong with my plan or any suggestions about other fishes that I can add.

Thanks !
 
The Mandy is going to be very difficult to keep fed in a 40g unless you have a large established fuge. I am personally anti Damsel...they are just mean most of the time.
 
The Mandy is going to be very difficult to keep fed in a 40g unless you have a large established fuge. I am personally anti Damsel...they are just mean most of the time.

Fishless right now so pod populations both in my tank and in my sumo is crazy, and I mean crazy. Also, my sapphire is a bit aggressive but will he be ok or should I rehome him especially with all these other fishes?
 
I understand what your saying about the pods. But you have to realize that the mandy will eat 5-10 a minute. No matter how many you have now he will go through them and starve if your tank is not producing them rapidly.

You never know until your try. I swore off Damsels, never been anything but trouble in my tanks.
 
chromis only school in the wild when there is a common predator. obviously, you do not have sharks and groupers is a 40 gallon. if they dont have a common predator, they turn to killing each other for territory. mine is very active and dominates at feeding time.

go with the clown and the royal gramma, both great nano fish .
 
I would add a blenny, they have a tone of character, fun to watch and do a half decent job on a the Algae in the tank. I personally have a stary blenny and iv never regretted getting him.
 
I love neon or sharknose gobies. They are full of character and they have a big presence despite their small size, plus it is fun to watch them clean the other fish. The Royal Gramma is great too... They are one of my small tank favorites. I also like neon or orchid dottybacks, haven't had any aggression problems with these 2. Sixline wrasse can be colorful and active, but they can jump, and you may get an aggressive one. Firefish are also very colorful nano fish, but also jumpers.
Sorry if I overwhelmed you...I have always had 55 gal or smaller, so I have a big list of favorites :-)
 
Forgot to add striped blenny and tailspot blenny. Striped don't eat algae, but they are pretty and active.
 
I love neon or sharknose gobies. They are full of character and they have a big presence despite their small size, plus it is fun to watch them clean the other fish. The Royal Gramma is great too... They are one of my small tank favorites. I also like neon or orchid dottybacks, haven't had any aggression problems with these 2. Sixline wrasse can be colorful and active, but they can jump, and you may get an aggressive one. Firefish are also very colorful nano fish, but also jumpers.
Sorry if I overwhelmed you...I have always had 55 gal or smaller, so I have a big list of favorites :-)

Anything helps, thank you for the comment!
 
Sapphire damsels are pretty low on the aggression scale for damsels.

A mandarin may be fine in your setup, just let the system mature for at least 6 months before adding one, and don't add other fish that pick at pods.

Flasher or small fairy wrasses will be fine, they don't pick at pods.

While there are plenty of experiences of chromis killing each other off, there are also quite a few where groups remain stable. Multiple feedings seem to help.
 
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