Suggestions for a small reef safe Herbivore fish

aklausing

Member
I have a 28G and am looking for a reef safe fish with an appetite for algae. I would love to have a Tang, but know the tank is much too small. Anybody have any suggestions?

Current inhabitants are 6 line wrasse, Maroon clown and Serpent Star.
 
Algae blenny may get too big for a 28. Try smaller blennys, maybe an Ecsenius bicolor "Bicolor Blenny", Ecsenius stigmatura "tailspot", or two Ecsenius bimaculatus "Two Spot Blenny".
 
A lot of dwarf angels will eat algae, but completely reef safe...well what really is 100% safe anyways. A brightly colored angel could be a real show fish in a small tank though, just make sure you feed it enough that it doesn't start developing an appetite for polyps.
 
You're going to have a hard time adding anything to that tank with those two fish. I would not suggest the tailspot blenny for that reason - they're pretty timid little fish. A good-sized starry blenny might work.
 
If you're looking for a fish to control an algae problem, I don't think you're going to find one for a tank that small. Try some turbo snails. And up your water changes.
 
I had a bi-color blenny in the tank, but he unfortunately became dinner for Sally Lightfoot crab. I removed the crab and rearranged some live rock, removing some actually because I thought I had too much. My nitrates have gone from 0 to about 10 ppm. Now I have an outbreak of green hair algae.

I'm not sure what caused the nitrate spike, although I suspect it is because I removed some of the Live Rock. I guess before adding another fish, I need to let the nitrates settle down and maybe add some turbos. Do turbos take care of hair algae?
 
Just a heads up; I assume the maroon clown is still quite small.The maroon clown will almost certainly become female and claim the entire tank as her territory. An adult female maroon can be one of the nastiest fish, especially in a small tank. They usually don't tolerate newcomers.
 
I am looking for a small herbivore fish for my 29g. Right now I have two small false percs and a bangai cardinal. The algae isn't hair algae, but some sort of the followings from pictures I've seen:

caulerpa-taxifolia
bryopsis-pennata
Caulerpa-sertularoides

I was looking to add a small Yellow tang for now and then give it to a friend after a while but feel bad doing that. I also saw a coral beauty angelfish. Would that work?
 
You're going to have a hard time adding anything to that tank with those two fish. I would not suggest the tailspot blenny for that reason - they're pretty timid little fish. A good-sized starry blenny might work.

Actually, in that sized tank, it is going to be impossible (or near so) to add fish with the existing inhabitants.
 
I am looking for a small herbivore fish for my 29g. Right now I have two small false percs and a bangai cardinal. The algae isn't hair algae, but some sort of the followings from pictures I've seen:

caulerpa-taxifolia
bryopsis-pennata
Caulerpa-sertularoides

I was looking to add a small Yellow tang for now and then give it to a friend after a while but feel bad doing that. I also saw a coral beauty angelfish. Would that work?

Probably not. Even ignore the tank size.
 
having a maroon clown and 6-line wrasse in a 29g will pretty much preclude the possibility of adding anything else. maroon clown is extremely aggressive (especially when it becomes a large female) and will chase/kill other fish in a small 29g tank. the same goes for 6-line wrasse

my friend's maroon clown chased another fish to death in his 150g tank. that should give you an idea of the temperament of the fish and the required space.
 
totally. adding a yellow tang (no matter how small) to a 29g is a really bad idea. 29 gallon is too small even for a juvenile yellow tang and it will sure be under stress.

I totally agree. But ignoring the inadvisability of putting a yellow tang in that sized tank, it would not solve the problem.
 
You can try an urchin (there is one that eats macro, but I can't remember if it's tuxedo or red) or a nudibranch. Gulf Coast Ecosystems sometimes sells them. I had a couple for almost a year working on my macro in a 55 gallon cube.
 
I have a tuxedo in there now. I know the tang is a bad idea, and really didn't want to do it. I noticed it's mostly where the medusa worms are in the rock. Just looking for something to assist in keeping it down.
 
I am looking for a small herbivore fish for my 29g. Right now I have two small false percs and a bangai cardinal. The algae isn't hair algae, but some sort of the followings from pictures I've seen:

caulerpa-taxifolia
bryopsis-pennata
Caulerpa-sertularoides

I was looking to add a small Yellow tang for now and then give it to a friend after a while but feel bad doing that. I also saw a coral beauty angelfish. Would that work?

By the way, this is called "hijacking" a thread. Even though the topic is similar, it is always best to start your own thread rather than tag on to someone else's thread.
 
Sorry about that. It was the same topic, and actually the same question. A lot forums get upset when you don't "search" first. Thanks for the help though. I will move on.
 
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