Tang for 75g semi aggressive reef.

[Everyones Hero]

I have a 75g semi-aggressive reef tank. I have 2 Clarki Clowns, a chromis, a damsel, a Zebra Dwarf Lionfish, & a Snowflake Moray Eel.

I've had almost everything together for over a year now with no problems. I want to get a tang or other grazing fish to take care of the algae I have growing in the tank. I want to go with a tang or another fast/large fish simply because something like a lawnmower blenny is too small & too slow & would end up being a $20 meal for either the eel or lion.

I've seen & like the Yellow Eyed Kole Tang & saw that LA says they are good in a 70g tank but I figured I'd get confirmation on that here & see what other options there are.

As far as my CUC I have a ton of Cerinth snails, Nassarius snails, some Astrea snails, probably 4 or 5 turbos, a black brittle star, a sand sifting star, & a tiger sand conch.

 

[Apercula]

I chose a Tomini for my 75g reef, primarily because they have one of the smallest maximum sizes of any tang.

 

[Hdhuntr01]

SOHAL TANG - He can stand his own in any aggressive situation !!!

 

[saltysticks]

I would probably stay away from the Kole tang and other bristle tooths just because it feeds on detritus and diatoms and once its cleaned up it might be tricky feeding it, if it is already eating flake or nori it should be fine. The one I had got lateral line erosion, lost color and died because i couldn't get it to eat. And not to discourage you but considering the current tank inhabitants I would say 75gal is on the small side for any tang. Just my opinion.

 

[Bigshow]

I know your looking for a tang but a fox face does the trick as well.

 

[snorvich]

SOHAL TANG - He can stand his own in any aggressive situation !!!

You have one in your 150 gallon tank?

 

[Everyones Hero]

I really like the Tomini- but it looks a lot like one of the Chromis I have and I'd be afraid of them getting aggressive towards each other.

I know your looking for a tang but a fox face does the trick as well.

I had a fox face once but it didn't do well. Stupid PetCo fish that came with ick.

Salty- you said a Kole Tang eats detritus? Between the lion & the eel there is a lot of that.

I'll have to do some research on the Sohal Tangs. I don't want anything that's going to be a bully. Lola the Lionfish doesn't bother anyone- she just eats fish that are too small & Eli the Eel keeps to himself for the most part- just need fast fish so they can get away if he does come around.

Thanks for the suggestions & opinions. I'm going to do some research on the options I was given & go from there.

edit: Is there a good place to look up information on these fish? I read here that the Kole will eat detritus & diatoms while another says it eats algae.

-Nick

 

[snorvich]

The sohal tang is the quintessential bully. Maybe in a 1000 gallon tank, but I would certainly never own one again.

 

[TampaReefer79]

Normally I'd say that a 75 is too small for a Sohal (because it is) but I don't think I'd need to in this situation. Soon after you add one (if you do), you'll be posting a thread asking us how to catch it because it's a terror. lol For someone to even get you thinking along the lines of a Sohal for a 75 is irresponsible in my opinion. It's very poor advice.

 

[sslak]

Kole and Tomini are probably the only reasonable choices based mostly on maximum size.

 

[Everyones Hero]

I'm looking to get it more for a utility purpose than just it's looks. I have some hair algae & a decent amount of algae on the glass.

My girlfriend liked the Fox Face but they get so big. I don't want to end up with something that forces me to either upgrade or give it away.

And seriously- don't turn this into a "tangs need 1000 gallons each" thread. That wasn't what I asked so check it at the door. If you can suggest other fish/inverts that'll be good for chowing on algae but won't get eaten by my lion or eel then go for it.

 

[sslak]

Get what you want...you didn't like the suggestions given.

 

[prickles]

i've had my onespot foxface for about 3 years and he just recently got big. My tangs grow more quickly. I believe most tangs are also "ich magnets" so if that's your only concern with the foxface, it might be the same concern with the tangs...

Also my foxface does less swimming than the tangs, and a smaller tank might be better suited to them?

 

[revaltion131]

The guy that recommended the Sohal as a serious option was joking or misinformed (horribly). They're some of the biggest and meanest and I think many people suggest more than even an 8 foot-long tank.

If the foxface reads as getting too big, I would keep looking at Ctenochaetus species of tangs or you could consider a blenny also. I believe there are species available that will be large enough to evade the predators.

 

[TampaReefer79]

Or the OP could attack the underlying reason he has algae issues in the first place. Or he could manually deal with the hair algae. Use a stiff bristled brush to brush the rocks, and scraping the glass clean of algae isn't hard.

Just a thought.

 

[Everyones Hero]

Get what you want...you didn't like the suggestions given.

I did like a few of the suggestions given...

I like the Tomini but I'm afraid it would fight with my Chromis because they're similar looking & I'm trying to find definitive information on the Kole Tang because I don't want it to end up starving.

revaltion131- blennies aren't a good option because they're too small & too slow. I think it would likely end up getting eaten. I threw in 3 small damsels just for kicks & only two of them made it past being put in the tank. After about 2 months I'm down to only 1.

I have algae because I have fairly high nitrates because both my lion & eel eat quite a bit at a time & I'm not anal about constantly cleaning the tank.

So I've got the Tomini, Kole, Fox Face, & Ctenochaetus tangs to look into. That's the information I wanted so thanks everyone.

 

[Cerebral Fish]

Why not just solve the nitrate problem? Then you could pick new fish based on factors besides algae eating capability. Improving water quality may help preserve the health of your existing fish and would open up more fish/invert stocking options for the future.

 

[snorvich]

And seriously- don't turn this into a "tangs need 1000 gallons each" thread. That wasn't what I asked so check it at the door.

I think you should read more carefully and post less aggressively. You asked in a later post about a Sohal tang. That fish is so NOT appropriate to your tank and is a tremendous bully. I removed one from a 500 gallon tank; the only one I have seen successfully kept IS in a 1000 gallon tank. They become progressively aggressive

 

[Everyones Hero]

I think you should read more carefully and post less aggressively. You asked in a later post about a Sohal tang. That fish is so NOT appropriate to your tank and is a tremendous bully. I removed one from a 500 gallon tank; the only one I have seen successfully kept IS in a 1000 gallon tank. They become progressively aggressive

I read that & looked up the Sohal tangs & saw they weren't a good choice. I had started typing out that it wasn't going to be an option in another post but I figured that with what others had said I didn't need to say I wasn't going to get one.

I was hoping this would be an informative thread about what options there are & not beating on what isn't a good choice.

But to be completely clear- I am not considering a Sohal tang.

 

[jubjub]

i'd second the foxface, mine is great. what about a blue-eye tang?