Tang War has begun!
- Thread starter iriejp1
- Start date
- Status
myerst2
Active member
Jrech. "Putting a pyramid butterfly in a 55 that already had a purple tank, you think everything would be ok." I would think the purple tang would kill the butterfly. A well established purple tang in a 55 gallon will most likely kill anything you add if living in a 55. The tank is too small. I put my Tinker's butterfly in my 180 and both my black tang and PBT would of killed it in 2 hours if i hadn't seperated them. People under estimate the aggressiveness of tangs. If you go diving, you will see what I mean. They are almost as annoying to other reef fish as damsels in the wild. More importantly what are the status of the fish in question? Tim
triggerfish1976
New member
It's more like 5% will agree and the other 95% choose to ignore the obvious. Keep in mind that there are thousands of people keeping multiple tangs in a 55g that have no idea what reef central is. Add that to all of the people on RC who have multiple tangs in a 55 and you will understand my statistics. We are in the minority, unfortunately.
BangkokMatt
New member
Why are you asking if he is a 'tree hugger' ?
BTTRFLYGRL
New member
I own both a Powder Blue and a Powder Brown....but they are not in the same tank.
The Powder Brown is in my 240. I also have a Hippo that has been in with him from the beginning. I cannot add anymore Tangs to the tank, the Powder Brown will kill them. I tried to move my Yellow Tang in there but he would not have that. He constantly paces the tank, back and forth. This is an 8' tank . He doesn't bother his tankmates too bad, unlike the Powder Blue
The Powder Blue is king of the 180. He especially dislikes my Potters Wrasse for some reason
He swims around giving all the others a hard time. BIG ATTITUDE!!
I would never try these two together unless it were a public aquarium size tank.
Oh and Mr. Lopez the treehugger comment was a little uncalled for. I agree with Myerst2. I have refused to sell large fish to people who could not house them comfortably for life. Putting multiple Tangs in a 75 is cruel and irresponsible..And no, I am not a 'treehugger'
The Powder Brown is in my 240. I also have a Hippo that has been in with him from the beginning. I cannot add anymore Tangs to the tank, the Powder Brown will kill them. I tried to move my Yellow Tang in there but he would not have that. He constantly paces the tank, back and forth. This is an 8' tank . He doesn't bother his tankmates too bad, unlike the Powder Blue
The Powder Blue is king of the 180. He especially dislikes my Potters Wrasse for some reason
He swims around giving all the others a hard time. BIG ATTITUDE!!I would never try these two together unless it were a public aquarium size tank.
Oh and Mr. Lopez the treehugger comment was a little uncalled for. I agree with Myerst2. I have refused to sell large fish to people who could not house them comfortably for life. Putting multiple Tangs in a 75 is cruel and irresponsible..And no, I am not a 'treehugger'
BangkokMatt
New member
A good, honest post<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12856875#post12856875 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by BTTRFLYGRL
I own both a Powder Blue and a Powder Brown....but they are not in the same tank.
The Powder Brown is in my 240. I also have a Hippo that has been in with him from the beginning. I cannot add anymore Tangs to the tank, the Powder Brown will kill them. I tried to move my Yellow Tang in there but he would not have that. He constantly paces the tank, back and forth. This is an 8' tank . He doesn't bother his tankmates too bad, unlike the Powder Blue
The Powder Blue is king of the 180. He especially dislikes my Potters Wrasse for some reason
I would never try these two together unless it were a public aquarium size tank.
Oh and Mr. Lopez the treehugger comment was a little uncalled for. I agree with Myerst2. I have refused to sell large fish to people who could not house them comfortably for life. Putting multiple Tangs in a 75 is cruel and irresponsible..And no, I am not a 'treehugger'
mutualbill
Premium Member
3 Tangs, yellow, kole, hippo. Tank has been running for 3 years , 3 months. Tangs have been in there for 2 years. First tangs I bought, all 3 alive and well. Growing, happy, fat. Tank dimensions are 5x2x2. No disease, no deaths.
Tank is a mixed SPS/LPS system.
JLopez
iNano
its not cruel or irresponsible. my tangs are all less than an inch in size. they graze the LR and swim all day long. they are perfectly happy and never fight. and unless someone in here has actually spoken to any of these tangs and asked them what size tank they perfer, i dont think anyone is in any place to say that my 75 is too small for them.
also, i dont know if you noticed or not, but you are taking wild fish and putting them into captivity in your living room for your entertainment. they had an ocean to swim in before. now they have 240 gallons in front of your couch. that isnt cruel?
also, i dont know if you noticed or not, but you are taking wild fish and putting them into captivity in your living room for your entertainment. they had an ocean to swim in before. now they have 240 gallons in front of your couch. that isnt cruel?
BangkokMatt
New member
Your two arguments are conflicting each other
JLopez
iNano
i can see how you would think that, but as i said, my tangs are less than an inch in size. perhaps what i should have said in my previous post was that keeping my tangs in my 75 is no more cruel than the poweder tangs in the 240 or 180.
the point is that no matter the size or type of the fish, unless they are captive bred, it is always going to be cruel to take them from a place where there are no boundaries and put them in your home aquarium.
the point is that no matter the size or type of the fish, unless they are captive bred, it is always going to be cruel to take them from a place where there are no boundaries and put them in your home aquarium.
myerst2
Active member
Am I tree hugger? Don't know what you mean by that. Do I care about sustaining the world's environment that humans destroy, yes. Am I guilty of being part of the destruction, unfortunately yes to a degree. You have to be in order to way of life we have created. This is for another discussion.
I wouldn't call it cruel to keep fish in aquariums if done properly. Is it stressful to the fish, absolutely. As you said yourself you are putting the fish in a "cruel" environment. Is it your intent to be as cruel as possible? I would think a normal compassionate person would try and ease as much stress and cruelty that we put upon them. Maybe you are a fish sadist or something. Someone here asked about what is BEST!!! for the fishes well being. Ask any curator at an aquarium and not one will agree with you. Enjoy your fish. Regards, Tim
I wouldn't call it cruel to keep fish in aquariums if done properly. Is it stressful to the fish, absolutely. As you said yourself you are putting the fish in a "cruel" environment. Is it your intent to be as cruel as possible? I would think a normal compassionate person would try and ease as much stress and cruelty that we put upon them. Maybe you are a fish sadist or something. Someone here asked about what is BEST!!! for the fishes well being. Ask any curator at an aquarium and not one will agree with you. Enjoy your fish. Regards, Tim
MaineReefer14
New member
Here is my success story, I have a 155 reef tank with 6 tangs and other small fish. This tank is going on its 4 yr. I have a blond Naso, Purple, Yellow, Powder Blue, Sailfin Desjardin and a Sohal. They all are doing fine. I had some small issuies with the Sohal and Sailfin sharing food. The powder blue had issuies with the Purple. But after rearanging the live rocks everthing has been great. Problems only lasted about a month of monitoring. I am in the process of setting up two 220 tanks for Angles.
JLopez
iNano
fish sadist? right...
back to my first point. who decided that his 150 gallon tank is too small for 3 tangs? or that my 75 is too small for my 4 tangs? and how did they come to this conclusion? as i said previously, unless someone has actually spoken to any of these fish, and asked them what size tank would be acceptable for their long term happiness, how would anybody actually know that these tangs are not being housed properly? and if it is large enough for 1, then why wouldnt it be large enough for the second or third? obviously, you would not keep 50 tangs in one tank, but i see nothing wrong with 3 or 4.
also, i have a friend that has had his 75 gallon tank for 4 years. he added a naso tang as one of his first fish and has had it for about 3 and a half years. it is one of the healthiest, colorful, looking tangs i have ever seen. who is to say the fish is not happy?
back to my first point. who decided that his 150 gallon tank is too small for 3 tangs? or that my 75 is too small for my 4 tangs? and how did they come to this conclusion? as i said previously, unless someone has actually spoken to any of these fish, and asked them what size tank would be acceptable for their long term happiness, how would anybody actually know that these tangs are not being housed properly? and if it is large enough for 1, then why wouldnt it be large enough for the second or third? obviously, you would not keep 50 tangs in one tank, but i see nothing wrong with 3 or 4.
also, i have a friend that has had his 75 gallon tank for 4 years. he added a naso tang as one of his first fish and has had it for about 3 and a half years. it is one of the healthiest, colorful, looking tangs i have ever seen. who is to say the fish is not happy?
lilalove
New member
Well....if you put 4 people in a loft style apartment, I'm sure they would all at least appear to be healthy. But are they happy to live one on top of the other? I doubt it. Let's not forget that fish show stunted growth when kept in smaller tanks. I guess you don't really care that your hippo, desjardini and sohal each grow over a foot or so in the wild.
BTTRFLYGRL
New member
Hmmmmm, the difference between a 75 and a 240 gallon tank Mr Lopez? About 165 gallons 
To me a big difference when keeping large fish. An 8' tank compared to a 4'....big difference.
Tangs are territorial, when yours mature they will not have enough space per each fish and you will have issues. As far as it being cruel to keep these creatures...well I guess that's up to each individual hobbyist to assure they can provide their pets the best life possible. That means providing them a tank that is of appropriate size, with compatible tankmates. Feeding good quality foods and keeping their home clean. No they don't have the vast ocean to roam but they also don't have to worry about predation either. I think if these fish are caught as juveniles, they can and will adapt. I don't believe, however , in bringing in adult Tangs, Angels etc as they obviously do not adapt to captivity. Yes that is cruel..
Its total denial for someone to say 4 Tangs in a 75 is okay..they are putting their 'wants' ahead of the fishes NEEDS. I would LOVE to have more Tangs and Angels in my 240 but I won't overstock my tank at the expense of my fishes health. Its just not responsible.
To me a big difference when keeping large fish. An 8' tank compared to a 4'....big difference.Tangs are territorial, when yours mature they will not have enough space per each fish and you will have issues. As far as it being cruel to keep these creatures...well I guess that's up to each individual hobbyist to assure they can provide their pets the best life possible. That means providing them a tank that is of appropriate size, with compatible tankmates. Feeding good quality foods and keeping their home clean. No they don't have the vast ocean to roam but they also don't have to worry about predation either. I think if these fish are caught as juveniles, they can and will adapt. I don't believe, however , in bringing in adult Tangs, Angels etc as they obviously do not adapt to captivity. Yes that is cruel..
Its total denial for someone to say 4 Tangs in a 75 is okay..they are putting their 'wants' ahead of the fishes NEEDS. I would LOVE to have more Tangs and Angels in my 240 but I won't overstock my tank at the expense of my fishes health. Its just not responsible.
- Status
