Temporary Downgrade...

[Daimyo68]

So I currently have a 150g (48x30x24) SPS reef, and the inhabitants are:

Bellus Angel, roughly 3"
Black Spot Tang, roughly 3"
Pair of Black Clowns
Yellow Coris Wrasse
Leopard Wrasse
Midas Blenny
Pink Spotted Watchman Goby

Everyone is healthy and happy, and the only one who shows any aggression is the Angel. I will obviously keep the colonies that I like the most and frag off other colonies and let them start to grow out again. I Will sadly have to get rid of most colonies due to their size. I think my smallest colony is 8-10" circumference with the largest being 15"+ (I just won't be able to fit them all in the 2 tanks).

Anyways, I'm moving to a location for about 8 months, and sadly cannot fit my system in there, so I am forced to take it down and store it until I get into the house. There is just no room there for a tank that width and depth.

So my plans are to setup a 30g cube for the Clowns, Leopard and goby.

I will most likely be getting rid of the Coris Wrasse due to the fact that he is now eating all my snails...

This leaves me with the Angel, Tang, Midas.

I have a 60g cube sitting here... Herein lies my question. Will the Angel and Tang be ok in a tank this size for 8 months? I really hate to get rid of either of them. This is the first Bellus I have been able to keep alive (almost 2 years now), and the tang just looks spectacular.

Thoughts, suggestions?

 

[SecretiveFish]

While not ideal, they probably would be OK. I have had to house my fish in a 57g quarantine twice for 12 weeks and the ones that survived treatment were fine but were definitely happy when they got home to their 150g!

ETA: I have since been very careful with quarantine so I hope to never have to do that again!

 

[strike2867]

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+43+2880&pcatid=2880

That Black Spot needs a 360 gallon minimum. Some fish can grow to just about their full size in 6 months under the right conditions. That full size is 1'8". 60 cube is 2' x 2' x 2'.

 

[o2manyfish]

Yes they should be fine in the 60g.

While the Tang could eventually outgrow the tank, in all my decades of keeping fish I have yet to see one that outgrows the tank.

My father had a small 2" yellow tang in a 40g tank for 11.5 years and the fish never got much bigger. Fish have a means of stunting their growth in captivity.

I have a pair of Hippo tangs in my 400g. I have had them over 4 years. I got them at 4" they are now about 7" and they aren't the 12" they reach in the wild.

So don't worry about coming home from work and finding your tang half hanging out of the tank because he had a growth spurt.

However, some tangs do get anxiety issues if in too small of a tank. So you have to watch for that. With 2 fish in the tank he probably won't. You want to watch for erratic swimming behavior, and panic swimming back and forth across the length of the tank. If that's the case then its time to find a local hobbyist who might be willing to house him for you for awhile.

I know that sounds silly. But if you find someone in your area with a large frag tank or refugium, where a fish can be easily retrieved you might be able to find him a foster home till your big tank is back up and running.

Dave B

 

[strike2867]

Fish have a means of stunting their growth in captivity.

Sounds healthy. Reminds me of the tobacco executive who went on tv to say that pregnant women should smoke because they'll deliver lighter babies. I mean who doesn't love a lighter baby right?

 

[o2manyfish]

"Sounds Healthy".... Well unless we all start building 1000g+ systems, most fish won't ever reach their full size potential.

I have 9 beautiful small yellow tangs in my tank. In the wild they would end up the size of a small salad plate within less than 2 years. I have had them for twice as long. They are fat, beautifully colored.... are they not healthy?

I have a Red Sea Regal for almost 4 years and hasn't grown an inch in that time frame. Fish is fat, fully colored and alive... is he not healthy?

I've seen Golden Angels from the wild that are almost 3". But my pair which I have had for over 6 years and have not grown at all in that time frame.

Mother Nature has built in some protections to make it a little easier for these fish to survive in captivity - in which 99.5% of the aquariums are too small for them to ever reach their full size potential.

Dave B

 

[Daimyo68]

I've had the angel for 2yrs, and the tank for 1.5yrs in this tank. Neither has grown much, and I would agree that it is due to the size of their roaming grounds in this system.

Thx for the replies