The Moorish Idol Thread

One week and the MI is fattening up - quite happy about that. I've been feeding quite a bit so I've also had a bit more derbis than usualy to clean.

I've just started to lower salinity, which is now .015

The trick may be with the Blue Tang. I've seen no visible signs of Ich, but she has been flashing against the rocks.

Do you think going hypo with the QT will be fine, or should I also add some Cupramine as another safeguard? I just don't want to put too much stress on the fish, esp the MI.



And Paul, what made you want to try feeding your MI bananas?
 
Many years ago I used to keep pinatus batfish and I used to feed them babanas so I figured I would try with Idols. My copperband butterfly likes it too. I don't know how healthy it is for them.
Paul
 
Well he came in Friday night and still no real eating. He has been pecking at the rocks and eating the tangs poop but thats it. I know the MI game is one of waiting and offering lots of different kinds of food so I'm not to down yet. Going to give the bananas a shot tonight.
 
do any of you guys have more than one in a tank?
i added one but he got the crap beaten out of him by the smaller, existing one for a while until i pulled him out. bummer...it seems to me that they dont play well together unless they're a pair.
 
I've been kind of avoiding this thread because it's been so upsetting. About 2 weeks ago, we had an extended power outage. I lost my Idols, Flagfin Angel, PBT, Masudai Hog and Mystery Wrasse. Until then, the two were fine after some initial squabbling. In a 200g range tank, tho, I wouldn't put more than one. My plan is for 4. It will be near impossible to get 4 acceptable specimens all at once, but my LFS already has one on hold.
 
Sorry about that Kieron. I know that happens. I have a generator but I have to be home to use it. I never hooked it up automatic (even though I am an electrician)
I know how it feels though. A couple of years ago I lost almost all my fish including an 18 year old brutaloid and many of my old corals. It was my fault though (Clorox experiment)
In a few weeks we are going to Sicily and the person who will be babysiting my tank (Mother in law) knows nothing about fish, I won't trust her with anything. Luckilly everything is automatic except the one frozen feeding a day. I attached a small plastic container to a small powerhead, the container sticks out of the water and there is holes in the part that is below the water. All she has to do is put a cube of frozen food in the container once a day and it will disperse throughout the tank. We'll see how that works out. I may be starting up a new reef when I get back, I hope not.
For about $600.00 you could put in an emergency generator which will do your entire house, but not automatically.
Hello there Chevy.
Take care.
Paul
 
Hi......I'm new and wanted to ask a question about a MI I purchased 3 days ago. I just read that they should be the first fish in a tank.......mine will be the last:( Right now, he is in a 29 gallon quarantine tank and doing very well. He will eat banana, spirilina flake, angel formula, chopped krill and silversides, mysis and will peck at pellet once in a while. He will not touch nori. He will come to the front glass when he sees me and act like he's begging. I have a 120 reef that I would like to introduce him to after quarantine. He will be the last fish and I'm hoping the 120 tankmates will not bother him. I have softies, a few SPS frags and a clam in the tank. I realize I may lose some of them but that's okay.......as long as the MI does well. I just added the Foxface 3 weeks ago and the only fish that acted "on guard" was the damsel. I suppose I can expect the same behavior towards the MI. Do I have a chance of it going well?


PJ Cardinal
Yellowtail blue damsel
Foxface
Orchid Dottyback
Copperband
Fuzzy Dwarf Lionfish
Maroon Clownfish

Thanks,
Janey
 
Paul, i wanted to bring the discussion over to this thread since the other one isnt really supposed to be for discussion.

Do you think that idols can get enough nutrition from spectrum or formula2 pellets or do you think that they have to have sponge?
Since the one's you had previously only ate clams or mussels do you think that they didn't have enough other nutrients?
 
John I don't think they have to have sponge necessarilly but I don't know if they could live on just spectrum or formula 2 pellets. I would only know that if I used it exclusively. I am sure they would live on it but I would also add other salt water related foods like whole fish. I personally do not like to feed anything exclusively on dry food. Pellets are better than flakes but they are still dry food and some vitamins just do not dry well like vitamin A. It is an oil. I feed pellets twice a day through a feeder but a few times a week I soak the pellets in vitamin A. This is a pet peeve of mine. An overlooked fact is that a large part of a fish diet is whole fish. The liver of a fish is almost all vitamin A and I believe it is a needed part of the diet of fish. Moorish Idols eat mostly sponge and algae but they will also eat any tiny fish they can find like just about any other fish will. Reefs are full of tiny fish. If you do any diving, look closely at the base of corals and you will see them.
I would imagine mysis also have vitamin A in them as I know they have omega 3 oil. But these are not really a part of a salt water fish diet. I try to feed mine a large variety of foods. So far he seems healthy, I have seen better looking Idols and I believe it is due to the small tank I have. It is 6' long and I can tell he gets frustrated turning around so much. His fins are missing some pieces and his dorsal streamer never grew back.
Of course I am not certain of this, maybe he would do better on Spectrum pellets exclusively.
Whatever you feed this fish I would feed it a few times a day. I think quantity plays a role with a moorish Idol as well as quality.
I believe my automatic feeder with the dish is the reason he has lived this long.
Take care.
Paul
:dance:

ps, Fishy1, mine will not eat nori either but Idols have very weak mouths and can't really bite anything. Mine will only eat it if I cut it in small bitesize pieces. Even the sponge that he loves has to be cut up small or he won't touch it.
 
Thanks for the reply, Paul:) I tried to break up some soft pieces of nori into the water column and he looked at it......mouthed it and spit it out.......he will eat the spirilina flake though. He ate frozen angel formula with sponge today too........lucky he will eat so many different things at this point in time. His dorsal has grown new length (about 3/4") in the last 4 days......amazing! It's very thin and flows in the water but just the same it's new growth! I am cautiously optimistic at this point they he might live for more than a week/month or two.......glad to have found this thread!

Janey
 
That dorsal growing thing is interesting. My Idol's dorsal would also grow very fast but it would always get bit off and now it will not grow at all any more.
 
An upseting thing just happened:( My Idol has been in a quarantine tank with a blenny that my daughter gave me a while back........he is a flame-tailed blenny and has small combed teeth. Anyway, the Idol got too close to the blenny's hole and he jumped out at him and latched on to the upper "lip" area. With a tearing downward motion he tore off the skin down to the bone/cartiledge (top of nose area down to where lip would be on a person). The Idol can still eat as inside the mouth is fine but do you think the outer area will heal over? Makes me sick! The blennie went home with a fellow reefer who stopped by to pick up a piece of frogspawn from me.........the MI is all by himself now.......can it heal since he uses his beak to peck the LR constantly? I'm worried!!

Janey
 
Fish can heal very fast if they don't get too infected.
I operated on my MI twice for Pop Eye and he is fine.
Their fins grow very fast but the skin on the beak will take longer and he will probably have a scar. (Like in Finding Nemo)
 
Thanks for the reply, Paul.....makes me feel a bit better. I do have some Kanacyn but hesitate to put it in the water since there is no infection present at this time. A friend said I should put Melafix in the tank.......what do you think?

Janey
 
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