Yellow tang 101

[king_Neptune]

Ok so theres probly a bunch of threads on this but my phone dosent let me search so..i have a few questions about yellow tangs, how hardy are they? Whats a good diet for them to keep color bright as possible? Just got mine today s he's not eating yet should I try brine shrimp? I bought new life spectrum pellets no luck. Do they perfer a open aquascape? My aquascape is kind of closed in the back do they perfer to swim through rocks?front of my tank has plenty swimming room

 

[hollister]

They are omnivores , like meat and veggie. Nori is a good food but i would only give him some once a week.I feed mine flake in the morning and brine in the evening.They do like caves and overhangs.

 

[Reef264]

I had one a while back, had to sell it though.Mine had probably the most Dark Rich Yellow Color I've ever seen.I fed it Mysis, Squid, Emerald Entree, Salifert Energy Pellets, all enriched in Selcon, Liquid Spirulina, Garlic, and once a week I would mix in some Metronidazole, just to keep it healthy.Mine was a Grazer, not really much of a swimmer.Very Hardy!Great fish!Ate from my hand, had great fishonality!

 

[dzfish17]

Give him a few days and he should be eating... I feed my tank (7 tangs) NLS pellets, ON flakes, mysis, angel formula, and nori a couple times a week.

 

[vaporized]

They are omnivores , like meat and veggie. Nori is a good food but i would only give him some once a week.I feed mine flake in the morning and brine in the evening.They do like caves and overhangs.

I guess they may act like omnivores in captivity. Also, why nori only once a week? In the wild they are mostly herbivores. They should be fed mostly algae. You should give them nori or other marine based seaweeds almost every day. Be sure the tang is offered plenty of marine based seaweed and algae. This will strengthen it's immune system, reduce aggression and improve overall health. With a strong immune system your tang will have bright colors. You should give them dried seaweed secured to a rock or use a veggie clip. The tang will eat meaty foods as well, but they are considered herbivores. I soak their algae in garlic, selcon, and spirulina powder.

They are prone to Ich, so you should QT any tang and any new fish as well. Typically, they are very hardy fish and do well in captivity as long as you understand how and why you need to QT everything.

 

[MrTuskfish]

Tangs are usually considered herbivores, But they eat so much tiny animal life while grazing, I think ,omnivore is right. I feed tangs like all omnivores; plenty of LR for grazing, added veggies (nori, even turnip greens), all sorts of frozen meaty stuff, some pellets. Unless you have enough LR for them to constantly graze on, veggie matter should be fed daily. IMO, they are one of the hardiest fish we keep; they are also one of the most abused. IMO & IME, the one factor that is really needed to keep any tang in prime condition is plenty of open swimming room. They need lots of back and forth swimming space; a 6' tank may be OK, an 8" tank is better. On the reef, they cover lots of territory on the outer reef edge. If the OPs tank is listed correctly; I think a 75 is simply too small. A YT will live in a 4' tank; but never thrive. Not trying to be nasty; but learning a fish's needs is better done before purchase.

 

[vaporized]

Tangs are usually considered herbivores, But they eat so much tiny animal life while grazing, I think ,omnivore is right. I feed tangs like all omnivores; plenty of LR for grazing, added veggies (nori, even turnip greens), all sorts of frozen meaty stuff, some pellets. Unless you have enough LR for them to constantly graze on, veggie matter should be fed daily. IMO, they are one of the hardiest fish we keep; they are also one of the most abused. IMO & IME, the one factor that is really needed to keep any tang in prime condition is plenty of open swimming room. They need lots of back and forth swimming space; a 6' tank may be OK, an 8" tank is better. On the reef, they cover lots of territory on the outer reef edge. If the OPs tank is listed correctly; I think a 75 is simply too small. A YT will live in a 4' tank; but never thrive. Not trying to be nasty; but learning a fish's needs is better done before purchase.

I would say MrTuskfish nailed it. They are considered herbivores by nearly every source, but they eat like omnivores. My tangs prefer marine algae but will pick at other frozen meaty stuff. My tangs also will eat turnip greens and other veggies. I also agree that researching forums, the internet and books is very important before any fish purchase.

 

[king_Neptune]

Give him a few days and he should be eating... I feed my tank (7 tangs) NLS pellets, ON flakes, mysis, angel formula, and nori a couple times a week.

What type of flake?

 

[reeferstace]

What type of flake?

ON= Ocean Nutrition I'm guessing. I also feef ON flakes to my fish. I use the herbivore blend.

 

[king_Neptune]

Hes starting to eat a little bit here and there,the stomach was looking pinched

 

[vaporized]

Have you offered it marine algae yet? You just rubberband it to a rock and drop it in the tank. I'll be he eats that, maybe soak it in garlic to entice him to sample some.

 

[king_Neptune]

I need to get some algae he's been grazing on diatoms and he's starting to accept the pellets