Long-Nosed Butterfly?

[hammerhead911]

I have a 65 gal. FOWLR system. I have two tank raised O. Clowns, one Firefish, and one cleaner shrimp. I was wondering about the Long-nosed or maybe the Threadfin. I think may be the Threadfin will get to big. Can ya'll give me the pros and cons of both species? Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[StripesTheEel]

I absolutely had no luck with butterflies.. i kept two long nose butterflies.. a nice addition to the tank.. will tend to nip at corals and not invertebrate safe..! a 65 gal is a fair size for a fish like that.. but yeh u have a invertebrate in the tank so i'd watch out..!

 

[SALTYDAWGY]

Not sure about that longnosed, but I wanted to chime in about Bflies. A really common and underrated butterfly is the lemon or millet seed butterfly. It is often in fish stores with good size going for less then $20.00 They are long lived, super hardy and if fed properly they have really cool coloration. They also have the same shape and temperment as an expensive cousin the Tinkeri Bfly. Just my 2cents if you are thinking about an addition in that family.

 

[Fluff]

Threadfins, or bannerfish actually prefer to be in schools and IMO, would require a bigger tank. The longnosed butterfly is a carnivore and sometimes are hard to feed due to the tiny mouth. Make sure it is eating at the lfs before bringing it home and say goodbye to all your featherdusters and small crustaceans before adding it to your tank.

 

[hammerhead911]

Alright thanks for the info. Gonna hold off on those two.

 

[StripesTheEel]

Nice choice hammer..!

 

[AquaBear]

If you specifically want a Butterflyfish, you might consider a Raccoon. I successfully keep a Raccoon Butterfly (Chaetodon lunula) in my 75 FOWLR, so that might be a possibility for you. Raccoons have a decent success rate in home aquariua.

He's not aggressive (but will defend himself when the Angel gives him grief), By watching the other fish eat, he has learned to eat Formula Two, Angel Formula, Mysis, brine, clams, squid and other things, but a Raccoon doesn't have the long nose, so they can shred food and eat like pigs. He goes crazy for purple seaweed, but also eats the green kind. But of course I had to move my starfish to the fuge, because BFs will eat inverts unless they're covered by a shell. And if they can knock them over on their backs, they can peck a good-sized snail to death.

--Aquabear

 

[hammerhead911]

Don't the raccoons get pretty big?

 

[AquaBear]

Yes, some of them can. Some BFlies, like Chaetodon lineolatis (Lined Butterfly) can reach 10 - 12", but Raccoons average 6-7". There is always Chaetodon punctatofasciatus (Spotbanded Butterfly) that averages 4" and is also very beautiful.

Butterflyfish are an unusual group, either species do well or do very bad, but they are all beautiful.

--Aquabear

 

[hammerhead911]

I think I'm still gonna hold off since I only have a 65 gallon. Thanks for the input.