Powder Blue Tang-Moment of weakness

[afilter]

Ok, before anyone blasts me I know I broke/am breaking the the rules, but admittedly I am weak. I do plan to make changes in the coming weeks/months.

I recently stopped by my local Petco just to see what they had while out and about and could not believe my eyes when I saw what they had for stock and on sale. I had to do a double take when I saw a very nice looking Powder Blue Tang(4-5") and then saw it was marked down from $82.99 down to $33.99.

Now in my defense I did leave without purchasing it knowing I should not. After looking up the profiles and stewing I returned about 2 hours later to closely examine it and decided to take a chance.

This is the one fish I have coveted all along, but did not dare try due to cost.

It has been almost 9 months since I added my last fish and I did not plan to add any more since I know I am fully stocked right now. As a result I did not have my QT set up so I opted to drip acclimate and added the new Powder Blue after 2 hours.

I am very happy to report that after 48 hours so far all is well. The yellow tang and Powder Blue initially sparred, but tonight all is well and the three tangs and other tank mates seem to be cohabitating nicely.

More imporatnly the Powder Blue seems to be a picture of health and is aggressively eating. I will closely monitor it to ensure no problems develop. My tank is about two years old and has been disease free for well over a year(yes this was a big chance).

I do have a back up plan with another LFS who will take the Orange Shoulder and Yellow Tang if a problem arises. Long term I am looking to donate The Orange shoulder(about 7-8") to a local aquarium this fall if I cannot persuade my financial advisor (wife) to allow me to upgrade to the 120gal I really want.

If I stick with the 75gal my plans are to thin down to the following:
Maroon Clown pair, Coral Beauty, Powder Blue Tang, Mandarin dragonet and maybe the Yellow Tang. Thoughts?

I will post pics when I get the new camera hooked up.

TIA,

 

[HoopsGuru]

No blast, but reality is reality. Three tangs in a tank that size is begging for trouble....behind trouble with tangs is normally ick, especially when new additions haven't been quarantined. I would either force the immediate purchase of the 120g (hostile takeover? )or return the fish before this rough story hits rock bottom.

 

[afilter]

Hoops Guru,

I know this cannot last for long. I definitely want to keep the Powder Blue though. My goal is to keep all healthy for now. I think the Orange shoulder will be leaving as early as this weekend. Realistically this fish alone is to big for a 75gal. Even if I am successful with my pleas for a bigger tank this fish is probably still pushing it even with a 120 gal.

Unfortunately, I did not know how big they would get a a year ago when I bought it and have been planing for its departure since I learned more. It has developed so nicely that I hope to find it a suitable home in a large display.

 

[Phyl]

I had a powder blue that I was holding for a friend in a 65 and it HATED it. The confined swimming space freaked it out. It was constanty darting and swimming in short bursts as fast as it could (which is very fast) across the tank. It eventually ended up sparring with the yellow and got spiked to his death. I hope you have better luck than I did. The powder blue that I had was under 4" and NEEDED a 6' tank at least. It was very unhappy with a 3' swim span.

Good luck.

 

[afilter]

Phyl,

I did read about there potential to dart. So far so good. The sparring seems to have stopped and it seems to school with the other two tangs covering the length of the 4' tank. My plan it to eventually make it the only tang to allow maximum growth.

 

[macman7010]

You using live rock?

 

[HoopsGuru]

My other concern is the maroon pair, which can be an awfully boisterous fish just between mates let alone other fish. With a 75g tank, it may be tough to have enough available territory when these fish get larger. Most fish get along when they are juveniles, its when they approach adult sizes that most problems seem to get out of hand.

 

[afilter]

Yes, I do have LR. I need to update my profile. I initailly seeded my base rock and now almost 2 years later have a pretty good base of LR (100+ #s plus all the coral skelatons which are also essentially LR) which the fish all tend to.

I too was most concerned about the clowns which is why I had not planned to add any more fish. So far no issues, the clowns definitely have their area, but the coral beauty is about the only one they ever chase off. They have never been bothered by any of the Tangs. I would say they are no longer juvenals, but still can grow more. I have had them about 18 months and they are fat and happy at about 3-4" with the female being larger.

 

[macman7010]

Ok cool, I noticed you have a mandarin fish and thought maybe you just had a few scattered coral skeletons or something. You def have a large fish and invert population for a 75 gallon tank. Although it looks like you already knew that, and I am no one to talk supposodly my reef tank is "over crowded." Interestingly enough you ought to post about this on reef central as there was someone over there the other week talking about tangs adjusting to smaller confines such as aquariums as long as they as they meet thier nutritional needs.

If I were you Id keep an eye on the clowns. Toss one or both of your other tangs and just wait and see how it goes. If any of the tangs show signs of "captive distress" such as hitting the glass, darting, not eating - so on and so forth I would get a larger tank for the tangs. Other than that feed um well and keep an eye out for anything bad.

 

[afilter]

macman7010,

I will definitely continue to monitor all. I thought I would need to get rid of the Orange shoulder long before now. It actually seems to be thriving, but this will force the issue to find him a better home. I saw a fully grown one at an LFS a few months ago and could not believe how big they really can get.

Reality is I am probably not going to be able to grow beyond the 75 gal for a while. I have decided to trim down to the following:

Powder Blue Tang, Coral Beauty, Maroon Clowns, Mandarin dragonet.

That will reduce my population by half and should give them some room for a while.

 

[HoopsGuru]

I think that is a good decision and gives you room to observe without having to figure out any "whodunnit" issues should there be aggression.

 

[hcuellart]

Good choice on the fish selection, I would do the same and as already said keep an eye on the clowns. I'd start saving for the 120 as the PB will definitely need it as it grows in a couple of years max.
Good Luck

 

[afilter]

I figured this is the best option. As much as I love all my fish I think The Orange Shoulder will definitely be better off elsewhere. I e-mailed a local zoo about donating it and am waiting for a response. I know an LFS that may take it for their display tank. Worst case I can put it up for sale at an upcoming fish auction.

The fish I am keeping are the species I have always truly desired. The PB was bit of an impulse, but at that price I had to take the chance.

I will increase the size and frequency of my PWC until all are moved out.

Thanks,

 

[Salttanker]

I wish I lived out by you. I would take the Orange Shoulder off your hands yesterday. That's a beautiful specimen.

Mike

 

[macman7010]

yeah I think you will be ok

 

[afilter]

Salttanker,

That might be an option if I cannot find a local display tank where I can go view it. A LFS will take it for resale and give me some credit and they will resell it. I would rather know where it is going even if only through a pic. My fear is that someone else would buy it without being educated like I did.

If the zoos don't respond I may post it. I have never shipped a fish before, but is someone was willing to pay I might consider that as well If I knew it was going to a responsible aquarist.

 

[Salttanker]

you're right about the lfs. Anyone can buy it, so you will never know the fate of your little friend there.
See how much shipping would be and PM me. I may take him off your hands if the local Zoo doesn't respond.

Mike

 

[afilter]

Quick update PBT is doing great! Aggressively competes for food (dry and prepared) and so far no battles. Actually hangs out with other tangs part of the time.

Still plan to aquire 90gal and move other tangs out.