Opinions on my fish list

[swishyfishies]

Kole tang or bi color angel or black nox angel (dwarfs)
royal gramma
lyratail anthia or 2 orange striped cardinals
3 green chromis
redheaded goby or hifin red banded goby

this is for a 55 gal tank 50 lbs of LR & 60 lbs sand

is this too much?

Because I'll have to order my fish food online all of my fish need to eat some sort of flake, fresh seafood, frozen or dried food. I won't be doing live brine, mysis or black worms (?).

 

[steve-s]

Kole tang or bi color angel or black nox angel (dwarfs)

The kole is not a good choice for that size tank. Koles are probabley one of the most active of the species and would not really fair well. Dwarfs do tend to be a little obnoxus, so add with caution as they may not do well with peaceful fish. Keep in mind they will nip any coral in the tank.

royal gramma

Nice looking fish. Can be a little "pushy" but should be fine.

lyratail anthia or 2 orange striped cardinals

With the possibility of the dwarf and the granmma, the anthias would be a better choice.

3 green chromis

Personally I would skip these and choose one other single fish. With the list you have I think this would be stretching the bio load

redheaded goby or hifin red banded goby

Either should be fine but again with the above list, the HiFin would probably fair better.

HTH
Cheers
Steve

 

[kidafius]

The nice little caluclator in the "Calculators" section suggests that you use no more than 11 inches of fish, not counting the tail fin, for 55 gallon tank. Just be prepared to be zealous on water changes.

 

[alrmc4]

the anthias are beautiful fish have been looking at them myself but from what i have read you need to keep them in a rather large school with at least 4or5 females with a male to be happy so figured i better pass for my 75 unless i am willing to have them be the only fish in the tank which i did actually consider because of how pretty they are also many of the anthias are found rather deep and need it to be able to be kept on the cool side..

 

[steve-s]

the anthias are beautiful fish have been looking at them myself but from what i have read you need to keep them in a rather large school with at least 4or5 females with a male to be happy .

Actually as long as you keep them as at least one female/male pair it should be fine. In captive settings, the male will usually tend to lose it's "showy" coloration without the female to show off to. More females just gives it a better effect and increases the possibility of mating. The same is true of flasher/carpenter wrasses.

Cheers
Steve

 

[swishyfishies]

Thanks for breaking it down Steve-S I think I will skip on the green chromis & the Kole. So are you saying that the cardinals gramma won't get along?

Would I be able to keep a single anthia? I keep hearing they need live foods & are hard to get to eat & that I should skip them.

 

[steve-s]

So are you saying that the cardinals gramma won't get along?

The reason I say this is because the cardinals as a rule are very peaceful and skiddish. If the gramma becomes the dominant fish in the tank it may become a "holy" terror.

Would I be able to keep a single anthia? I keep hearing they need live foods & are hard to get to eat & that I should skip them.

I would really depend on which species you choose. Many cannot be housed in smaller tank and would make for a limited choice.

I think you would have better results with a pair, but if you choose one then opt for the male. They can be hard to acclimate but if you choose ones that have been at the LFS and eating then it should be okay. The only caution would be to wait until the tank has had time to mature to offer sufficient natural grazing foods. If you are having any doubts about the Anthias, then I would definately suggest making an alternate choice.

A great alternate would be a fairy/flasher/carpenter wrasse. They can be housed in smaller tank, they are easier to acclimate and would have a similar appearance/behavour to what you are looking at now.

Cheers
Steve

 

[swishyfishies]

I was considering the Lyratail anthia whuch is what I was told is a good beginner anthia. I have looked at the flasher & carpenter wrasse & would like one, but this only being my second saltwater tank I'm still trying to stay with fish that are $20 or less for now. Those wrasse I keep seeing for $50.

 

[steve-s]

Lyretail Anthias are one of the easier to acclimate of the species as well as being able to keep in smaller tanks (50 gal +). They do not do well in pairs though. It should be kept as a single male with a harem of females.

If keeping only one specimen, it is recommended that it be female as they are less likley to become aggressive to other tank mates. If you do get the anthias, do not mix with the above mentioned wrasses. There would be territorial and feeding aggression.

Cheers
Steve

 

[swishyfishies]

yes it would be one ot the other. I did plan on a female lyretail so thats good. Are they hard to get to eat like people say?

 

[steve-s]

Lyretails are one of the easier to get aquainted with aquarium foods, but I do not know how hard it will be for you to find them.

The other concern is will the female change to male.

Cheers
Steve

 

[alrmc4]

worth a look it is a beauty and owner posted tips on anthias.:
http://www.moyesreef.com/fish/Anthias.html

and from this site:http://www.netpets.com/fish/reference/saltref/anthias2.html

These fish are best kept in a small harem of one supermale and five females. They should be placed in an aquarium no smaller than 100 gallons. Lonely specimens will generally not do well.

Since Acropora is their favorite coral they will do real well in tanks where this coral is present but this is not a requirement. More important is the size of the tank and the feeding of plankton.

Should you place all females in a tank you may very well observe the sex change mentioned earlier. This may take several months before it actually happens though. The fishes first need to get accustomed to their environment, fortify themselves and be generally free of stress. Do not keep Anthias with aggressive fishes. This will continuously stress them and may cause them to jump out of the tank.

Daily if not twice daily feeding is a must. Frozen plankton can be used. In aquariums with plenty of live rock they will derive some food from the animalcules that inhabit such rock. This is not sufficient though, and supplemental feeding is a must.

Caves of some sort in the aquarium are a plus but having branched coral is better. Lighting should be moderate to high but need not be metal halide type, unless of course you also keep corals in the tank that need such lighting.

from:http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?siteid=21&pCatId=54

The Lyretail Anthais does best when kept in a species-specific tank of at least 125 gallons for a group. Males are best kept alone with several females, or singly. The Anthias dwells in the middle of a tank but appreciates the availability of several hiding places.

this is some of the research that i had done that lead me to believe that my 75 was not suitable..i guess i am not willing to risk killing them to find out.

 

[steve-s]

this is some of the research that i had done that lead me to believe that my 75 was not suitable..i guess i am not willing to risk killing them to find out.

Rather harsh words I think and not warranted. I have also done my research along with actually knowing those who have had success with what I have suggested above. They will live quite happily in pairs or the single female I suggested.

The tank size rating is based on the premis of the "harem". Having a single or paired Lyretail in the 50 gal would not be "killing" anything as you suggest. What you have read is purely generalization.

The "moyes" link provided suggests that some do better in these assosiations. His only experience was with bartlets and bi-colors of which I would not even recommend due to their hard to acclimate nature even in groups.

Everyone is entitled to share and pass on their knowledge in hopes that others will do well and further the hobby, but it is not their right for such blatant abuses.

Regards
Steve

 

[alrmc4]

i did not mean the words to sound harsh just was explaining how i came to that conclusion and basically saying not a good risk taker love those fish however do not feel comfortable because of that info i am having a very hard time finding any fish i am real comfortable with for the 75 seems each fish has a reason i should not go with it most problems are finding colorful nonaggressive non jumpers,hard to find feel free to offer suggestions and sorry it is hard to type a tone of voice and expressions,not trying to be harsh just sharing my own frustrations

 

[swishyfishies]

Thanks for your opinions on keeping anthias.

 

[swishyfishies]

Ya know what I think I've found a better fish for me than an anthia. Their hardier, cheaper & just as beautiful. The filamented Flasher wrasse.

So how would this look;

Filamented wrasse
yellow headed jawfish
3 green chromis
red headed goby
royal gramma (added last into the tank)

 

[steve-s]

A flasher wrasse would be a great choice, if solo I would recommend the male. You may also wish to re-think the addition of the goby though.

As a general rule, wrasses and gobies usualy do not mix well. They have very similar traits and feeding habits which could "set off" the wrasse and I think there would be a good chance the goby would not survive. I have had personal success with blennies however, but I would still urge caution.

Cheers
Steve

 

[Salt4Us]

Aww man, we were going to go a flasher and a green clown goby in ours, so much for that idea :/

 

[swishyfishies]

Everyone else I've asked says the list is fine. No one mentions a problem with the wrasse & goby.

 

[steve-s]

Every goby I have ever placed with a wrasse has been torn to pieces, literally. I gave up after the second attempt.

You can move forward with the list if you feel the advice recieved from others is valid. I quite honestly hope you get it to work and prove me wrong.

Keep us updated as to how well it works out. I would be quite interested.

Cheers
Steve