initial purchase of tenents

[thisanthrope]

Hello, I have got my setup figured out for the most part. I am putting together my first SW, a micro reef in a 10 gal. tank. I still have many weeks ahead of cycling but I wanted to get some peoples advise who also had or have micro reefs, what kinds of things I should start out with.

I believe I will hold off on the soft coral at first until I am sure I can keep its environment stable. I am wanting to get shrimp, slugs, starfish, etc... and maybe one fish.

If I were to include a fish It would have to be small enough. I have heard that damsels are too aggresive to their tank mates. what about a clown without and anenome?

are most shrimp hardy? I am especialy fond of the clown shrimp. are any of these territoral as well?

 

[brewercm]

For a small tank like that you can go with various mushroom corals and they are very hardy. I'd go with a ricordia and a clown for the fish, he would most likely host in that or maybe a hairy mushroom. I have a clown that hosts in my purple mushrooms and wont get near my rock anenones. Shrimp and small starfish would be fine also.

Good luck.

 

[steve-s]

are most shrimp hardy?

As with most all other inverts, shrimp are not forgiving of poor water quality and/or changes in their living environment. Although more than possible for a small tank, it is something that you may want to wait to do until the tank has had some time to mature, becomes very stable and you are more familiar with the routine of maintenace. Once managed, I think a shrimp should be an good addition, just be careful of your choices in regards to other animals and possible corals.

For the startfish, the above applies even more so. I would not really consider them for such a set up. Salinity changes as well as other parameters are more likely in smaller environments that a star may not do well with. They can also be hard to keep nourished in a small environment and may not be able to get enough food sources. Personally, I would skip the star.

Cheers
Steve