Fish Selection for a reef tank

[LT62]

I am setting up a new reef tank. It is 120G and has a ~50G ecosystem sump filter system. I was planning on have both soft and hard corals. I want to add some fish so that there is some movement. I have a 85G FOLR now, but I have never had to worry about fish eating coral. I have read some about this but I am looking for people who actually have fish in their tanks that are not eating the coral.

My questions: What fish are most compatible with coral? And each other?

 

[kparton]

There are a host of fish that will not bother your coral, I'd recommend picking up Scott Michale's book and it will give you all the information you need.

I personally kept the following fish with corals and had no problems:

True Perc
Orchid Dottyback
Midas Blenny
Firefish

There are many, many others and given the size of your tank, you can have some free swimmers like tangs. Good luck.

 

[Anonymous]

Include in that list a myriad of gobies, including the wee neon goby. Fairy/flasher wrasses as well as many from the anthias family, though I wouldn't recommend those to a beginner. Any of the clowns, though expect territoriality, as one should with many commonly available damsels.

 

[Anonymous]

A few good choices alread listed but be aware that Escenius species blennies (Midas, Bicolor) will feed on coral polyps and eat slime from LPS and nip clam mantles - not always but it does happen.

In addition to the types of corals you need to consider what type of invertebrate life you might want to keep. Clams will be pestered by some fish, shrimp may be nothing more than a tasty snack to some otherwise awesome fishes (Hawkfishes, marine betta, harlequin tusk).

Also there are some neat predatory type fish that are reef safe in that they won't bother corals but their sheer size can disrupt rockwork (think a zebra moray in a reef very strong fish) or eat and poop so much they can cause water quality issues (groupers , lionfishes) if you are keeping some SPS.

Scott Michael's pocket guide is a great reference I'd also check out WWM (www.wetwebmedia.com) there is a host of excellent articles and real life FAQs on almost every species of reef fish kept in the hobby.

If it were my tank and I was focusing on corals mostly then maybe a few small fish would work think about something like this :

5 Green Chromis
3 Royal Grammas (try and get 1 male and 2 females)
2 False Perculas

then maybe add a colorful goby like a yellow watchmen. If you aren't set on keeping small fish or shrimp then there are a host of great fishes you can keep maybe a hawkfish, couple of basslets, and a asessor would make a gorgeous display (actually I think asessors are mostly planktivores so shrimp should be safe).

HTH

 

[LauraH]

My favorite group of fishes are the tangs. They are great for visual appeal. They can be very colorful, sizeable enough to see from across the room, and they are constantly moving.

Something from the Zebrasoma genus would probably be best. Their size would be well suited to your tank and they seem to be less prone to ich than some of the other tangs. They are also great for keeping nuisance algae in check. If they're kept well fed, they should be model citizens with regards to your corals. I feed mine Nori every day, plus whatever the special of the day is for the rest of the tank, usually soaked in Selcon. The Purple tang can be especially prone to HLLE (Head and Lateral Line Erosion) if not well fed.

They are usually well behaved with other fish, but may not get along with their own kind. The Purple tang is probably the most aggressive Zebrasoma sp. overall.

 

[fishfanatic2]

I like butterflies a lot, and some species are reef safe.