I need help choosing reef fish

[ChrisV]

I have a 4 or 5 inch blue spot grouper, coral and clams in a 135g. Is there a type of wrasse or some other colorful easy to feed fish that can live peacefully in this situation?

Thanks,
-Chris

 

[Anonymous]

Hhmm... you're in a tough spot, I can see why you were asking about the trigger. Any chance you'd be getting a much larger (200g+) system within the next 2-3 years?

 

[ChrisV]

Hmm that would be nice, spent all my money on the lighting for the 135. In a year or so I will probably run out of coral space and get a 210g.

 

[ChrisV]

Any suggestions?

 

[Anonymous]

You are in a bit of a spot as Seamaiden said, but there may be options. First of all, when you say blue spot, are you speaking of Cephalopholus argus? If so then this fish get's quite large. Around 16" or so. Expect it to reach about 8" before it's growth slows down at all in your tank. It's not altogether aggressive, and I've kept them in community situations without problems. Most of the time there are issues when you attempt to mix them with other hinds (Cephalopholus species) but even then, it can be done. I had a C. miniata and a C. argus together for a time. They chased each other for a day, then all was peaceful.
Some options include, but are not limited to, the yellow tang, rabbitfish, lionfish (yes, you can put lionfish in a reef, same caveat as the grouper) or a niger trigger. Ha! Bluethroats, crosshatches, etc. Your tank is actually small for a full grown niger, especially with corals and such taking up swimming space.
Other options, frogfish, scorpionfish, etc. There is no rule saying you can't have a predatory reef. I thought about it myself when I was planning an in-wall 300 gallon for my latest creation. I decided upon a 150 gallon though, so scrapped that idea.
Really, what your main concern is going to be is waste load.

Cheers
Jim

 

[fungia]

if you dont worry about shrimps and crabs, i recommend a hogfish. they are hardy and they wont get beat up. its like a wrasse but more beefy, hehe

 

[Anonymous]

Larger hogs are not great choices though for the most part, as they tend to overturn rocks and corals. They can be very destructive even if they never eat a shrimp or crab. Hogs are actually not just LIKE wrasses, they ARE wrasses.
Have you ever kept one if a reef? I would be interested in your account of it if you have.
Some of the smaller hogs are good choices normaly, but not with a grouper tankmate.

Jim

 

[WRASSER]

chrisv.,


harlequin tusk!!. snowflake,chainlink..... eels, as jimM says a lionfish, tangs, and angles.(as long as the fish can't fit in the grouper's mouth,and it grows at the same or faster rate it will be ok).

good luck


wraser 8)

 

[ChrisV]

I will probably try the harlequin tusk or an angel. Are there any angels that arent reef suitable? Oh and is there a such thing as reef safe parrot fish?

Thanks everyone,
-ChrisV

 

[Anonymous]

I will probably try the harlequin tusk or an angel. Are there any angels that arent reef suitable?

I would say MOST large angels are not reef suitable, but some are more so than others, and if you can find one of the planktivors (Sp) like a Genicanthus species, such as these ones http://www.flash.net/~rarefish/melanospilos.htm then that would be your best bet, they are supposed to be fully reef safe. Unfortunatly they are not as pretty IMO as most of the other angels.

Oh and is there a such thing as reef safe parrot fish?

I don't think so. I think that the tusk idea, if you get one big enough that you are SURE wont be eaten by the grouper, is a nice choice.

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[iFish1]

Would a large tang get beat up that bad?? Maybe a big yellow one?

eel would be cool, we have a snowflake in our 265 reef, except we suspect he has eaten the clams we tried to put in a while back

 

[iFish1]

Would a large tang get beat up that bad?? Maybe a big yellow one?

eel would be cool, we have a snowflake in our 265 reef, except we suspect he has eaten the clams we tried to put in a while back

 

[Anonymous]

Ditto what Laura said, except I consider some of the Genicanthus angels, particularly G. bellus, to be more beautiful than some of the larger angels. An added bonus is that they are sexually dimorphic, so it is easy to obtain a male-female pair. The one downside is that most of the Genicanthus angels stay a bit small, and may get eaten by your grouper.

Pygmy angels (Genus Centropyge) are always a roll of the dice when it comes to their reefsafeness, but they are beautiful, and IME, are bold enough to hold their own with a grouper.

I think a yellow tang would be a great choice for your tank. If you're willing to spend a little extra cash, the chevron tang, Ctenochaetus (sp?) hawaiiensis, is a stunning tang that stays small as tangs go and is not very aggressive.

 

[Anonymous]

Pygmy angels (Genus Centropyge) are always a roll of the dice when it comes to their reefsafeness, but they are beautiful, and IME, are bold enough to hold their own with a grouper.

Hi Matt, I don't know how much experience you have with groupers, but let me assure you that being scrappy will not stop a centropyge from being consumed! They will eat anything that will fit into their mouths, many times at night while the victim is sleeping. The grouper will have not interest in fighting the angel, only eating it. I once had a queensland grouper devour a minaitus grouper that was half the queenslands size. The miniatus was the dominant fish during the day, but the queensland got him around 2am one nignt. So, were not talking a matter if aggressivenes here, or dominance, but sheer swallowing capacity. Keep in mind this grouper grows fast, and will get to be about 3lbs or so in this tank! Far and away big enough to swallow a dwarf angel like a piece of popcorn.


Jim

 

[Anonymous]

I had a spotted grouper (not sure of the species name) together with a flame angel. The grouper was around 8" or so, the angel was about half his size, and it never bothered it. The grouper did, however, persistently chase a large clown wrasse almost his size. It certainly seemed like aggression without the intention of eating the wrasse to me. Like I said, that was my singular experience, so it may have just been a freaked out grouper....

 

[Anonymous]

Well an angel half the size of the grouper is safe sometimes, depending on the species of grouper. What I'm saying is though, is that the size deparity will continue to grow. All will seem fine, then one day, you see a bulge in the groupers belly, and you think "hmmm... I haven't fed yet this afternoon, wonder what that is....oh #%&&!" I've learned this the hard way. A queensland will eat things almost his own size. Blue dots are not as bad in that regard.
Yes, they can be aggressive at times. Especially with like body shapes or colors.

Cheers
Jim

 

[Anonymous]

Get a Snowflake Eel. They don't get to big,hardy,and shy. I just lost one. I think I accidently killed it well rearanging the tank.

 

[ChrisV]

I try to stay away from eels, an eel bit me while cleaning the tank. The bite left a nasty mark too.

Yes, the blue spot grouper is aggressive. I put a clown in there a while back but the grouper beat it up and split all its fins. The clown was about the same size as grouper.


ChrisV