New Fish Choice

Birkholz51 · 12/09/2015, 09:59 PM

Hello, everyone!

I am making a trip to the LFS this weekend and I am looking to buy a new fish. Right now, I have a clown and a coral beauty in my 55 gallon tank. Any new additions must be reef safe. Any suggestions on what would be a colorful and cool fish to add?

Right now I have the orange and blue from the clown and CB, so I would like to add a different variety of color. Thank you!!

jraker · 12/09/2015, 10:04 PM

royal gramma or a flasher wrasse would be my choice

Brieninsac · 12/09/2015, 10:41 PM

Firefish

Swensos · 12/09/2015, 11:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jraker

royal gramma or a flasher wrasse would be my choice

I also vote for this.

dowjones1221 · 12/10/2015, 12:30 AM

purple dottyback! beautiful fish and very peaceful

FortyFour · 12/10/2015, 12:34 AM

Royal gramma, yellow coris wrasse.

KMS.Kyle · 12/10/2015, 12:50 AM

I love my Golden Sleeper goby and Melanarus Wrasse - They're incredible creatures to observe.

Dkuhlmann · 12/10/2015, 03:18 AM

I agree with the Royal Gramma and flasher wrasse. I'd also like to throw in the Gold Midas Blenny. It's fast become my favorite fish. I've also got a McCoskers wrasse and they're very colorful and he's constantly flashing.

There are many "reef safe" wrasses but one I caution you against is the 6 line as they become very aggressive as they get older.

CHizer · 12/10/2015, 04:45 AM

Almost any wrasse would be my choice! There are lots of choices and some will fit better than others. I like a lot of the fairies.

Dkuhlmann · 12/10/2015, 05:23 AM

Chizer, there are reef safe wrasses and wrasses that are not reef safe. Most online websites that sell fish have them separated for this reason. Live Aquaria is a great site for information for any fish you choose and their site is easy to navigate. With wrasses the reef safe ones are mostly the fairy wrasses and the flasher wrasses plus a few others, most of these are the smaller wrasses up to around 3" or so.

Birkholz51 · 12/10/2015, 07:18 AM

Thank you everyone. I will ponder it over and let you know what I go with!

scooter31707 · 12/10/2015, 07:47 AM

Melanarus Wrasse and/or some type of goby/blenny. IMO, you should read up on the Purple dottyback and the royal gramma. They can be real PITAs!!!

linelife1474 · 12/10/2015, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Birkholz51

Hello, everyone!

I am making a trip to the LFS this weekend and I am looking to buy a new fish. Right now, I have a clown and a coral beauty in my 55 gallon tank. Any new additions must be reef safe. Any suggestions on what would be a colorful and cool fish to add?

Right now I have the orange and blue from the clown and CB, so I would like to add a different variety of color. Thank you!!

Just curious but from everything I have read about coral beauty.... They are not reef safe but I am new to the hobby so maybe I am mislead to believe this with bad information???

linelife1474 · 12/10/2015, 09:27 AM

+1 to McCoskers wrasse probably my next addition

Dkuhlmann · 12/10/2015, 09:30 AM

Scooter Royal Gramma's are not problem fish, they are one of the best reef fish you can get. I don't know where you read that they were a problem and especially putting them into a category with a Dottyback which are usually very aggressive fish.

scooter31707 · 12/10/2015, 10:10 AM

@Dkuhlmann
I read some comments on here that hobbyist had some problems/issue with aggression from the Royal Gramma. I was honestly looking at getting one and that's what turned me off. Ok, so now I know.

@linelife1474- coral beautys are hit or miss with being reef-safe. IMO, I think they are more safer than the other dwarf angels. There's a chance that they can nip or eat corals, that's why you always see with caution.

Birkholz51 · 12/10/2015, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scooter31707

@Dkuhlmann
I read some comments on here that hobbyist had some problems/issue with aggression from the Royal Gramma. I was honestly looking at getting one and that's what turned me off. Ok, so now I know.

@linelife1474- coral beautys are hit or miss with being reef-safe. IMO, I think they are more safer than the other dwarf angels. There's a chance that they can nip or eat corals, that's why you always see with caution.

Scooter, that's exactly what I read. I have had no issues with my coral beauty

Dkuhlmann · 12/10/2015, 10:33 AM

There are 3 fairly safe dwarf angels. Cherub, Coral Beauty and Flame seem to be the better choices if you are to get one that is "reef safe" The Cherub is said to be more so than the others. I've got a Cherub and he is a nipper and had attacked and ate some SPS I had. But I recently put in a few more SPS and he's not bothering them at all.

You have to remember these fish are grazers and are constantly feeding off of the rocks so some corals will get nipped and if they taste bad they will usually leave them alone.

The Royal Gramma is a very peaceful fish, UNLESS it's in with another basslet. If you are going to have more than one basslet they need to be put in at the same time. If they are the only basslet then you won't have problems with aggression with other fish. But they will defend their sleeping space but usually by bluffing the other fish by opening their big mouths LOL saying "look at me I'm scary"

reefbroao · 12/10/2015, 11:34 AM

Ive heard horror stories about coral beauty's, basically all angels in general. Id suggest looking at foxfish if you want that body type. they're fantastic
fish.
I'd love a black cap basslet but i'm afraid my melanurus would annihilate him. hes just too big now for smaller fish.

AcroNewbie · 12/10/2015, 01:14 PM

If you have enough rock and pods, maybe consider a red scooter or a green mandarin, they are pretty chill fish that has a very graceful swim pattern. Bonus points if you can find one that feeds on frozen food.

reefbroao · 12/10/2015, 01:42 PM

Personally my top are foxface, melanurus, flashers, fang blenny, black assessor/ yellow, candy hog.

Birkholz51 · 12/11/2015, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AcroNewbie

If you have enough rock and pods, maybe consider a red scooter or a green mandarin, they are pretty chill fish that has a very graceful swim pattern. Bonus points if you can find one that feeds on frozen food.

I would love to get a green mansarin. I just don't think I have enough copepods to support it

3dees · 12/12/2015, 11:20 AM

flame hawkfish. intense red and fun to watch it hop from rock to rock.

jrr98002 · 12/12/2015, 02:05 PM

The reef safe wrasses are great for color and character as several have mentioned. But I have to give a heartfelt +1 to the flame hawkfish (as it's only been mentioned once). It's a really awesome fish and the way it swims (hops) makes it rather unique. The one I had in a pervious tank used to hop all over my green star polyps. Very fun to watch and didn't hurt them, by the way.

CStrickland · 12/12/2015, 02:42 PM

I'd look at something that chills on the rocks and sand too. Like a blenny or a goby.

But generally speaking, you don't want to stock this way. Reef fish are super specific critters, with diff territory needs and diets (it's awesome that you are holding off on the dragonet for now

) and also, stuff like you wanting a good mix of colors etc.
If you stop here and plan a list of like 7 or fewer fish that you ultimately want to have in the tank you will be waaaaaay ahead of the game. Doing it one fish at a time can jack you up later for a lot of reasons, but mostly because of aggression. You want to add fish to the tank from least to most aggressive to give the shy guys a chance to stake out a home base etc. Think of it like adding the fiestiest fish last makes them feel like they are arriving to a party, as opposed to having someone break into their house.

You don't want to wind up in a jam down the road because you added a hawkfish or damsel now and it kills everything you try to add to the tank on sight.

12/09/2015, 09:59 PM	#1
Birkholz51 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Ohio Posts: 20	New Fish Choice Hello, everyone! I am making a trip to the LFS this weekend and I am looking to buy a new fish. Right now, I have a clown and a coral beauty in my 55 gallon tank. Any new additions must be reef safe. Any suggestions on what would be a colorful and cool fish to add? Right now I have the orange and blue from the clown and CB, so I would like to add a different variety of color. Thank you!!

12/09/2015, 10:41 PM	#3
Brieninsac Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Posts: 782	Firefish __________________ Red Sea Reefer 350 (73gal/18gal sump) / Kessil a360WE Lights

12/10/2015, 12:50 AM	#7
KMS.Kyle Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Posts: 216	I love my Golden Sleeper goby and Melanarus Wrasse - They're incredible creatures to observe. __________________ 66 Gallon Red Sea Max 250 Melanarus Wrasse, Sleeper Goby, Firefin Goby, Pajama Cardinal, Coral Beauty Angel, Coral Hogfish, Pair Clowns, Urchin, CB/Fire Shrimp, 6 Chromis, Clown Goby, 2 Skunk Shrim

12/10/2015, 03:18 AM	#8
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	I agree with the Royal Gramma and flasher wrasse. I'd also like to throw in the Gold Midas Blenny. It's fast become my favorite fish. I've also got a McCoskers wrasse and they're very colorful and he's constantly flashing. There are many "reef safe" wrasses but one I caution you against is the 6 line as they become very aggressive as they get older. __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300

12/10/2015, 05:23 AM	#10
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	Chizer, there are reef safe wrasses and wrasses that are not reef safe. Most online websites that sell fish have them separated for this reason. Live Aquaria is a great site for information for any fish you choose and their site is easy to navigate. With wrasses the reef safe ones are mostly the fairy wrasses and the flasher wrasses plus a few others, most of these are the smaller wrasses up to around 3" or so. __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300

12/09/2015, 10:04 PM	#2
jraker Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2015 Posts: 1,421	royal gramma or a flasher wrasse would be my choice

12/10/2015, 12:30 AM	#5
dowjones1221 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Myrtle Beach, SC Posts: 60	purple dottyback! beautiful fish and very peaceful

12/10/2015, 12:34 AM	#6
FortyFour Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Denver, CO Posts: 371	Royal gramma, yellow coris wrasse.

12/10/2015, 04:45 AM	#9
CHizer Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: New Tampa Posts: 193	Almost any wrasse would be my choice! There are lots of choices and some will fit better than others. I like a lot of the fairies.

12/10/2015, 07:18 AM	#11
Birkholz51 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Ohio Posts: 20	Thank you everyone. I will ponder it over and let you know what I go with!

12/10/2015, 07:47 AM	#12
scooter31707 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Virginia Posts: 4,971	Melanarus Wrasse and/or some type of goby/blenny. IMO, you should read up on the Purple dottyback and the royal gramma. They can be real PITAs!!!

12/10/2015, 09:27 AM	#14
linelife1474 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Ocoee,Fl Posts: 143	+1 to McCoskers wrasse probably my next addition

12/10/2015, 09:30 AM	#15
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	Scooter Royal Gramma's are not problem fish, they are one of the best reef fish you can get. I don't know where you read that they were a problem and especially putting them into a category with a Dottyback which are usually very aggressive fish. __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300

12/10/2015, 10:10 AM	#16
scooter31707 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Virginia Posts: 4,971	@Dkuhlmann I read some comments on here that hobbyist had some problems/issue with aggression from the Royal Gramma. I was honestly looking at getting one and that's what turned me off. Ok, so now I know. @linelife1474- coral beautys are hit or miss with being reef-safe. IMO, I think they are more safer than the other dwarf angels. There's a chance that they can nip or eat corals, that's why you always see with caution.

12/10/2015, 10:33 AM	#18
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	There are 3 fairly safe dwarf angels. Cherub, Coral Beauty and Flame seem to be the better choices if you are to get one that is "reef safe" The Cherub is said to be more so than the others. I've got a Cherub and he is a nipper and had attacked and ate some SPS I had. But I recently put in a few more SPS and he's not bothering them at all. You have to remember these fish are grazers and are constantly feeding off of the rocks so some corals will get nipped and if they taste bad they will usually leave them alone. The Royal Gramma is a very peaceful fish, UNLESS it's in with another basslet. If you are going to have more than one basslet they need to be put in at the same time. If they are the only basslet then you won't have problems with aggression with other fish. But they will defend their sleeping space but usually by bluffing the other fish by opening their big mouths LOL saying "look at me I'm scary" __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300

12/10/2015, 11:34 AM	#19
reefbroao Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Seattle Posts: 747	Ive heard horror stories about coral beauty's, basically all angels in general. Id suggest looking at foxfish if you want that body type. they're fantastic fish. I'd love a black cap basslet but i'm afraid my melanurus would annihilate him. hes just too big now for smaller fish. __________________ Reefer 170 E series.

12/10/2015, 01:14 PM	#20
AcroNewbie Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: Fremont, CA Posts: 38	If you have enough rock and pods, maybe consider a red scooter or a green mandarin, they are pretty chill fish that has a very graceful swim pattern. Bonus points if you can find one that feeds on frozen food.

12/10/2015, 01:42 PM	#21
reefbroao Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Seattle Posts: 747	Personally my top are foxface, melanurus, flashers, fang blenny, black assessor/ yellow, candy hog. __________________ Reefer 170 E series.

12/12/2015, 11:20 AM	#23
3dees Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Chicago burbs Posts: 793	flame hawkfish. intense red and fun to watch it hop from rock to rock.

12/12/2015, 02:05 PM	#24
jrr98002 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Little Rock Posts: 235	The reef safe wrasses are great for color and character as several have mentioned. But I have to give a heartfelt +1 to the flame hawkfish (as it's only been mentioned once). It's a really awesome fish and the way it swims (hops) makes it rather unique. The one I had in a pervious tank used to hop all over my green star polyps. Very fun to watch and didn't hurt them, by the way.

12/12/2015, 02:42 PM	#25
CStrickland Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: New England, U.S. Posts: 4,595	I'd look at something that chills on the rocks and sand too. Like a blenny or a goby. But generally speaking, you don't want to stock this way. Reef fish are super specific critters, with diff territory needs and diets (it's awesome that you are holding off on the dragonet for now ) and also, stuff like you wanting a good mix of colors etc. If you stop here and plan a list of like 7 or fewer fish that you ultimately want to have in the tank you will be waaaaaay ahead of the game. Doing it one fish at a time can jack you up later for a lot of reasons, but mostly because of aggression. You want to add fish to the tank from least to most aggressive to give the shy guys a chance to stake out a home base etc. Think of it like adding the fiestiest fish last makes them feel like they are arriving to a party, as opposed to having someone break into their house. You don't want to wind up in a jam down the road because you added a hawkfish or damsel now and it kills everything you try to add to the tank on sight. __________________ If you're havin tank problems I feel bad for you, son. I got 99 problems but a fish ain't one Current Tank Info: 3/2016 upgrade to 120g. Chalk bass, melanurus, firefish, starry blenny, canary blenny, lyretail anthias, engineer gobys, kole tang. Softies / LPS / NPS. <3 noob4life <3