princess parrot fish

MISTAH MICHAEL · 04/20/2006, 08:04 PM

if anyone has any info on how to maintain a healthy parrot fish could u give me any tips on how to keep it healthy. . . new to the fish world

jwhitlow1031 · 04/20/2006, 08:21 PM

Hey MISTAH MICHAEL, what u up 2 man...lol, hows that fish doing...figured i'd give u a bit of a bump... let me know if u have any q's bout this site...

oct2274 · 04/20/2006, 08:57 PM

i'm not sure how to keep the healthy, but i am sure that it would destroy a reeftank........

bertoni · 04/20/2006, 09:46 PM

To Reef Central

Scott Michael rates the parrot fishes as difficult to keep and feed. Is this the animal you're considering:

http://www.csulb.edu/depts/biology/m...arrotfish.html

In nature, they feed on microalgae encrusting the reef and on corals. I guess you could try a mixture of a herbivore and a carnivore food, as well as keep it in a tank with a lot of live rock. It will chew on the the rock.

kraze3 · 04/20/2006, 10:38 PM

There is a recipe for a princess parrot food mixture. Its in a book, I have the book but I cant find it at the moment. Im going to be gone this weekend. If you already have the fish and are interestd in the recipe, PM me and Ill find it when I return. I know its a plaster of paris mixture. It helps with their beaks and its texture is similar to what it eats in nature.
Sorry I couldnt be of more help right now

jeffb3t · 04/21/2006, 03:29 AM

They will feed on Nori as well. That is what we use when we go snagging. I have also caught them when fishing with small shrimp so you might want to try that as well.

john f · 06/04/2006, 10:41 AM

I have had some success keeping both a princess (2 years) and currently a Quoys parrotfish.

First of all.......a princess parrotfish will NOT destroy your reef. Mine never touched any corals, and extensive research shows they eat algae, and not corals.
Some parrotfish will eat corals, but the princess is not one of them.

Second, I do not believe these smaller parrotfish die because of incorrect diet in most cases.
I believe they starve over time because they can harbor intestinal parasites which eventually kill them in captivity.
My princess would eat anything I fed him, and had a 1000 gallon tank to roam with tons of natural food.
After 2 years he died, although he had looked thin for several months prior.

So when I got my Quoys parrotfish, I tried something different.
I always QT in hyposalinity for 3 weeks before adding any fish to my reef. This time, I gave him a couple of baths using prazequantel as a de-wormer.
If you are interested I can find out the exact dosing, I used Nogas book.
So far after 1 & 1/2 years the parrotfish is very fat and healthy looking.
His condition is much better than the princess after the same time frame. He also does not touch any coral in the tank, and eats everything as well.
I realize 2 years is the mark to beat for me, but by the looks of the fish he will make it there just fine.
2 Years is kinda the magic mark for a fish IME. If they can make it that long, they can live for 10+ years. On the other Hand, many fish can live will disease or poor diet for a few months, but not usually for 2 years.

Anyone attempting to keep on of these two parrotfish sould have a large tank (200+ gallons) with some open space to swim. These fish needs lots of room to move about.
They do not get very big if purchased at a reasonable size.
My Quoys parrotfish is about 6", up from about 4.5" when I bought him.

John

vamaro · 11/30/2010, 06:44 PM

I realize this thread is really old, but I was trying to find some info on a Princess Parrot and came across this thread.

I picked up a Princess Parrot over the weekend. It ate Spectrum pellets within 1 hour of bringing it home which was a relief. I will try some nori this week as well.

Its an amazing swimmer and seems really peaceful. My other fish ignored it.

04/20/2006, 08:04 PM	#1
MISTAH MICHAEL Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Elk Grove Posts: 23	princess parrot fish if anyone has any info on how to maintain a healthy parrot fish could u give me any tips on how to keep it healthy. . . new to the fish world __________________ MISTAH MICHAEL Current Tank Info: 125 gal tank 3 MH fixtures, 150 protein skimmer and a 1/5 hp chiller

04/20/2006, 08:21 PM	#2
jwhitlow1031 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Elk Grove, Ca Posts: 455	Hey MISTAH MICHAEL, what u up 2 man...lol, hows that fish doing...figured i'd give u a bit of a bump... let me know if u have any q's bout this site... __________________ Some call it an obsession, i call it...well, yea its an obsession : ) To see pics of my tank click the little red house. Current Tank Info: 54 Gallon Corner tank, 130 watt pc lighting, 150watt MH, 140+ pds live rock, 2.5 inch sandbed, 3 powerheads and wavemaker, skimmer, etc, etc...lol

04/20/2006, 09:46 PM	#4
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	*To Reef Central* Scott Michael rates the parrot fishes as difficult to keep and feed. Is this the animal you're considering: http://www.csulb.edu/depts/biology/m...arrotfish.html In nature, they feed on microalgae encrusting the reef and on corals. I guess you could try a mixture of a herbivore and a carnivore food, as well as keep it in a tank with a lot of live rock. It will chew on the the rock. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

06/04/2006, 10:41 AM	#7
john f Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Gainesville, Fl USA Posts: 1,032	I have had some success keeping both a princess (2 years) and currently a Quoys parrotfish. First of all.......a princess parrotfish will NOT destroy your reef. Mine never touched any corals, and extensive research shows they eat algae, and not corals. Some parrotfish will eat corals, but the princess is not one of them. Second, I do not believe these smaller parrotfish die because of incorrect diet in most cases. I believe they starve over time because they can harbor intestinal parasites which eventually kill them in captivity. My princess would eat anything I fed him, and had a 1000 gallon tank to roam with tons of natural food. After 2 years he died, although he had looked thin for several months prior. So when I got my Quoys parrotfish, I tried something different. I always QT in hyposalinity for 3 weeks before adding any fish to my reef. This time, I gave him a couple of baths using prazequantel as a de-wormer. If you are interested I can find out the exact dosing, I used Nogas book. So far after 1 & 1/2 years the parrotfish is very fat and healthy looking. His condition is much better than the princess after the same time frame. He also does not touch any coral in the tank, and eats everything as well. I realize 2 years is the mark to beat for me, but by the looks of the fish he will make it there just fine. 2 Years is kinda the magic mark for a fish IME. If they can make it that long, they can live for 10+ years. On the other Hand, many fish can live will disease or poor diet for a few months, but not usually for 2 years. Anyone attempting to keep on of these two parrotfish sould have a large tank (200+ gallons) with some open space to swim. These fish needs lots of room to move about. They do not get very big if purchased at a reasonable size. My Quoys parrotfish is about 6", up from about 4.5" when I bought him. John __________________ "The state is the great fiction by which everybody tries to live at the expense of everybody else." Frederick Bastiat Current Tank Info: 235 reef

11/30/2010, 06:44 PM	#8
vamaro Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: San Juan Capistrano Posts: 1,334	I realize this thread is really old, but I was trying to find some info on a Princess Parrot and came across this thread. I picked up a Princess Parrot over the weekend. It ate Spectrum pellets within 1 hour of bringing it home which was a relief. I will try some nori this week as well. Its an amazing swimmer and seems really peaceful. My other fish ignored it. __________________ Vince Current Tank Info: 220 Gallon Tank 72L x 30W x 24H, FOWLR, APEX Controller, ATB 1260 (Large) with Airstar 2000, Ozotech Ozone with Avast Reactor, Tripplite 750 Inverter with Optima Batteries, 72' Current USA Extreme Pro T5 light

04/20/2006, 08:57 PM	#3
oct2274 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Plano, TX Posts: 2,347	i'm not sure how to keep the healthy, but i am sure that it would destroy a reeftank........

04/20/2006, 10:38 PM	#5
kraze3 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: RI Posts: 2,373	There is a recipe for a princess parrot food mixture. Its in a book, I have the book but I cant find it at the moment. Im going to be gone this weekend. If you already have the fish and are interestd in the recipe, PM me and Ill find it when I return. I know its a plaster of paris mixture. It helps with their beaks and its texture is similar to what it eats in nature. Sorry I couldnt be of more help right now

04/21/2006, 03:29 AM	#6
jeffb3t Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Okinawa, Japan Posts: 1,327	They will feed on Nori as well. That is what we use when we go snagging. I have also caught them when fishing with small shrimp so you might want to try that as well.