Lemonpeel Angel Help!

roadrunner1659 · 06/25/2006, 09:22 PM

I have a lemonpeel Angel...he's been in my tank for almost 3 yrs now! He's the perfect little fish, very active and great personality!

For my birthday my parents took me out to the LFS and got me my fish LPS coral (frogspawn)....the coral was in my tank for a week and it looked great...then i had to keep the light out for the day because i added a fish (sixline wrasse)...the next day when the light turned on my lemonpeel zerod in on my frogspawn and nipped at it like the food i drop in the tank!

currently i moved my frogspawn into my fuge were it is doing just fine...and i have been dealing with the fact that i will have to part ways with my lemonpeel b/c i want to continue getting corals...i actually found a good friend whom is interested in my lemonpeel and i would be more then happy with him to take him!

tonight i was watching my tank and i was thinking...i have had green star polyp coral for a year now and its huge, i have also had xenia and mushrooms for about 6 months now and there also doing great...

so what i am wondering, are there specific corals in which a dwarf angel is more likely to go after and nip at then others?

thanks everyone!

ShellBell · 06/25/2006, 10:08 PM

I had to get rid of my dwarf flame angel because it was a leather nipper - however I had a lemonpeel in my other tank and it was a perfect citizen. I think it has to do directly with that individual dwarf. If you suspect it is a coral nipper and you have a good home for it - letting it go is something you should strongly consider. The only other option is setting up another tank for it

Three years is a long time though, you get attached. Tough decision

roadrunner1659 · 06/25/2006, 10:26 PM

thanks msim001s i know that my lemonpeel nips at corals but onyl the frogspawn and poss. the zoas...never the other corals...

i guess that it would be a guessing game of what will work and what wont (as far as corals go) and its descided by my lemonpeel...im not sure if i want to play that game everytime i bring home a coral, but if there were corals in which a lemonpeel was least likely to go after i would try to get them!

3 yrs is a long time and its hard to just give him away even when i know he would go to a good home!

Sk8r · 06/25/2006, 10:35 PM

It's a hard thing. Getting that coral away from him fast might help. You might decide, for instance, to keep leathers, if you can keep him away from those. Most of them 'smell' bad. You might also have better luck with sps, which have less obvious polyps.

I'm convinced with angels, who are not stupid fish, as fish go, learn certain food sources.

In the wild, they travel down the reef nipping at corals, and then moving on. In a tank, the problem is there is no 'moving on.'

roadrunner1659 · 06/25/2006, 10:38 PM

haha yea sk8r...well my frogspawn the coral he is nipping at was placed into my fuge and doing great! for now my lemonpeel is at home in the 26 gal with the other fish and the corals he doesn't nip at...xenia, mushrooms, and gsp...

ACBlinky · 06/25/2006, 11:05 PM

I don't think there's any coral that a Centropyge is guaranteed to avoid, but it seems like some are less likely to become snacks than others.
Many angels like to pick at LPS corals, particularly frogspawn, torch, hammer, fox, candycane, brains and other 'fleshy' types. They're also known to pick on clams. IME Xenia is VERY likely to be eaten, my angels love it. Things like GSP, leathers, shrooms and bubble corals are probably less likely to be considered tasty, but every angel is different.
If your lemonpeel (one of the most notorious nippers BTW) has started to eat corals/coral mucous, it may get worse. If you've got your heart set on a reef, I'd give the fish to your friend -- I'm sure you can get visitation if you play your cards right

My 65g has a few angels, and I have to agree with sk8r, these guys are smart and very capable of learning. Once one angel decided Xenia was on the menu it was only a matter of time until another wandered over to see what he was doing. Within days they were all trimming the Xenia. Now, if I could just teach them to use the Mag-Float, we'd be set

r0bin · 06/26/2006, 08:25 AM

what types of angels are you able to keep together in your 65?

06/25/2006, 09:22 PM	#1
roadrunner1659 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New Jersey Posts: 326	Lemonpeel Angel Help! I have a lemonpeel Angel...he's been in my tank for almost 3 yrs now! He's the perfect little fish, very active and great personality! For my birthday my parents took me out to the LFS and got me my fish LPS coral (frogspawn)....the coral was in my tank for a week and it looked great...then i had to keep the light out for the day because i added a fish (sixline wrasse)...the next day when the light turned on my lemonpeel zerod in on my frogspawn and nipped at it like the food i drop in the tank! currently i moved my frogspawn into my fuge were it is doing just fine...and i have been dealing with the fact that i will have to part ways with my lemonpeel b/c i want to continue getting corals...i actually found a good friend whom is interested in my lemonpeel and i would be more then happy with him to take him! tonight i was watching my tank and i was thinking...i have had green star polyp coral for a year now and its huge, i have also had xenia and mushrooms for about 6 months now and there also doing great... so what i am wondering, are there specific corals in which a dwarf angel is more likely to go after and nip at then others? thanks everyone!

06/25/2006, 10:08 PM	#2
ShellBell Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Springfield, Illinois Posts: 448	I had to get rid of my dwarf flame angel because it was a leather nipper - however I had a lemonpeel in my other tank and it was a perfect citizen. I think it has to do directly with that individual dwarf. If you suspect it is a coral nipper and you have a good home for it - letting it go is something you should strongly consider. The only other option is setting up another tank for it Three years is a long time though, you get attached. Tough decision __________________ *Michelle* My username was msim001s and I had a lionfish avatar - I needed a change! Current Tank Info: 90 gallon reef, 30 gallon sump, closed loop, 2 250W reefstar MH's

06/25/2006, 10:35 PM	#4
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	It's a hard thing. Getting that coral away from him fast might help. You might decide, for instance, to keep leathers, if you can keep him away from those. Most of them 'smell' bad. You might also have better luck with sps, which have less obvious polyps. I'm convinced with angels, who are not stupid fish, as fish go, learn certain food sources. In the wild, they travel down the reef nipping at corals, and then moving on. In a tank, the problem is there is no 'moving on.' __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

06/25/2006, 11:05 PM	#6
ACBlinky Premium Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Peterborough, ON, Canada Posts: 4,954 Blog Entries: 20	I don't think there's any coral that a Centropyge is guaranteed to avoid, but it seems like some are less likely to become snacks than others. Many angels like to pick at LPS corals, particularly frogspawn, torch, hammer, fox, candycane, brains and other 'fleshy' types. They're also known to pick on clams. IME Xenia is VERY likely to be eaten, my angels love it. Things like GSP, leathers, shrooms and bubble corals are probably less likely to be considered tasty, but every angel is different. If your lemonpeel (one of the most notorious nippers BTW) has started to eat corals/coral mucous, it may get worse. If you've got your heart set on a reef, I'd give the fish to your friend -- I'm sure you can get visitation if you play your cards right My 65g has a few angels, and I have to agree with sk8r, these guys are smart and very capable of learning. Once one angel decided Xenia was on the menu it was only a matter of time until another wandered over to see what he was doing. Within days they were all trimming the Xenia. Now, if I could just teach them to use the Mag-Float, we'd be set __________________ "The cure for anything is salt water: sweat, tears, or the sea." - Isak Dinesen Current Tank Info: 150g mixed reef, 30g sump/refugium, LED lighting, 100lbs LR, coral beauty, flame angel, blue & yellow tangs, gobies, damsels, 6-line wrasse, lawnmower blenny, dottyback, clown pair, rabbitfish, shrimp, crabs, CUC.

06/26/2006, 08:25 AM	#7
r0bin Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Earth Posts: 1,132	what types of angels are you able to keep together in your 65? Last edited by r0bin; 06/26/2006 at 09:10 AM.

06/25/2006, 10:26 PM	#3
roadrunner1659 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New Jersey Posts: 326	thanks msim001s i know that my lemonpeel nips at corals but onyl the frogspawn and poss. the zoas...never the other corals... i guess that it would be a guessing game of what will work and what wont (as far as corals go) and its descided by my lemonpeel...im not sure if i want to play that game everytime i bring home a coral, but if there were corals in which a lemonpeel was least likely to go after i would try to get them! 3 yrs is a long time and its hard to just give him away even when i know he would go to a good home!

06/25/2006, 10:38 PM	#5
roadrunner1659 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New Jersey Posts: 326	haha yea sk8r...well my frogspawn the coral he is nipping at was placed into my fuge and doing great! for now my lemonpeel is at home in the 26 gal with the other fish and the corals he doesn't nip at...xenia, mushrooms, and gsp...