Blue Throat Triggerfish Question

Reefen · 01/25/2019, 03:21 PM

I was thinking of adding a Blue Throat Trigger to my reef tank. But I am reading that they move rock around, have any of you found this to be true, seems this would be a problem in the reef tank. Says they are reef safe, do they eat shrimp or crabs?

reefgeezer · 01/25/2019, 04:16 PM

I had a 4" + Male in my old tank. He was a model citizen. Great fish.

dmsprague · 01/25/2019, 05:47 PM

I had a female for a little over a year before she passed. She would let my cleaner shrimp clean her. I never saw here go after any inverts but they are trigger fish so you can't rule it out.

moondoggy4 · 01/25/2019, 08:47 PM

My Blue Jaw trigger will tunnel underneath the rock and stir up the sand something fierce.

cody6766 · 01/25/2019, 09:29 PM

Quote:

I had a 4" + Male in my old tank. He was a model citizen. Great fish.

Same here. I considered him my centerpiece fish in my 120g. I'd have another if I had a long enough tank, but a 60g cube just doesn't cut it for a blue jaw. Mine never harassed anything or moved rock around. I even had piles of rubble and crush coral mixed within my rock structure for pod growth and he never messed with anything. I did not have any shrimp or inverts aside from snails, which he didn't bother.

Half Vaped · 01/26/2019, 07:08 AM

Mine ate a Skunk Cleaner Shrimp within minutes of releasing the Triggerfish from its acclimation box into gen pop. And then ate the Shrimp's partner a few hours later. It hasn't touched my pair of Fire Shrimp for the ~1.5 years I've had the Triggerfish, though. So definitely hit-and-miss with inverts.

No moving rocks around or picking on any corals, though.

Conigs · 01/28/2019, 01:00 PM

I had a small blue throat in my 90 gallon and he was fantastic. Never saw him both anybody and he didnt moved the sand/rock around at all.

jpcemc · 01/28/2019, 05:37 PM

Get a lid!!!!! I had one that jumped out and over the stair rail into the basement. After that, I got a lid. :-|

LIreefguy · 01/28/2019, 06:40 PM

great fish never bother any of its tank mates. I will say mine was super shy the first few months

D-Nak · 01/28/2019, 11:10 PM

Yes, they tend to be shy. They need to be fed A LOT in order to remain healthy.

burrito · 01/29/2019, 01:48 PM

i have a 4" male in my mixed reef tank and hes a awesome, doesnt bother anyone, eats everything including nori, and is actually a little shy. i think he is the culprit though of splashing/spitting water far out of the tank lol

tableforglasses · 01/29/2019, 09:15 PM

I've had one in my reef tank for the last 6 months and he has been great. He never bothers corals or any of the other fish.

KarenLR75 · 03/02/2019, 02:58 PM

We had one 6 months ago that we had for about 7 months. I loved that fish! He was peaceful, with that 'happy swim' thing they do. Even though listed as semi-aggressive, unfortunately he did not stand up for himself and our tang and other things led to its surprising demise (we now have rocks in tank that we can re-arrange faster for territorial aggression, etc.).

Flash forward to now, we put another blue throat trigger in about 2 or 3 weeks ago and this guy is...SO DIFFERENT. He has managed to kill 2 out of 3 (2.5 to 3 inch) dart fish. The skunk cleaner shrimp..which are HUGE..stay under an RBTA whenever THIS trigger is out. I'm kind of in shock..I knew it was a remote possibility, but since we just had one that couldn't have been a more peaceful fish if it tried...I'm a bit stunned.

I figure the 3 chromis may be next on his hit list. Trying to ensure he is well-fed and fed more than once a day to see if that helps. We upped the feeding already it after the first dart fish was found in pieces. It's like they say, despite what a fish is 'known for', at the end of the day, they each have their own individual temperaments.

I will say neither of these fish bothered our corals....

01/25/2019, 03:21 PM	#1
Reefen Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 204	Blue Throat Triggerfish Question I was thinking of adding a Blue Throat Trigger to my reef tank. But I am reading that they move rock around, have any of you found this to be true, seems this would be a problem in the reef tank. Says they are reef safe, do they eat shrimp or crabs?

01/25/2019, 04:16 PM	#2
reefgeezer Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Wichita KS Posts: 2,621	I had a 4" + Male in my old tank. He was a model citizen. Great fish. __________________ John, Current Tank Info: In-process, 90 Gallon SPS Reef

01/28/2019, 05:37 PM	#8
jpcemc Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Location: Montana Posts: 129	Get a lid!!!!! I had one that jumped out and over the stair rail into the basement. After that, I got a lid. :-\| __________________ 75G, 40G and 32G Tanks. Novice, but love the hobby.

01/28/2019, 11:10 PM	#10
D-Nak Registered Member Join Date: May 2001 Location: Bay Area, CA Posts: 5,797	Yes, they tend to be shy. They need to be fed A LOT in order to remain healthy. __________________ Tank info: 120 gallon 48x30x20 high DT. Clownfish breeding rack in full swing: C-Quest Onyx, Bali Aquarich P1 Picasso + Rod's Onyx, wild percula + Rod's Onyx.

01/25/2019, 05:47 PM	#3
dmsprague Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2016 Posts: 139	I had a female for a little over a year before she passed. She would let my cleaner shrimp clean her. I never saw here go after any inverts but they are trigger fish so you can't rule it out.

01/25/2019, 08:47 PM	#4
moondoggy4 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: menifee So cal Posts: 11,042	My Blue Jaw trigger will tunnel underneath the rock and stir up the sand something fierce.

01/26/2019, 07:08 AM	#6
Half Vaped Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2016 Posts: 401	Mine ate a Skunk Cleaner Shrimp within minutes of releasing the Triggerfish from its acclimation box into gen pop. And then ate the Shrimp's partner a few hours later. It hasn't touched my pair of Fire Shrimp for the ~1.5 years I've had the Triggerfish, though. So definitely hit-and-miss with inverts. No moving rocks around or picking on any corals, though.

01/28/2019, 01:00 PM	#7
Conigs Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: New Jersey Posts: 68	I had a small blue throat in my 90 gallon and he was fantastic. Never saw him both anybody and he didnt moved the sand/rock around at all.

01/28/2019, 06:40 PM	#9
LIreefguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2019 Posts: 98	great fish never bother any of its tank mates. I will say mine was super shy the first few months

01/29/2019, 01:48 PM	#11
burrito Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: 08876 Posts: 224	i have a 4" male in my mixed reef tank and hes a awesome, doesnt bother anyone, eats everything including nori, and is actually a little shy. i think he is the culprit though of splashing/spitting water far out of the tank lol

01/29/2019, 09:15 PM	#12
tableforglasses Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2018 Posts: 29	I've had one in my reef tank for the last 6 months and he has been great. He never bothers corals or any of the other fish.

03/02/2019, 02:58 PM	#13
KarenLR75 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Fort Worth, TX Posts: 140	We had one 6 months ago that we had for about 7 months. I loved that fish! He was peaceful, with that 'happy swim' thing they do. Even though listed as semi-aggressive, unfortunately he did not stand up for himself and our tang and other things led to its surprising demise (we now have rocks in tank that we can re-arrange faster for territorial aggression, etc.). Flash forward to now, we put another blue throat trigger in about 2 or 3 weeks ago and this guy is...SO DIFFERENT. He has managed to kill 2 out of 3 (2.5 to 3 inch) dart fish. The skunk cleaner shrimp..which are HUGE..stay under an RBTA whenever THIS trigger is out. I'm kind of in shock..I knew it was a remote possibility, but since we just had one that couldn't have been a more peaceful fish if it tried...I'm a bit stunned. I figure the 3 chromis may be next on his hit list. Trying to ensure he is well-fed and fed more than once a day to see if that helps. We upped the feeding already it after the first dart fish was found in pieces. It's like they say, despite what a fish is 'known for', at the end of the day, they each have their own individual temperaments. I will say neither of these fish bothered our corals....