Anthias

[boxerzz]

I want to add around 3 anthias to my 90 gal. There are currently one six-line wrasse, one panjama cardinal, one diamond goby, one chromis, one purple firefish and one brown tang. However, I read that anthias are semi-agressive and the last time I got a semi-agreesive one was the dotyback and it was one aggressive fish. Any suggestions on this ?

[Raibaru]

I'm following along too. I'm planning a trio in a 70g tank and I'm very curious how aggressive these things get. I'm also curious how large they get.

Do you have a specific type of anthias you're shooting for? I'm personally planning a trio of Lyretails because I've been told repeatedly that they are the hardiest and don't mind the lighting. They are also sexually dimorphic which is a plus.

I'm also curious how long you've had your sixline and how it is? I only have a 36g currently, but my six line is very aggressive and I'm really not sure I'm going to keep him when I upgrade. Mine was fine for about 6 months and then whammo, terror on fins

[boxerzz]

I don't really have any preference for anthias, they all look nice.

I had my sixline for some months now. Fought with my dotty back when I first got it. Took out my dotty and now it gets into fight with my purple fire goby at times. But well, they don't seem to terrorize one another so I think they are fine for now.

Who can give suggestions for Anthias ?

[boxerzz]

Well I must correct that it was my dotty that went aggressive on it and it went on defense mode....they bit each other though...

But now it is on aggression to my goby but goby is not too disturb by it. (it can get nasty too !)

[sassafrass]

It depends greatly on the species of anthias you want,anthias are mostly aggressive toward each other (male against females) and so it is suggested to get a few females to one male to spread the aggression among them .Here are a few of my Dispar Anthias.

[boxerzz]

What about aggression towards other fish like chromis ? Is 3 enough for a group of Anthias say Barlett ?

[Raibaru]

I've heard that when you plan to keep Anthias that you need to make some smart choices when aquascaping your rock. Specifically you should try to keep as much room as you can open above the rock for them to swim freely?

Could someone who has owned these fish corroborate this and maybe have some pictures to share of how to aqua scape for them?

[boxerzz]

Can someone with experience with Anthias please help us out here, thanks a lot.

[nikon187]

yes they are mainly aggressive to one another but my male also chases my flasher wrasse from time to time ( I have Lyretails) They do need a fair amount of swimming room. I made my aquascape into 2 islands with a large trench in the middle. There is a good amount of room above the islands as well. lyretails also get larger ( 5" for the males) for an anthais

[CTmarinelife]

I have four purple queen anthias in my 72, not aggressive toward anything, just swim around and hide in between rocks. Just like to be fed several times a day.

[sassafrass]

It is important to have powerful nutrient export for anthias to handle their high metabolism. Aggression toward other fish species comes more in the form of warnings rather than continual harassment . Generally speaking lyretail's are one of the more aggresive anthias, I got Dispars because they stay fairly small here is the best pic I have showing scaping

[sassafrass]

Here is a full tank shot before I got them ,fairly open aquascaping

[backfish]

I have dispars. They will use all the swimming space you can give them. Mine are not aggressive toward other species but I started with six and I am down to three. There seems to always be one that is low on the totem pole and the others harass it until it stops coming out to eat and eventually get skinny and dies. Then the next lowest on the totem pole gets harassed and so on. The three I have left seem to have worked out a balance. This has just been my experience. Do plan on feeding small amounts 3+ times a day for many anthias species and planning accordingly to keep up water quality.
Cheers,
Tracy

[boxerzz]

So I think 3 will be a good purchase of Anthias. My tank is only 3 " long 2" wide...I hope it is good enough for 3 ? If I want to get them is it better to get one male 2 females or all females ?

[boxerzz]

BTW, nice tank there !

[sassafrass]

Thanks, get 1 male the rest females.

[boxerzz]

thanks !

[idareefer]

I have 4 bartletts in my 300, also some tiger queens, they do need space, also alot of caves they can hang out in, bartletts usually won't harass other fish, just some aggression between them, always in the evening, a sixline may cause some problems, just make sure you get females & a male, if your male dies one of the females will turn male.

[backfish]

Definately try to get one obvious male to start though- then there is already a dominate fish and there is less of a "power strugle"

[boxerzz]

I have 4 bartletts in my 300, also some tiger queens, they do need space, also alot of caves they can hang out in, bartletts usually won't harass other fish, just some aggression between them, always in the evening, a sixline may cause some problems, just make sure you get females & a male, if your male dies one of the females will turn male.

Do you think a 90 gal gives enough space for 3 of them ?

Definately try to get one obvious male to start though- then there is already a dominate fish and there is less of a "power strugle"

I will try. Most of the Anthias I see, I cannot see the males.