Royal gramma - not so easy to keep?

Mr. Manty · 07/15/2017, 09:36 AM

Royal grammas always seem to go missing, get ich, or othersise mysteriously die while everything else remains fine. Are they misadvertised as easy in the eyes of anyone else?

Haunt · 07/15/2017, 09:48 AM

I don't think so.

How big is your tank? What kind of fish/invertebrates do you currently have? I'm assuming you don't QT, right?

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/ft/index.php

ericarenee · 07/15/2017, 09:56 AM

They are fairly hardy fish in the right setting.. they like a tank large enough to claim there own territory,I would not recommend one for a aggressive tank unless they have proper room and the tank is somewhat under stocked.

Yours seems to be showing behavior of a timid stressed fish being bullied . If your fish has ich other fish do as well. ich does not discriminate .

ca1ore · 07/15/2017, 04:50 PM

They're wimps, and easily bullied ..... By just about everyone else in the tank.

Mr. Manty · 07/15/2017, 08:40 PM

This last one was in a 20 gal with a melanurus wrasse and yellowtail damsel, but the tank is mainly for my odontodactylus havanensis mantis shrimp ( yea yea i know "oh god a mantis shrimp!". But this species is very delicate and not aggressive towards fish). He seemed to coexist with them out in the open. But after moving some live rock to plant some macro algae, i found him laying in the corner out in the open looking stressed. The following day, vanished. No body.

Mr. Manty · 07/15/2017, 08:41 PM

And i keep nitrates below 10 because of the very sensitive mantis. I also use RODI

Sk8r · 07/15/2017, 08:51 PM

A damsel is just not going to behave well in a 20. Even a yellowtail. A hundred gallons plus, and they're perfectly fine. But a 20 is just awfully small for fish in general. They freak and just fail to thrive. You'd have much better luck with the gramma in a 40 to 50 gallon.

DancingShark · 07/15/2017, 08:51 PM

Have never had a royal gamma but I do have a bicolor dottyback.
They are tuff and he even tries to bully the tangs in the tank when the swim around his rock.
The Ich thing you will have to QT everything to get rid of it. I have a tang dominated tank and not a single Ich parasite seen.

DancingShark · 07/15/2017, 08:54 PM

Oh a twenty gallon. Yeah kind of small even for a dottyback since they do become aggressive.

newbie2014 · 07/16/2017, 06:12 AM

I have mine since the switch over from freshwater about 3 years ago. It was only about 1-1.5", now it's at least 3". It survived through some horrible conditions in my tank. From sloppy tank transfer in the winter, salinity as high as 1.041, H2O2 overdose, to an ich outbreak.

And it's always a model citizen in my 40B. My sixline wrasse, OTH,........

Mr. Manty · 07/16/2017, 08:02 AM

Must be stressing them out in my 20 gallon. The wrasse has been in there 6 months no problem.

bmrigs · 07/16/2017, 10:10 AM

My Royal tends to hide in his cave. I just bought an Azure damsel and that Royal Gramma is always opening his mouth to that damsel even though it doesn't bother him.

C5Chad · 07/16/2017, 01:30 PM

I've had my royal for over 2 years now back when I first made my first attempt at saltwater fish. I had him in a 29g tank with 3 other fish and I noticed him being rather aggressive towards a couple of fish but other than that have never had a problem. Definitely territorial and have now since upgraded my tank to a 75g and I'd say he's much happier being in a larger tank. More hiding spots for him and doesn't show as much aggression as he used to. And mine lived through a horrible green hair algae and bubble algae outbreak where my 29g tank was practically overrun with as well as a cyano outbreak. Due to my lack of knowledge and not frequent enough water changes at the time I had the 29g.

07/15/2017, 09:36 AM	#1
Mr. Manty Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 194	Royal gramma - not so easy to keep? Royal grammas always seem to go missing, get ich, or othersise mysteriously die while everything else remains fine. Are they misadvertised as easy in the eyes of anyone else?

07/15/2017, 09:48 AM	#2
Haunt Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Stockton, CA Posts: 109	I don't think so. How big is your tank? What kind of fish/invertebrates do you currently have? I'm assuming you don't QT, right? http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-02/ft/index.php __________________ "Your off the edge of the map mate. Here there be monsters..."

07/15/2017, 09:56 AM	#3
ericarenee Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Louisville Kentucky Posts: 3,110	They are fairly hardy fish in the right setting.. they like a tank large enough to claim there own territory,I would not recommend one for a aggressive tank unless they have proper room and the tank is somewhat under stocked. Yours seems to be showing behavior of a timid stressed fish being bullied . If your fish has ich other fish do as well. ich does not discriminate . __________________ 240+G Mixed BB Reef tank.. 350 G Marine Pond. And the expensive stuff that runs it. Chic's are for Chic's You silly men Go Fishing or something... Current Tank Info: 240= gal Reef /550 Gallon Saltwater pond 72 G Bay front Tropical aquarium

07/15/2017, 04:50 PM	#4
ca1ore Grizzled & Cynical Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Stamford, CT Posts: 17,319	They're wimps, and easily bullied ..... By just about everyone else in the tank. __________________ Simon Got back into the hobby ..... planned to keep it simple ..... yeah, right ..... clearly I need a new plan! Pet peeve: anemones host clowns; clowns do not host anemones! Current Tank Info: 450 Reef; 120 refugium; 60 Frag Tank, 30 Introduction tank; multiple QTs

07/15/2017, 08:51 PM	#7
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	A damsel is just not going to behave well in a 20. Even a yellowtail. A hundred gallons plus, and they're perfectly fine. But a 20 is just awfully small for fish in general. They freak and just fail to thrive. You'd have much better luck with the gramma in a 40 to 50 gallon. __________________ 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%.

07/15/2017, 08:40 PM	#5
Mr. Manty Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 194	This last one was in a 20 gal with a melanurus wrasse and yellowtail damsel, but the tank is mainly for my odontodactylus havanensis mantis shrimp ( yea yea i know "oh god a mantis shrimp!". But this species is very delicate and not aggressive towards fish). He seemed to coexist with them out in the open. But after moving some live rock to plant some macro algae, i found him laying in the corner out in the open looking stressed. The following day, vanished. No body.

07/15/2017, 08:41 PM	#6
Mr. Manty Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 194	And i keep nitrates below 10 because of the very sensitive mantis. I also use RODI

07/15/2017, 08:51 PM	#8
DancingShark Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 126	Have never had a royal gamma but I do have a bicolor dottyback. They are tuff and he even tries to bully the tangs in the tank when the swim around his rock. The Ich thing you will have to QT everything to get rid of it. I have a tang dominated tank and not a single Ich parasite seen.

07/15/2017, 08:54 PM	#9
DancingShark Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2017 Posts: 126	Oh a twenty gallon. Yeah kind of small even for a dottyback since they do become aggressive.

07/16/2017, 06:12 AM	#10
newbie2014 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Posts: 235	I have mine since the switch over from freshwater about 3 years ago. It was only about 1-1.5", now it's at least 3". It survived through some horrible conditions in my tank. From sloppy tank transfer in the winter, salinity as high as 1.041, H2O2 overdose, to an ich outbreak. And it's always a model citizen in my 40B. My sixline wrasse, OTH,........

07/16/2017, 08:02 AM	#11
Mr. Manty Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Posts: 194	Must be stressing them out in my 20 gallon. The wrasse has been in there 6 months no problem.

07/16/2017, 10:10 AM	#12
bmrigs Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL Posts: 198	My Royal tends to hide in his cave. I just bought an Azure damsel and that Royal Gramma is always opening his mouth to that damsel even though it doesn't bother him.

07/16/2017, 01:30 PM	#13
C5Chad Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: Cincinnati,OH Posts: 109	I've had my royal for over 2 years now back when I first made my first attempt at saltwater fish. I had him in a 29g tank with 3 other fish and I noticed him being rather aggressive towards a couple of fish but other than that have never had a problem. Definitely territorial and have now since upgraded my tank to a 75g and I'd say he's much happier being in a larger tank. More hiding spots for him and doesn't show as much aggression as he used to. And mine lived through a horrible green hair algae and bubble algae outbreak where my 29g tank was practically overrun with as well as a cyano outbreak. Due to my lack of knowledge and not frequent enough water changes at the time I had the 29g.