Fish recommendations

gowingsgo · 04/30/2012, 08:57 AM

I have a 125 gallon reef tank filed with lots of LPS mainly. I finally found good home “280 gallon” for my sail fin and my fox face so my tank only has a clown fish and a coral beauty in it now. I would like to get a bunch of small fish and was looking for recommendations. I Do not want anything that will get big at all. Getting the two big fish out of that tank took all day. I had to brake down most of the rock work and never want to do that again. So please help me restock my tank.
Thanks
Paul

feh · 04/30/2012, 09:16 AM

How about an Engineer goby to keep the sand bed clean?

On a more serious side I'd highly recommend just picking out fish you like and researching them for compatibility with other fish, corals, inverts, water temp, etc. You can always hit a site like LA for ideas, make a list of what you like, and then research what you like to get a feel for whether its a fit for your tank and husbandry habits or not. Small fish can be a real pain to remove too. Half the fun in the hobby is learning about your tanks inhabitants.

aandfsoccr04 · 04/30/2012, 09:26 AM

"small" is a pretty relative term. I'd look at some of the flasher and fairy wrasses. That's what I'm stocking my tank with as they are really pretty stay relatively small for the most part and all get along generally.

gowingsgo · 04/30/2012, 10:19 AM

Feh
Yep that is why I started here to get some ideas. This tank has been set up for about 8 years now and I have been in the hobby for a little over ten. The last fish I bought was the fox face when I did my upgrade from the 65 gallon eight years ago. It was always about the corals for me and not the fish. Now that I can add some fish I just don’t know were to start. I always liked gobys and have always liked the mandarin goby so that is way up on my list. My tank stays about 78 all year even in the summer my sump is a little over 100 gallons and is in the basement so that really helps keep the tank a constant temp.
Not too sure about wanting a sand sifting goby. I have heard that they can make a mess of things. I have a lot of acans that sit on the sand bed floor and would be concerned that they would get covered in sand.

Aandfsoccr04
You are right small is a relative term. I guess the biggest fish in the tank would be the coral beauty and that would be about as big as I would like to get. I would like to see lots of small fish that would swim around and through the rock work I have in the tank. I looked up the two fish you listed “flasher and fairy wrasses” They are awesome That’s the kind of stuff I was looking for.
Please keep the ideas coming.
Thanks
Paul

feh · 04/30/2012, 10:36 AM

Size is relative. I personally like to stick to fish around 4 -5" in size max for larger fish in a typical 120 or smaller standard dimensions tank. I think it looks better. Whether a 12" fish would thrive in a tank that size or not isn't my concern. Its how the fish will distract and look out of place because the tank is 20 - 24" tall.

I was joking about an engineer goby. They have been known to really make a mess of things plus they don't stay small. LFS has one thats over 12" long. Looks more like an eel at that size.

A tank that old I'd think a mandarin would do well as long as you have a nice pod population to keep it fed. Madarins aren't really gobies they're dragonets. They can starve to death if you're not able to ween them onto prepared foods and don't have a good pod population. I'd also avoid any tank mates that may feed on pods if you plan to keep one. Other than that its just a matter of having nonaggressive tank mates, hiding places, and so on same as most fish to make sure it it won't get stressed.

rovster · 04/30/2012, 12:41 PM

Look into a Midas Blenny. Really nice looking fish. You can also look at his ugle cousin the Starry blenny. Lots of personality. Firefish are kind of cool looking, also look into maybe some cardinals, or a royal gramma. These are all small. The wrasses like mentioned above are also really nice.

Ryan2013 · 04/30/2012, 12:57 PM

Personally i think that small schooling fish look the best in a 125. Id say a school of maybe 11 chromis. Or a few anthias. Theyre both really active and look prettier the more you add to the tank.

Lateralus · 04/30/2012, 04:12 PM

Pearlyhead or blue spot jawfish are always great, alot of personality. Sixline wrase is another great fish imo. All these fish stay real busy.

gowingsgo · 05/01/2012, 09:43 AM

Rovster
I do like both of the blennies. Can they live in the same tank together or would they have issues. I was also thinking I like the purple firefish it is very cool looking.
Lateralus
I was always under the impression that you needed a deep sand bed and a lot of crushed coral to keep a jaw fish. I only have about a 1 inch sand bed of fine sand. They are very nice looking fish but not sure how well it would do in my tank.

I know I cant have them all but these are some of the fish I really like.
Do you know anything about them and can they live together in the same tank? Also about how many of them could live happily in a 125 gallon tank with a a clown fish (10 years old) and a coral beauty (8-1/2 years old)?
Yellowfin Flasher Wrasse
Tono's Fairy Wrasse
Girdled Fairy Wrasse
Bluehead Fairy Wrasse
Yellow Banded Possum Wrasse
Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse
Linespot Flasher Wrasse
White Banded Possum Wrasse
**Blue Mandarin** I am sure I want this fish.
Warpaint Clown Goby
Starry Blenny
Yasha White Ray Shrimp Goby
Purple Firefish Goby
Yellow Nose Prawn Goby
Orange Stripe Prawn Goby
Rainfordi Goby
Flaming Prawn Goby
Ventralis Anthias
Japanese Borbonius Anthias
Yellow Spotted Anthias

Thanks
Paul

jcono · 05/01/2012, 10:15 AM

Lots of nice ideas- remember with wrasses and jawfish-BIG TIME JUMPERS!!! You MUST have a tight fitting lid or they will get out. I rec. 1/4" mesh over the tank.
I am telling you, they will find the smallest opening and escape- not fun finding dead fish on the floor...

04/30/2012, 08:57 AM	#1
gowingsgo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 175	Fish recommendations I have a 125 gallon reef tank filed with lots of LPS mainly. I finally found good home “280 gallon” for my sail fin and my fox face so my tank only has a clown fish and a coral beauty in it now. I would like to get a bunch of small fish and was looking for recommendations. I Do not want anything that will get big at all. Getting the two big fish out of that tank took all day. I had to brake down most of the rock work and never want to do that again. So please help me restock my tank. Thanks Paul

04/30/2012, 09:26 AM	#3
aandfsoccr04 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Virginia Beach, VA Posts: 3,561	"small" is a pretty relative term. I'd look at some of the flasher and fairy wrasses. That's what I'm stocking my tank with as they are really pretty stay relatively small for the most part and all get along generally. __________________ 120 gallon mixed reef

04/30/2012, 10:36 AM	#5
feh Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Atlanta area Posts: 535	Size is relative. I personally like to stick to fish around 4 -5" in size max for larger fish in a typical 120 or smaller standard dimensions tank. I think it looks better. Whether a 12" fish would thrive in a tank that size or not isn't my concern. Its how the fish will distract and look out of place because the tank is 20 - 24" tall. I was joking about an engineer goby. They have been known to really make a mess of things plus they don't stay small. LFS has one thats over 12" long. Looks more like an eel at that size. A tank that old I'd think a mandarin would do well as long as you have a nice pod population to keep it fed. Madarins aren't really gobies they're dragonets. They can starve to death if you're not able to ween them onto prepared foods and don't have a good pod population. I'd also avoid any tank mates that may feed on pods if you plan to keep one. Other than that its just a matter of having nonaggressive tank mates, hiding places, and so on same as most fish to make sure it it won't get stressed. Last edited by feh; 04/30/2012 at 10:53 AM.

04/30/2012, 04:12 PM	#8
Lateralus Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: St. Charles mo. Posts: 756	Pearlyhead or blue spot jawfish are always great, alot of personality. Sixline wrase is another great fish imo. All these fish stay real busy. __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: 120 gallon reef/ 40 gal sump. Born on 5/30/13.

05/01/2012, 09:43 AM	#9
gowingsgo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 175	Rovster I do like both of the blennies. Can they live in the same tank together or would they have issues. I was also thinking I like the purple firefish it is very cool looking. Lateralus I was always under the impression that you needed a deep sand bed and a lot of crushed coral to keep a jaw fish. I only have about a 1 inch sand bed of fine sand. They are very nice looking fish but not sure how well it would do in my tank. I know I cant have them all but these are some of the fish I really like. Do you know anything about them and can they live together in the same tank? Also about how many of them could live happily in a 125 gallon tank with a a clown fish (10 years old) and a coral beauty (8-1/2 years old)? Yellowfin Flasher Wrasse Tono's Fairy Wrasse Girdled Fairy Wrasse Bluehead Fairy Wrasse Yellow Banded Possum Wrasse Carpenter's Flasher Wrasse Linespot Flasher Wrasse White Banded Possum Wrasse Blue Mandarin I am sure I want this fish. Warpaint Clown Goby Starry Blenny Yasha White Ray Shrimp Goby Purple Firefish Goby Yellow Nose Prawn Goby Orange Stripe Prawn Goby Rainfordi Goby Flaming Prawn Goby Ventralis Anthias Japanese Borbonius Anthias Yellow Spotted Anthias Thanks Paul Last edited by gowingsgo; 05/01/2012 at 09:47 AM. Reason: Added fish

04/30/2012, 09:16 AM	#2
feh Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Atlanta area Posts: 535	How about an Engineer goby to keep the sand bed clean? On a more serious side I'd highly recommend just picking out fish you like and researching them for compatibility with other fish, corals, inverts, water temp, etc. You can always hit a site like LA for ideas, make a list of what you like, and then research what you like to get a feel for whether its a fit for your tank and husbandry habits or not. Small fish can be a real pain to remove too. Half the fun in the hobby is learning about your tanks inhabitants.

04/30/2012, 10:19 AM	#4
gowingsgo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: cincinnati Posts: 175	Feh Yep that is why I started here to get some ideas. This tank has been set up for about 8 years now and I have been in the hobby for a little over ten. The last fish I bought was the fox face when I did my upgrade from the 65 gallon eight years ago. It was always about the corals for me and not the fish. Now that I can add some fish I just don’t know were to start. I always liked gobys and have always liked the mandarin goby so that is way up on my list. My tank stays about 78 all year even in the summer my sump is a little over 100 gallons and is in the basement so that really helps keep the tank a constant temp. Not too sure about wanting a sand sifting goby. I have heard that they can make a mess of things. I have a lot of acans that sit on the sand bed floor and would be concerned that they would get covered in sand. Aandfsoccr04 You are right small is a relative term. I guess the biggest fish in the tank would be the coral beauty and that would be about as big as I would like to get. I would like to see lots of small fish that would swim around and through the rock work I have in the tank. I looked up the two fish you listed “flasher and fairy wrasses” They are awesome That’s the kind of stuff I was looking for. Please keep the ideas coming. Thanks Paul

04/30/2012, 12:41 PM	#6
rovster Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Miramar, FL Posts: 7,518	Look into a Midas Blenny. Really nice looking fish. You can also look at his ugle cousin the Starry blenny. Lots of personality. Firefish are kind of cool looking, also look into maybe some cardinals, or a royal gramma. These are all small. The wrasses like mentioned above are also really nice.

04/30/2012, 12:57 PM	#7
Ryan2013 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Posts: 202	Personally i think that small schooling fish look the best in a 125. Id say a school of maybe 11 chromis. Or a few anthias. Theyre both really active and look prettier the more you add to the tank.

05/01/2012, 10:15 AM	#10
jcono Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Bernardsville, NJ Posts: 147	Lots of nice ideas- remember with wrasses and jawfish-BIG TIME JUMPERS!!! You MUST have a tight fitting lid or they will get out. I rec. 1/4" mesh over the tank. I am telling you, they will find the smallest opening and escape- not fun finding dead fish on the floor...