120 Stock List

[therealman1]

As I am slowly getting the part for the 120, my wife has gone ahead and made a stock list. We currently have the cherub angel and yellow tang in another tank that we would be switching over to the 120. There is no aggression between these two. Also, before the tang police breach my front door, the plan with the blue hippo tang is to get another larger fish tank in a few years time.

Blue Hippo Tang
Morish Idol
Yellow tang
Potters wrasse
Pygmy angelfish
Pyramid Butterfly fish
2 Clownfish
Princess Damsel
Tuxedo Damsel
Royal Gamma

 

[therealman1]

She really wants the morish idol and wants to be sure that this tank wont be too aggressive for it. Any thoughts?

 

[Jmas4]

Good luck on your tank!
Moorish idol imo is king of finicky eaters. I recommend you wait until you have more experience. If you still really want one, get one that is eating frozen foods and has its fins intact.
Tuxedo damsels can become aggressive to smaller fish. But in a 120 its doable.
Butterflyfish may or may not eat coral. It all depends on the fish.
I would not keep a blue tang in a 120. Blue tangs grow fast and you may not have your bigger tank ready. 4 feet of lateral swimming space is not enough for a large tang like a blue tang. As a fishkeeper, I believe you need to balance your wants vs your fishes needs and make the right choice,
Other than that your stock looks great.

Good luck and Happy Reefing

 

[therealman1]

I would get the idol from a seller that makes sure it is eating before they sell it. I would make sure to have a few different live foods on hand before it arrives as well. Do you have a recommended order of additions?

 

[Frtdrmrose7]

Actually putting a Hippo in a 120 will get you the the Tang SWAT team lol.

 

[nereefpat]

The pyramid butterfly will be fine with corals.

If you are going to upgrade, wait until after to get the hippo tang.

I'm not an idol guy, so someone else will have to help you there.

The princess damsel makes me a little nervous, since it's Pomacentrus. Make sure the tuxedo damsel is Chrysiptera and not one of the 3/4-stripe damsels.

Order would be yellow tang last, damsels next to last....The rest won't be a huge deal, one way or the other. Again, not sure where the idol fits in.

 

[Jesterrace]

The Moorish Idol drives many an experience reefer nuts since they are super finicky eaters and do not tend to ship well. I would skip it, if you weren't doing a reef I would recommend a Bannerfish as an alternative.

 

[mattzang]

if you want to read up on it or have a source you trust you could do a false moorish idol aka schooling bannerfish (heniochus diphreutes) which is reef safeish. doesn't look identical, but fairly close and apparently does a lot better in home aquariums than the idols do

problem is they seem very hard to find/ID

 

[Jesterrace]

Forgot about them. Much better alternative:

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/3111/?pcatid=3111

 

[Greneis]

Heniochis Black & White Butterfly ~ Similar in looks, but much easier.

 

[Jon Fishman]

Just googling "Morish Idol" gave me anxiety.

 

[nereefpat]

Is there a place that stocks H. diphreutes?

 

[mattzang]

Is there a place that stocks H. diphreutes?

pacificislandaquatics told me they had a couple in stock, whoever was running their facebook seemed to know how to tell them apart

someone could try marinecollectors, but idk if they know how to tell them apart

 

[Lukas75]

I might have concerns about the Cherub and Potter's in a 120 especially since Potter's are more passive and a little more finicky. The moorish idol I would just steer clear of. The blue hippo tang will go great in the bigger tank once you have it, until then I would say no. I unfortunately have experienced and seen too many times where myself and others, well intentioned enough, plan on getting a bigger tank that falls through.

 

[Lukas75]

Found this if you are serious about the idol
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/moorish-idols-impossible-to-keep.256139/

 

[therealman1]

I like the idea of growing sponges in the sump and rotating the rocks. For my wife's sake I am going to try. I will make sure to do as much reading as possible and not do any short cuts. When I am ready for an idol I will get it from a dealer and make sure that it is eating and take it home myself even if it is a few hours away. For those recommending the banner fish and others that look like the idol I appreciate it but I would like the challenge of keeping an idol, I understand that it will be difficult but I am willing to make the attempt to the best of my ability.

 

[Lukas75]

I like the idea of growing sponges in the sump and rotating the rocks. For my wife's sake I am going to try. I will make sure to do as much reading as possible and not do any short cuts. When I am ready for an idol I will get it from a dealer and make sure that it is eating and take it home myself even if it is a few hours away. For those recommending the banner fish and others that look like the idol I appreciate it but I would like the challenge of keeping an idol, I understand that it will be difficult but I am willing to make the attempt to the best of my ability.

Best of luck!