55 Gal suggestions

[MarineTeachMills]

Hey all. I’m a high school marine science tank and have several tanks in my room. I teach the kids about tank setup and maintenance, nitrogen cycle, proper care and stocking, etc. I have 4 tanks in my room currently. One is a 20g long full of softies that I usually throw a pair of clowns in at the start of the year, an EVO V with a condi and some sexy shrimp, a spec 13.5 that’s not set up yet, and a 55 gal. Last year in the 55 I had a snowflake eel and an aptasia eating file fish and some diff inverts. The eel is home with me now and will be staying home. I’m looking for stocking suggestions. I want it to be a lively tank the kids can observe, peaceful enough for them to do the maintenance on, and fish that can survive weekends and week long breaks on auto feeders. . It will have a HOB filter and a mini protein skimmer. It will also receive weekly water changes done by the kids, and supervised by me, as well as twice weekly parameter checks and maintenance. Hit me with your best suggestions.

 

[Peace River]

#WelcometoR2R!!! Thanks for what you are doing in your classroom with the kids. Because the 55g is narrow and tall it is more of a viewing tank and less optimal for a reef. Fish that are swimmers with enough caves and other hiding spots should work well. Good luck with whatever you choose!

 

[MarineTeachMills]

#WelcometoR2R!!! Thanks for what you are doing in your classroom with the kids. Because the 55g is narrow and tall it is more of a viewing tank and less optimal for a reef. Fish that are swimmers with enough caves and other hiding spots should work well. Good luck with whatever you choose!

Yea this will be a FOWLR tank. This tank has been up and running for a year so it’s well cycled. It’s currently empty but I’m going in weekly over summer to add a nitrogen source. I’ll have clowns in my other tank. Just looking for something more fun for this tank.

 

[Peace River]

I realize that this may seem like a very unusual suggestion, but an outside-the-box approach could be to add 10-12 Gulf Killifish (Fundulus grandis), which are native to Florida, and then add extra long spawning mops and breed them in the tanks. They breed like normal killifish, except in this case they can spawn in full saltwater, where the students could pull the eggs and water incubate them in a small container (with a bit of methylene blue).

 

[larrysaltisfun]

With a lot of rock for hiding you could do dwarf angels. A flame, bi color, r no coral beauty and eibli for example… exquisite fish, with lots of nooks and crannies i think they’d coexist well

 

[Fergs]

Get a Mantis Shrimp

 

[ZC aquatics]

Get a Mantis Shrimp

That would be dangerous for the kids to do water changes don’t you think?

 

[MarineTeachMills]

That would be dangerous for the kids to do water changes don’t you think?

There’s that and it’s an old glass aquarium. I’d love to get a mantis for my room. I’ve thought about it especially since I teach them about mantis shrimp. I’d want an acrylic tank that only I maintain though.

 

[mpatterson42]

How about a blue spotted puffer? They're the puppy dogs of the saltwater aquarium world. Mine is always out and about and follows me around the tank.

 

[littlefoxx]

How about a blue spotted puffer? They're the puppy dogs of the saltwater aquarium world. Mine is always out and about and follows me around the tank.

That cant survive long periods on an auto feeder for pellets only though like OP needs. They need meaty foods and stuff to help their teeth which would be an issue in a school tank because of the amount of time no one would be there to feed it (breaks and stuff)