65 gallon reef stocking overview/advice

[Thanos]

Just wanted to get some final advice on my planned stocking list for my 65 gallon community reef tank. I'm a beginner and this is my first saltwater tank so if you see any glaring issues please let me know.

Fish I already have:
2 Ocellaris Clownfish
1 Royal Gramma

CUC I already have:
3 Red-Foot Hermits
1 Juvenile Black Longspined Sea Urchin - ik these guys are often avoided in favor of pincushions/tuxedos but I don't like how those 2 tend to become rolling balls of debris, plus I absolutely love watching the long-spined variants, I find them really mesmerizing.

Fish I plan to get:
2 Banggai Cardinal Fish
1 Carpenter Flasher Wrasse
1 Juvenile Blue Tang - My LFS which has been in business for 30+ plus years allows trade-ins in which I can get one 2-3 inches long and trade it in for a younger one once it outgrows my tank. My parents insisted on a vibrant blue-colored fish and since the only other real option is playing Russian Roulette with damsels, this seems like a very sound choice.

CUC I plan to get:
1 Fighter Conch
5 Astrea Snails
1 Cleaner Shrimp
3 More Hermits

So yeah that's the current plan with stocking. Any feedback is greatly appreciated. My only fear right now is that the tank might be slightly overstocked, but better I find that out now than after I add my final fish. If you have any alternative suggestions for anything I'd love to hear them.

 

[davidcalgary29]

Skip the tang and get another fish. No, really. You'll be much happier (and so will the fish) if you don't have to trade it in in a year or two.

How about a dwarf angel? Many aquarists refuse to have them in their tanks because they fear that they'll nibble on their coral...but then will turn around and buy a matted filefish as a preventative measure to combat possible future aiptasia problems. Well, I did the same thing -- and the filefish avoided all the aiptasia, ate my berghia nudibranchs, and destroyed my acans. I'd go with a flameback angel -- they're spectacular -- but coral beauties are worth a look, too, especially as more captive-bred specimens are coming on the market.

Banggai cardinals aren't the most...kinetic of fish. I'd go for a blenny or gobies or a pair of captive-bred orchid dottybacks or anything else that will add life or excitement to a tank. If you need a shoaling cardinalfish, I'd go with the Seale's cardinalfish, which are at least more exciting to watch.

Skip the astrea snails and get ten banded trochus snails. You don't have to flip them over, and they'll probably breed in your tank. That's a definite plus.

Hermit crabs can be questionable -- they'll probably eat other members of your CUC, and can go after coral.

 

[Thanos]

Skip the tang and get another fish. No, really. You'll be much happier (and so will the fish) if you don't have to trade it in in a year or two.

How about a dwarf angel? Many aquarists refuse to have them in their tanks because they fear that they'll nibble on their coral...but then will turn around and buy a matted filefish as a preventative measure to combat possible future aiptasia problems. Well, I did the same thing -- and the filefish avoided all the aiptasia, ate my berghia nudibranchs, and destroyed my acans. I'd go with a flameback angel -- they're spectacular -- but coral beauties are worth a look, too, especially as more captive-bred specimens are coming on the market.

Banggai cardinals aren't the most...kinetic of fish. I'd go for a blenny or gobies or a pair of captive-bred orchid dottybacks or anything else that will add life or excitement to a tank. If you need a shoaling cardinalfish, I'd go with the Seale's cardinalfish, which are at least more exciting to watch.

Skip the astrea snails and get ten banded trochus snails. You don't have to flip them over, and they'll probably breed in your tank. That's a definite plus.

Hermit crabs can be questionable -- they'll probably eat other members of your CUC, and can go after coral.

Like I said, my parents are basically forcing me to get a vibrant blue-fish and the blue tang currently seems like my most logical option. Dwarf angels are stunning, albeit I still prefer the blue tang coloration, but as you said they're known to nibble on coral, and it's not like I'm throwing other coral-eating fish in. I have heard that captive bred coral beauties are less likely to eat coral but it's still a legitimate possibility.

I completely agree that Banggai Cardinals are a bit too boring to watch but I really want a fish that will occupy the middle-top level of my tank and swim out in the open. It could be because my clownfish are still doing the classic corner huddling thing that they're known for but my tanks seems super empty outside that corner (doesn't help the Gramma's favorite cave is also next to that corner).

Forgot that astrea snails can't self-right, thanks for reminding me. And yeah I have been hearing that hermits have aggression issues despite how good they are at their job. What kinds of alternatives would you recommend over them to serve as an all-around detritivore?

 

[davidcalgary29]

Nassarius snails will certainly clean up any leftover food, and a tuxedo urchin will take care of many types of nuisance algae.

It sounds like you've already decided on the tang and the cardinals, so there isn't much more to say about that. You should know, though, that tangs are large, powerful swimmers and can bring their own aggression issues to a tank -- and not just to other fish that threaten their food source or share their body shape. My midsize p. hepatacus just charges after my gold headed sleeper goby whenever it sees it. Fortunately, that doesn't happen very often -- and the goby is a pretty big specimen -- but it's still unnerving to see. It's sort of kept in line by a fat and bossy Lamarck's angel, and I can only see an angelfish being able to do that. I can't see any springeri damsel bringing as much drama to a tank as a blue tang might do.

 

[Bars]

Get an azure damsel for that splash of blue instead of the tang. They're gorgeous and not problematic at all. I'd say my flasher wrasses (blue flasher, yellow flasher and mccoskeri) actually annoyed their tank mates more than the azure. He just chills around his rock and doesn't bother anyone. He'll only defend his home if someone feels like stealing it.

I've kept the damsel with a gramma as well. They were actually very similar in behavior. After a week of acting tough they settled in and only ocassionally had a little argument.

 

[Thanos]

Nassarius snails will certainly clean up any leftover food, and a tuxedo urchin will take care of many types of nuisance algae.

It sounds like you've already decided on the tang and the cardinals, so there isn't much more to say about that. You should know, though, that tangs are large, powerful swimmers and can bring their own aggression issues to a tank -- and not just to other fish that threaten their food source or share their body shape. My midsize p. hepatacus just charges after my gold headed sleeper goby whenever it sees it. Fortunately, that doesn't happen very often -- and the goby is a pretty big specimen -- but it's still unnerving to see. It's sort of kept in line by a fat and bossy Lamarck's angel, and I can only see an angelfish being able to do that. I can't see any springeri damsel bringing as much drama to a tank as a blue tang might do.

Probably not going to get 2 urchins since they're just going to starve each other out, my tiny one has been absolutely bulldozing the algae out of my tank making the "ugly stage" non-existent and at this rate he'll need seaweed in a few weeks. I'll keep nassarius's in mind though.

Rather than 2 cardinals I'm also considering just doing 1 firefish. Should help make sure the tank isn't overstocked and from what I've seen they're pretty active. The tang I'm definitely a bit leery wish in terms of aggression, and it's definitely going in the tank dead-last. It's not so much that I'm dead set on it tbh, it's more that my parents are dead set. I'm thinking that I get a small one and then just cut my losses and take it back in a month if it gets aggressive. Springer's are typically peaceful and their flatworm control is a nice plus, but the coloration isn't the greatest. Someone in this thread mentioned Azure's which I've considered as they seem to be towards the peaceful end of damsels, although there's still a fair amount of horror stories. My main issue with damsels is the combo of aggression and the difficulty in removing them from the system. If I get a blue tang and it's a bully it sucks that I'm down $120 but at least it's not super difficult to remove, unlike damsels which are apparently nigh-impossible to get out once introduced.

 

[commanderwho]

Like I said, my parents are basically forcing me to get a vibrant blue-fish and the blue tang currently seems like my most logical option. Dwarf angels are stunning, albeit I still prefer the blue tang coloration, but as you said they're known to nibble on coral, and it's not like I'm throwing other coral-eating fish in. I have heard that captive bred coral beauties are less likely to eat coral but it's still a legitimate possibility.

I completely agree that Banggai Cardinals are a bit too boring to watch but I really want a fish that will occupy the middle-top level of my tank and swim out in the open. It could be because my clownfish are still doing the classic corner huddling thing that they're known for but my tanks seems super empty outside that corner (doesn't help the Gramma's favorite cave is also next to that corner).

Forgot that astrea snails can't self-right, thanks for reminding me. And yeah I have been hearing that hermits have aggression issues despite how good they are at their job. What kinds of alternatives would you recommend over them to serve as an all-around detritivore?

Probably to late but don’t go with what your parents say just because they want some blue in the tank. Go with what you have been researching on what species is best for your size tank. You may grow attach to fish that needs a bigger tank and getting a bigger tank is not always possible do to space or budget.