Anthias question

[t blackwell]

I recently added two anthias to my 220..a bimaculatus female and a male lyretail. I saw no aggression the first day or two ..and nothing bad after that..just my wrasse swimming at them once in a blue moon..nothing concerning..needless to say..the lyretail male but the dust on day three..he seemed fine but on the third day he was cleary in trouble and didnt make the day. I dont know if he got beat up or just didnt make it from the stress of shipping and so on. I am new to anthias but I loved them and Im bummed..the bimaculatus female seems to be doing ok..I am curious..if I buy another female will they likely fight? or will one possibly turn into a male after a while assuming they got along.

I am thinking about getting a squarespot male and one or two females to go with it....anyone have any info about the squarespots..if you buy two larger female squares will they likely fight..and or will one likely become male? Im just curious as sometimes its hard to find males for sale...if I get the male and female they should do ok dont you think..anthias people let me hear from you please

 

[Seawitch]

I'm wondering if @eatbreakfast or @4FordFamily or @fabutahoun could answer this?

 

[eatbreakfast]

Anthias are haremic, not pair forming, so only having 2 isn't usually a successful endeavor.

Bimaculatus anthias are a large bodied anthias, so can be pretty assertive to other anthias varieties. If you want more bimacs then get at minimum 2 females. Over time one will likely transition to male.

Pink square anthias are very closely related to bimacs, so in most cases a male bimac and pink square won't work out longterm. One male will be dominant and force the other into hiding and it's color will fade.

 

[Seawitch]

Anthias are haremic, not pair forming, so only having 2 isn't usually a successful endeavor.

Bimaculatus anthias are a large bodied anthias, so can be pretty assertive to other anthias varieties. If you want more bimacs then get at minimum 2 females. Over time one will likely transition to male.

Pink square anthias are very closely related to bimacs, so in most cases a male bimac and pink square won't work out longterm. One male will be dominant and force the other into hiding and it's color will fade.

Thank you, @eatbreakfast

 

[ChristopherKriens]

My experience with Bimaculatus in a mixed Anthias environment was that they were very docile toward other species despite their size.

If you want to add another female or two, just try and add them with some size differential so they settle into the hierarchy with minimal conflict. Bimacs fighting for dominance is a pretty rough and taxing endeavor. I ended up with two very similar in size by accident a few years ago and it took quite awhile before the female decided she was fine with second place.

 

[ca1ore]

I always buy female anthias and let them decide. With bimacs, at least for me, once a female turns male it generally lasts about six months and then croaks - not really sure why. Male squares are very twitchy.

 

[fabutahoun]

You Can mix females from different species without any problem. Most Impotently you can keep just one male. If there is no male the most dominant female will turn to male.

 

[t blackwell]

Anthias are haremic, not pair forming, so only having 2 isn't usually a successful endeavor.

Bimaculatus anthias are a large bodied anthias, so can be pretty assertive to other anthias varieties. If you want more bimacs then get at minimum 2 females. Over time one will likely transition to male.

Pink square anthias are very closely related to bimacs, so in most cases a male bimac and pink square won't work out longterm. One male will be dominant and force the other into hiding and it's color will fade.

thank you..I have one female bimaculatus my first anthia..just had it about a week...I had a lyretail male that I got at the same time but he bit the dust...I thought of getting a couple more and I originally wanted a large square spot..so the male square spot and female bimac should not have issues ...I think I am going to just get one or two other kinds of anthias..that way i shouldnt have to deal with the hierarchy within each family maybe not working out..for example..if I have one bimaculatus female and I add say a large square spot male..and then maybe and ignitus or some other type male or female..would that work..I was thinking about one male pinksquare and two females..but im thinkning now from what everyone said..thats asking for trouble...

 

[t blackwell]

I always buy female anthias and let them decide. With bimacs, at least for me, once a female turns male it generally lasts about six months and then croaks - not really sure why. Male squares are very twitchy.

thank you everyone for weighing in....Im trying to figure out something that will work...my solon fairy wrasse had been a little aggressive since I added them(anthias) ..though I didnt see him beating up on the lyretail i lost...I also lost an exquisite wrasse in the same group..no body..no sign of him anywhere after the second day..the whole time I never saw any chasing or harassing..he is just gone ( dead I guess but I looked all over every day and no body) alas...dont fairy wrasses usually get along in a large tank...