BEST FISH AWARDS 2021: And the award goes to.......

[Wick3d_1]

I choose mine based on behavior then looks.
My best behaved is my Starry Blenny
Most beautiful is my blue mandarin & sailfin tang
Most hardy is my long fin clowns cause they are clowns
Hardest working is my tang gang plus my foxface and my starry blenny.
Best all around is probably my starry blenny or bi color foxface.

 

[Tired]

When choosing a fish, suitability for the aquarium is most important. You can't enjoy the beauty, behavior, or anything else, if it's being bullied into never coming out or is stressed from being in too small of a tank.

Assuming all potential fish are suitable for that specific aquarium, I'd say behavior and beauty (or at least interesting appearance) are tied in my book. Depends on if I'm looking for a personality fish or just a pretty one.

I'm loving my little roughhead blenny. Like a tiny barnacle blenny. Adorable, and perfect for a pico reef.

 

[Paul B]

I go for the most unusual or rare fish. Something we almost never see in a tank

 

[jfoahs04]

I voted for "Other" - will it still fit in the aquarium when it grows up?
Some of the fish I've seen are just beautiful when they are immature and transitioning...and then they get big. I mean really big. So I always try to plan well in advance and research what size they will end up as an adult to make sure I can support them comfortably throughout their life.
Cheers,
Ray

This is basically what I put. As long as I'm constrained by tank size, "will it thrive long-term in my tank?" is question number one. Behavior, hardiness, beauty, etc. are all follow ups. My opinions:

BEST BEHAVIOR: I love Tailspot blennies. They don't bug anyone (fish, inverts, or corals), they are quirky and goofy, and they're always watching like a grumpy old man who sees neighborhood kids getting too close to his lawn. Runner up for me are clowns. They are like the derpy golden retrievers of the sea, but they can be aggressive sometimes.

MOST BEAUTIFUL: Queen Angelfish. Blue Mandarin is a close 2nd for me.

MOST HARDY: Basically any damsel is bulletproof. I've never seen a dead one (even during my first attempts at SW tanks) and I can't be sure they're not invincible.

MOST HARD WORKING: I don't know - aptasia eating filefish are impressive. I've borrowed a few. Gobies can be pretty busy too.

BEST ALL AROUND: I'm partial to Mocha and Orange Storm clowns. They're beautiful, their behavior is generally awesome, they're pretty solid in terms of hardiness. I don't know if they're the most hard working, but they're active and fun to watch.

 

[saltyhog]

Every single one of those attributes are important. It's a compromise/combination of attributes that go in to the decision for me.

Behavior/Hard working....I have a Gold Rim tang that to me is quite beautiful but obviously not considered the most attractive of tangs. However, he is an algae eating machine. Any kind of algae (bubble algae, hair algae, you name it). He's one of the most treasured fish in my tank despite being a little bit of a typical Acanthurus jerk.

Hardiness...This has to be important if we are responsible. A fish that's not appropriate for your tank is never a good choice no matter how many other boxes it checks. Way too often we/I choose fish on my desire, not which ones will do well in the tank.

Price.....unfortunate reality. We have to stay in our budget (though I did buy a captive bred Dejongi Basslet for my nano a few months ago) ;Smuggrin

Beauty.....I just added the fish that first attracted me to the hobby, a mandarin. I don't think there is a more unique or beautiful fish that's common in the hobby. Hate that I had to reduce my Halichoeres and leopard wrasse populations to achieve it but still glad I did.

 

[Treefer32]

Most beautiful: My black long nose tang (also the best behaved Tang I've ever seen and the hardiest fish I've ever had).
Hardest worker: My starry blenny and lawnmower blenny. They are kissing my glass all day and night.. They work hard!
IN between hard worker and beautiful: My CBB. He destroyed thousands of Aiptasia. He's awesome personality and great fun fish to watch.

I prefer fish that are pretty but won't eat my corals and have a good personality..

I have a goby and pistol shrimp that I see once every 6 months. Is he in the tank? sure, maybe? But no one sees him.

 

[Jeffcb]

Best Behavior:

Most Beautiful:

Most Hardy:

Hardest Working: Tangs

Best All Around Lips:

 

[Susan Edwards]

I also voted other as I take it all into consideration. Probably top two is what they do and behavior and looks.
BEST BEHAVIOR: My mandarin and clowns, although the clowns are meanies to my poor hard-working hand in the tank lol's.

MOST BEAUTIFUL: Mandarin and my coral beauty. The coral beauty was on my "must have" list and is growing into a stunningly beautiful fish. Had a scooter blenny who didn't look like much until he did his "dance" and revealed his beautiful colors on his fins. Shocked me the first time I saw it.

MOST HARDY: Agree on damsels which include clowns. Had a clown stuck in my overflow for close to 6 months. 2 months or so I didn't even know it was in there and wasn't feeding, so it was living on what came through the overflow weir! I have a yellow tail damsel, one of my original fish from early 2017

MOST HARD WORKING: My sand sifter I had worked all day. Need another. Tangs too, although my algae was so bad they didn't keep up lol's.

BEST ALL AROUND: no way to pick one!! I had anthias in the past, and plan to get more when my new tank arrives. I love anthias for swimming behavior and also love tangs. Each fish adds to the fascinating tank life

Edit: Sun corals for beauty as well. Love them

 

[Petrichor]

Other: tank compatibility, including with current and/or future residents.

 

[Rocketfish]

BEST BEHAVIOR:

MOST BEAUTIFUL:

MOST HARDY:

MOST HARD WORKING:

BEST ALL AROUND:

While I generally agree with your list, I am among the group that is regularly attacked by a clown in either of my tanks when doing maintenance!

That said, they seem to behave around other fish, just not my hands!

 

[Rocketfish]

I have always wanted a powder blue tang, but I am concerned about behavior issues. I know all of them aren't mean so I will wait until I have all the others I would like then get a powder blue.

Meanwhile, I started with utility then moved to beauty right away. Reef compatibility does limit what I would eventually like to have so perhaps in the future I will have a fish-only tank to accommodate the others!

 

[Theulli]

Other: what my son does and does not green light

 

[ultraArcite]

I am only nominating fish that I currently own.

BEST BEHAVIOR:

Yellow Tang, he will actually break up fights between our Royal Gramma and Roland's Damselfish

MOST BEAUTIFUL:

Royal Gramma, this is the fish that convinced me to get a reef tank. My financée will tell you it's the Mandarin Dragonettes though.

MOST HARDY:

Banggai Cardinalfish, our female was sick multiple times and pulled through every time. She was harassed by the male and moved to and from QT multiple times.

MOST HARD WORKING:

Yellow Tang, as previously mentioned, breaks up fights but also goes to town on our algae.

BEST ALL AROUND:

I'd guess I have to say our Yellow Tang with an honorable mention to our Royal Gramma.

 

[rustyreefer]

I voted other. 1st is always compatibility with other fish/coral already in the tank.

 

[Dbichler]

My personal all around best of all categories

 

[Mr_Knightley]

I like fish with more muted colors so that their personalities can shine bright. Bright, obnoxious fish, even if they have nice personalities, are often just too much for me.

BEHAVIOR: Tetradontidae has the coolest fish behavior wise. I've only ever owned one, the Redtail Trigger, and it was one of the most intelligent fish ever. They've got great color and amazing, soul searching eyes. They make full eye contact with you and are tremendously curious. When I have another big tank I'm definitely going to get another one. Anthias are also in this category, they are surprisingly intelligent and have amazing eyes.

BEAUTY: Centropyge angelfish, no contest here at all. Amazing colors and patterns that catch the eye, and they are also quite smart for their size and have bunches of personality. If I had to pick a second place, then Pink Skunk clownfish would take the cake here. Gorgeous pastel pink color with a delicate white 'necklace'.

HARDINESS: This may be controversial, but the hardiest fish I've ever owned (and still own) in my cleaner wrasse. He got through two Ich outbreaks like a champ and is able to find food in the rocks when I forget to feed. As with all of my entries he's got loads of personality as well.

BEST WORKER: Tied between my cleaner and my lawnmower blenny. Both do their jobs well and keep my tank healthy and clean.

PRICE: Captive bred mandarins are coming down in price by the day, and they are amazing, personality filled fish. In my area a CB target mandarin is around $30, which is far lower than even wild caught mandarins were 4 years ago.

BEST ALL AROUND: That's a hard question. Dartfish, clowns, wrasses and cardinals are great fish that work in almost any system. They are all widely available and come in every color you would ever want. They've all got personality and are generally hardy too.

 

[Flame2hawk]

While I picked behavior, it could have also been beauty or other as there are many equally important aspects to consider.


BEST BEHAVIOR: scribble and goldflake angel

MOST BEAUTIFUL: achillies and gem tang

MOST HARDY: blonde naso

MOST HARD WORKING: diamond goby

BEST ALL AROUND: achillies

 

[Anchor]

Maybe I read the question incorrectly but how can you buy a fish that does not fit several of those categories? The hardest working, best looking, hardiest for the price fish you can get.. that you actually still want.. which is also an important factor. If you don't want it, all the other stuff doesn't matter, right? And, if it is something you want but doesnt fit any of those categories.. well, so what? Do you really have to have it fit those slots to be worth your buying it? What if it is great at picking algae but is butt ugly? Can you still get it case maybe you like butt ugly fish but dont care about the algae part of it?

Would that be considered a new biotope? The Butt Ugly fish tank? I might do this.. But no carnivores.. so.. Pajama cardinal is butt ugly to me.. but I dont like them. so I would not include it. Man just too subjective.

 

[Leo_ian]

best behaviour:
gramma
prettiest:
mandarin
hardiest:
neon goby
most hard working:
mandarin(always eating)
most value for money:
spriger damsel
best all around:
flasher wrasse

 

[nbrady]

Most beautiful: subjective to ones taste, imo.

Most hardy: my blue green chromis.

Hardest working: Tangs and my diamond goby in my frag system.

Price: clowns

What kind of black and white tang is that ?