Cool Stocking Ideas for 8 Gallon Cube

[Zakary2003]

I am considering getting my dad something for his tank for Christmas. It is an 8 gallon cube saltwater tank with an oversized Aquaclear HOB filter. It just finished cycling and currently only has a super tiny locally caught cocoa damselfish, a small hitchhiker pistol shrimp from my tank, and some small blue legged hermits and astrea snails. Does anyone have some suggestions for some cool creatures I could get him for Christmas, preferably around $100 or less? I know at that tank size there's probably not room for a second fish, but I'd still appreciate any invert recommendations. His nitrates are considerably high (>50ppm) so it would have to be on the hardier end of the spectrum.

 

[BuddhaReef]

A clown goby and a shrimp goby like a hi-fin or a yasha could be cool additions. Could also fit a cleaner shrimp probably, Might be able to get all that around $100

 

[Zakary2003]

A clown goby and a shrimp goby like a hi-fin or a yasha could be cool additions. Could also fit a cleaner shrimp probably, Might be able to get all that around $100

Don't clown gobies eat other tank inhabitants? But a small goby might be cool if the damselfish leaves it alone. A yasha goby is the latest addition to my personal tank and he's super neat. I don't think the damsel would tolerate a cleaner shrimp considering what it did to peppermint shrimp when we first added it...

 

[BuddhaReef]

Clown gobies are great little inhabitants, so long as they don't get a taste for SPS polyps. They are resistant to bullying due to a nasty mucous coat, and generally peaceful.

How big is the damsel? Does it also have that aggression towards crabs? You could maybe try a coral banded shrimp or a porcelain crab, both cool inverts.

 

[Zakary2003]

Clown gobies are great little inhabitants, so long as they don't get a taste for SPS polyps. They are resistant to bullying due to a nasty mucous coat, and generally peaceful.

How big is the damsel? Does it also have that aggression towards crabs? You could maybe try a coral banded or a porcelain crab, both cool inverts.

The damsel is tiny. Like 1/2" long at most. He does not mess with crabs and might not mess with a bottom dweller fish since he mostly patrols the surface of the tank. Coral banded might actually be a great idea. They used to be his favorite member of our previous 60 gallon tank and that one had enough attitude to take the damsel down a few notches.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

For fish, clown gobies, coral crouchers, and things like Trimma or Eviota gobies could potentially work.

For inverts:

For some inverts suggestions (all but one of these should be 1" or less max):

-Dwarf Hermit Crabs (Dwarf Red Tips, Dwarf Blue Legs, Dwarf Yellow Tips, Hidden Hermits, Dwarf Zebras, etc.)
-Acropora Crabs (Trapezia spp.)
-Porcelain Crabs (typically Petrolisthes or Neopetrolisthes spp.)
-Pom Pom Crabs
-Micro Brittle Starfish
-Aquilonastra Starfish (these are known in the hobby as Asterina Starfish, and often considered pests because they reproduce so readily and frequently in our tanks).
-Rusalty's (Aquaculture Nursery Farm's) Green Lantern Shrimp
-Bumblebee Shrimp (as a note for these guys, from all verifiable accounts, while they do inspect starfish and seem to feed off of something on the starfish, they don't seem to actually do any damage to the starfish, and they don't seem to actually eat them at all)
-Sexy Shrimp (these guys technically get up to 1 1/2")
-Chitons
-Shellback Crabs (Hypoconcha spp.)
-Skeleton Shrimp (Caprella spp.)

All kinds of "pods" (Copepods, Amphipods, Isopods, etc.) would work. Plenty of snails would work, as would some limpets if you can find them. If you're willing to feed phytoplankton regularly, then you could keep some bivalves (clams, oysters, scallops, etc.), barnacles, and or feather duster worms too, several of which would be small enough to meet the criteria.

 

[kevgib67]

Rock flower anemones and some sexy shrimp for them to host.