Ideal fish for nano tanks?

[Sinkers]

Hey guys,

Wondering what are some nice colourful fish suitable for a nano tank that swim in the upper water column?

I was also considering a flame hawk as a bottom dwelling fish but not sure how it would go with a cleaner shrimp? Anyone had any bad experiences with a flame hawk?

Open to other suggestions.

 

[fishywishy]

How big is the tank?

 

[Sinkers]

How big is the tank?

25G Peninsula

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Personally I would not put a flame hawk into that tank, it will be cramped and unhappy, and might become aggressive towards other fish. Stick to nano fish for that size tank.... gobies, blennies, cardinala's, clowns, etc....

 

[Sinkers]

Personally I would not put a flame hawk into that tank, it will be cramped and unhappy, and might become aggressive towards other fish. Stick to nano fish for that size tank.... gobies, blennies, cardinala's, clowns, etc....

Flame hawks aren't a nano fish?

 

[fishywishy]

Flame hawks aren't a nano fish?

No. One might be ok in a 25 gal but I think they need at least a 30 gal, and in that small tank your cleaner shrimp is a goner.

Wondering what are some nice colourful fish suitable for a nano tank that swim in the upper water column?

These are some good options:
Sapphire damsel
Pygmy angel
Fire fish
Possum wrasse
Blackline blenny
Tail spot blenny

 

[Daz_1978]

The Hawk Fish would really appreciate the Cleaner Shrimp... Free food! They are really cool fish though! I have a Longnose Hawkfish and so far it hasn't eaten my Blood Red Fire Shrimp. Peppermint (the Longnose Hawkfish) is well fed though! And the shrimp hides all the stinking time anyways...

Clownfish are good for small tanks... but you probably already know that and are looking for other options.

How close is your LFS? How attached do you become to fish?

This will be an unpopular opinion, but you could get really small fish that will outgrow the tank and simply take them to the LFS before they get too cramped. Some fish may outgrow that tank in 6 months, some may take a couple years.

 

[dedragon]

I was also considering a flame hawk as a bottom dwelling fish but not sure how it would go with a cleaner shrimp? Anyone had any bad experiences with a flame hawk?

Ive never had one as ive heard they can eat cleaner shrimp and small fish like gobies. Probably not the best fish for a nano

 

[Sinkers]

No. One might be ok in a 25 gal but I think they need at least a 30 gal, and in that small tank your cleaner shrimp is a goner.

These are some good options:
Sapphire damsel
Pygmy angel
Fire fish
Possum wrasse
Blackline blenny
Tail spot blenny

Noted. I thought 30G is still considered a nano tank, so flame hawks could be suitable. However, mine is 5G shy of that so will give it a miss.

Will have a look at some of those others you mentioned.

Tailspot Blenny was one I was tossing up between that or the flame hawk so maybe I'll get one of those. They are hard to come by in Australia.

 

[RotherhamReefer]

Following as I’d like one last fish to add to my Nano tank.

Never considered the Pygmy Angelfish before. Don’t they need much more space? And can’t they nibble away at coral?

 

[KeremAltinbasak]

Hi buddy

Damsels are definitely not :) There may be species such as clowns, watchmans and firegoby. Dwarf angels maybe, but I have a feeling they are aggressive.
If you like extreme like me, you can also add tiny size bluetang (provided that you remove it when you grow up).

 

[Sinkers]

Following as I’d like one last fish to add to my Nano tank.

Never considered the Pygmy Angelfish before. Don’t they need much more space? And can’t they nibble away at coral?

From what I have read, yes they can nibble at coral. The sapphire damsel looks nice though to.

 

[ChiCity]

Flame hawks aren't a nano fish?

no, but geometric pygmy hawkfish are…

they’re considered to be more of an anthias
still, they’re close enough to a hawk in behavior

 

[RotherhamReefer]

From what I have read, yes they can nibble at coral. The sapphire damsel looks nice though to.

They look like lovely fish, but I don’t want to put anything in that isn’t reef safe .

It’s good to see other suggestions than the norm of royal gramma, blennies etc though, as before I add the final fish, I want to make sure I choose the perfect one.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

You could always go with
Blennys
Gobies
Clowns
Firefish
Damsels (not a fan of these fish due to aggression)

 

[Should I]

candy basslet ultimate nano fish

 

[Sinkers]

Hi buddy

Damsels are definitely not :) There may be species such as clowns, watchmans and firegoby. Dwarf angels maybe, but I have a feeling they are aggressive.
If you like extreme like me, you can also add tiny size bluetang (provided that you remove it when you grow up).

What do you mean about damsels? They are not suitable for nano tank? That sapphire one stays small.

I'd prefer not to stress a blue tang in a small tank. Would consider a Royal Gramma maybe.

 

[RotherhamReefer]

candy basslet ultimate nano fish

I’ve just looked at the price of those!! I’ll pass on that I think… haha

 

[Should I]

I’ve just looked at the price of those!! I’ll pass on that I think… haha

i had 1 it died within a month :(

 

[Sinkers]

You could always go with
Blennys
Gobies
Clowns
Firefish
Damsels (not a fan of these fish due to aggression)

Are sapphire damsel aggressive?

I think I will get a Tailspot Blenny, they seem to be pretty chill.