Mean Flame Angel - Stocking Question

[mpoletiek]

Hello!

So here's the current stocking in my waterbox 165. See layout in the build thread linked in my profile....

2 clowns
1 blue hippo tang
1 flame angel
4 yellow tail damsels
1 six line wrasse
2 emerald crabs
1 yellow watchman goby
1 pistol shrimp.

They've all been living together great for about a month now, but recently I've noticed the flame angel is beginning to terrorize the yellow tail damsels.

We're seeing nipped tails and now marks on their side. The side mark can be due to the rocks. The blue hippo got itself good when we first put it in the tank. No coralline algae yet.

But I've seen the flame angel chase a damsel the other day for a good 5-10 seconds. This is definitely "new" behavior.

I'm wondering how I might tame the flame angel a bit. Maybe more damsels? Or do they need a bigger bully?

Thoughts?

Thanks

 

[Ranjib]

feed more often in smaller quantities. if their stomach is full there will less violence.

 

[MattRG]

I would make sure you have lots of hiding places, like barnacles and small caves for the damsels. I have 6 of them, with flame angel and 3 other angels. If anything, my damsels all find new places to set their territory when I rearrange the rocks, caves. It took me a little bit of getting 6 that got along well enough to not kill each other, I had two chasing each other in circles going crazy for a bit, but they all ended up finding new places to call their own. My flame just gets ticked when one of them comes out of a barnacle and goes after it, but generally leaves them alone.