My first FOWLR
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- Thread starter Euphyllia97
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FOWLRs can be sooooo exciting! Pick your fish wisely, so you get what you want before the tank fills up/encounters aggression issues. Are you leaning more toward many smaller fish, or fewer (but larger) fish? 
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Euphyllia97
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I’m really looking forward to my first angel or butterfly :D I’m leaning towards 2/3 bigger fish. The tank is a 5ft. So I was thinking of keeping a racoon butterfly, blue tang (with possibility of rehousing to a bigger tank) a smaller type of angel and a valentini puffer.FOWLRs can be sooooo exciting! Pick your fish wisely, so you get what you want before the tank fills up/encounters aggression issues. Are you leaning more toward many smaller fish, or fewer (but larger) fish?
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What size tank am I looking at there... a 120-gallon? I am completely re-doing both my 150s ("The Great Heater Disaster of 2025"), and this time I think both FOWLERs will be Butterfly-dominant. In fact, each tank will probably get a Tomini Tang and a Longnose or Flame Hawk, and the rest Butterflies. I have gotten some nice ones from Reef Beauties-- via UPS to an anchor location (CVR drugstore) near me. One thing I would recommend to you, or at least note, is to be conscious of the size difference between Butterfly fish. Basically keep an eye on whether you are getting a typical 5-6" fish (as an adult) or a 7-10" fish. I saw an Ornate Butterfly at my LFS this weekend that was huge; and I have grown a H. Singularis (Bannerfish) to the size of a small dinner plate. That Raccoon you talked about can get big. Something like a Dot-Dash Butterfly should stay small. I am quarantining mine as I get them. It's boring-- but to me, worth it.
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Euphyllia97
FOWLR and reef member
Tank is 140 and sump about 25 gallons. Still looking at alternatives for the racoon butterfly. Would love to have one that can get adult size in this new FOWLR. I do have a 180 available which I would like to turn into a predator tank. Still have some research to do on those species! Dot-dash looks like a better option indeed, not sure if they are easy to find here in Europe. Any fish that you have had any experience with that I should definitely stay away from?
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Oh, interesting-- I only guessed 120 because it looked slightly smaller than a 150. Well, I spent a TON of time checking out Butterfly fish to better narrow down the direction I wanted to go. Basically I went to Saltwater Fish, Live Aquaria, and every other website I could find, then watched a bunch of videos, and made myself a spreadsheet. That's where I saw a pattern develop-- commonly available, hardy Butterflies that either stayed small or got large-- and prices. My Threadfin, for example, will get large, and the Pearlscale will stay small. I also just got a Longnose Butterfly that will get large, and I like the Lattice Butterfly as a smaller fish. The Dot-Dash and Lattice can be kept in multiples, from what I understand. I have two Dot-Dash in a 15 gal. QT right now, no conflicts.
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Zionas
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@JumboShrimp Any updates on your newest batch of Butterflies? How’s the Longnose doing? Any difficulty getting it (or the others) to eat both dry and frozen?
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Hey there. How are things going in your end? The Longnose Butterfly is in the DT doing great, and I'm looking forward to him growing bigger; seems to be a slow-grower, but it's about patience, right? Currently I have a Raccoon Butterfly in my 15 gallon all-in-one QT, and he's an excellent eater. Even after General Cure, and now Copper. (While I haven't actually seen him eat Nori from the clip, I presume he is eating it because it slowly disappears. And of course they say they are basically nocturnal, so that could be when he picks at it.) I am pretty disappointed with myself though… I bought a nice Double Saddleback Butterfly from a LFS that looked good in the store. I brought him home and put him in a well-cycled 30 gallon BioCube as a 'holding tank' while I had my QT in use for the Raccoon. Well, long story short, the Saddleback clearly developed Ick and rather than start treating immediately I kept putting it off, saying 'I'll get to it tomorrow, I'll get to it tomorrow.' He died and it's all my fault. So I lost a nice $120.00 fish through my own stupidity/inaction.
Also, if you can believe this, the fish I put in there and had going strong for about four months was a Tomini Tang. I noticed after the Pearlscale Butterfly went in, the Tomini developed a frayed rear fin. I'm pretty sure he kept getting nipped at by the Pearlscale but only when I wasn't watching. Eventually the Tang died! Imagine-- a Butterfly harassing a Tang to death? (Both were about the same size.)
What have you stocked your tank with so far?
Also, if you can believe this, the fish I put in there and had going strong for about four months was a Tomini Tang. I noticed after the Pearlscale Butterfly went in, the Tomini developed a frayed rear fin. I'm pretty sure he kept getting nipped at by the Pearlscale but only when I wasn't watching. Eventually the Tang died! Imagine-- a Butterfly harassing a Tang to death? (Both were about the same size.)
What have you stocked your tank with so far?
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